Omaha daily bee., 1910-03-18
Slashing Red Tape
proposed Reorganization OF
the Business Methods Of the
union Pacific Railroad.



One Of the most radical and interesting
departures in the theory and practice OF
business organization IS being worked out
on the Union Pacific railroad. 1t Is known
as the unit system Of organization" and
while It comes as a relief to the more
rigidly organized businesses, II is not with
out It's significance for large business oper-
atlons in general.
II is not, TO tell the truth, very we'll de-
scribed by its name. Nobody would guess
what the scheme comprised from looking
at Its title. But II can be explained sim
ply as an attempt to unite the minor ex-
ecutive officers of the division I'm working
Tor the interests Of the company instead
OF for their own particular department
In spite Of vast deal Of nonsense about
It's system" the average large organiza-
tion is frequently built UP on the most
| completely feudal lines There is the big
boss at the top and a handful Of depart
ment bosses below, each endeayorlng to
make a showing for his own department.
each one Jealous Of Interference and quite
unable to prevent the company's affairs
in general from going to pieces II the crisis
in question does not come clearly within
his province. The relation between these
minor barons is formal In the extreme
Letters pass back and forth; the files are
glutted with correspondence tending to ex-
hibit the demands and performances Of
my department" and the red tape which
the American business man processes to
scorn is woven in and out and around about
some Of the simplest family" transactions
That is the sort Of thing which the Union
Pacific railroad hopes to abolish through
the uIV 90
the new scheme the minor executive Of
ficers Of each divlsion-the master me
chanic, train master, division engineer.
chief dispatcher and what not-are made
assistant superintendents. While each one
OF these assistant superintendents is still
interested primarily in his own department,
ne nevertheless has the power and author
ity, when necessary, to step into any situa-
tion and command 1t. II he happens to be
on the spot at an ugly mix-up at the
roundhouse he can take charge until the
right man reaches the spot. Each is en-
couraged to work and think for the whole
division, and not, primarily, for his own
department.
Major Charles Hines, who has been work
ing out the details of the scheme. gave the
Western Railway club fairly typical illus
tration of the situation which they hope
to meet:
But now, when we have blockade IN
stead OF having TO send two or three Of
ficials to one place, we hope that one man
can perhaps go down and clean It up If
required by stress of weather or otherwise
we can scatter our officials where they can
do the most good. We have probably all
or us been through blockades we have
probably all chased around engine houses
at or o'clock in the morning, and we
nave heard man say: Now, this is not
up to my department, 1t Is UP to the other;
my part is all right And some railroads
nave gotten up a special blank to show
whether the engine was ready first or
whether the train was ready first, and
there Is long argument as to how many
hours the power was in service and the
result Is that they chase the engines out on
the road and they die because there is a
blockade of trains there. We expect tu
eliminate this whole question of whether
the train. was ready first or the engine was
ready first We claim that the time Of our
officials is too valuable to continue to be |
taken up In these personal-that is what
they amount to-differences of opinion as
to why certain things were or were not
done, We want to move the train, and not |
talk so much about why 1t did not move. !
That is what we are all here for-to move |
the train"
The simplifieation has been real It is !