ABSTRACT
Carters Cattlefoods was an old-established, medium-sized manufacturing firm in the cattle-food industry, which employed a clerical labour force of 147. The firm did not have a personnel manager. Carters’ managers had a great deal of knowledge of traditional office procedures and staff and customer reactions. The chairman of Carters became interested in electronic data processing after reading an article which described the application of linear programming by computer to the mixing processes used by the firm in the manufacture of its products. The article had been brought to the chairman's attention by Mr G. M. Fathers, the company's accounts manager. Further investigation established that a computer could perform the necessary linear programming operations, and also process customer accounts, forecast sales and take over some management control functions. Mr Fathers stressed that a computer would reduce staff numbers. A decision to get a computer followed, unanimously made by Carters’ board of directors. The board made the decision partly in the hope of reducing labour costs.
