The Washington times., 1937-01-12

whole IN Its practical operation
The conclusion follows:
Your committee has no illusions
about setting up perfect system
of administrative management,
for we realize fully that any sub
stantial improvement is a task
which will require time for it's
achievement and that other prob
lens will always be emerging. To
revive the dropping merit system,
to straighten out warped lines of
responsibility, to simplify a topsy-
turvey organization growth-these
are by no means simple advances.
Better Service Aim
Moreover, these changes cannot
be adopted and maintained unless
the American public itself fully ap-
preciateS the advantages Of good
management and insists upon get
ting them. The need for reorgan-
ization rests not alone on the idea
of savings, considerable as they
will be, but upon better service to
society. While good management
is important to those who have
much, it is still more important
to those who have not or have
little; for they need the help Of
government in their struggle for
justice, security, steadier employ
ment, better living and working
conditions, and a growing share of
the gains of civilization.
In order to avoid any misunder-
standings, it must be made per-
fectly clear that it was not the task
of this committee to determine
whether particular activities of
the Government should or should
not continue in operation or upon
what scale of magnitude. This is
an important question of policy
determination which fell outside
the field Of our undertaking. 1t
has been our problem to consider
what forms of administrative man.
agement are most suitable, given
such governmental activities as
there are. AS the work of the Gov.
ernment changes, the form of
management will alter somewhat
although not greatly unless the
changes are considerable.
Savings Not Estimated
It will be noted that we have
made no estimate of the amount
of money that will be saved by
such a rearrangement and re.
organization of the Executive
Branch as we have suggested. We
have not made such an estimate
for two reasons, despite the fact
that we are convinced that the
establishment of the managerial
agencies and the reorganization
Of the administrative departments
that we have recommended will
result in large savings, not only
of money, but of time and effort.
The two reasons that we have
not made such an estimate are as
follows:
First, the scope of our inquiry
was limited to the realm of ad.
m1niStrative management and ex-
cluded the realm of policy. It
would have been easy to say that
so much might be saved by utterly
aboliShing this, that, or the other
activity of the Government. But
this was not our task. We have
been charged with the duty of
suggesting means of making more
effective, more efficient, and more
economical the machinery for
administering whatever activities
have been decided upon by the
people, the Congress, and the
President.
Executive Direction
Second, It has been demon
strated over and over again in
large organizations of every type
in business and in government
that genuine savings in operation
and true economics are to be
achieved only by the provision of
adequate managerial machinery
which will afford an opportunity
for central executive direction to
pursue day after day and year
after year, in season and out of
season, the task Of cutting costs,
of improving the service, and of
raising the standards Of perfor-
nance. 1t cannot be done by
arbitrary percentage cuts, arbitrary
dismissal of employees, arbitrary
consolidation of agencies. 1t is an
operation that must be performed,
but for it's successful performance
we must requisition the skill Of