ABSTRACT
Frank and Lillian Gilbreth were a husband and wife team of management consultants who played a central role in the development of scientific management. Frank Gilbreth initially pioneered the concept of ‘motion study’, which combined with F.W.Taylor’s method of ‘time study’ became the technique of ‘time and motion study’, the basis of most production and efficiency studies for many decades thereafter. Lillian Gilbreth was a pioneer in the application of psychology to the problems of management. They worked closely together as professional consultants, and nearly all their books were co-authored. After Frank Gilbreth’s early death, Lillian Gilbreth carried on running the consultancy business and continued to develop her ideas on the importance of the human factor in business and management. She was an inspirational role model to women in business around the world, some of whom, such as her British friend Anne Shaw, rose to high positions in industry.
