Humaneering technology applies principles from the biological, psychological and social sciences to guide work-system design and management, whereas engineering technology applies principles from physics, chemistry and mathematics.

It has been common practice since the Industrial Revolution to engineer work to achieve greater precision, consistency and efficiency. In fact, engineering methods (e.g., controls, training, procedures, quantitative measures, corrective feedback, and statistical comparison) are now unwittingly applied to all work as the best way to optimize results. What goes unrecognized is the negative effect of these methods on work that is adaptive, discretionary, nonlinear and self-paced—work that depends on people, not machines, for the achievement of desired results.

Production and logistics operations (PLO) are mechanistic or machine-like in nature. Consequently, production and logistics work systems are highly controlled and inflexible by design, and as a goal are not greatly affected by their environment and workers. Engineering-based methods apply and improve performance.

Knowledge and service operations (KSO) are organic or human-like in nature. Accordingly, knowledge and service work systems are emergent and adaptive by design, and therefore are heavily influenced by both the environment and workers. Humaneering-based methods apply and improve performance.

Engineer and Humaneer

There is a limit to the appropriate application of engineering principles. This limitation is to work that is performed best when mechanized (e.g., performed one best way, standardized, prescribed in great detail, regulated for consistency). Characteristically, this work can be isolated and controlled (i.e., less subject to human nature), thereby acquiring a mechanistic or machine-like nature and improving performance when engineered to greater levels of precision, consistency, and efficiency. All work contains some elements that are mechanistic, and these elements can be engineered for improved performance.

What about the elements of work that are not mechanistic—that cannot be isolated and controlled and that needs to be open to discretionary behavior? What are organizations to do to improve the performance of work that is performed best when the worker is aware, responsive, and adaptive to circumstances that cannot be predetermined? What about the predominant work of knowledge and service industries, functions, and roles for which performance is dependent largely on people’s discretion and self-directed behavior? Engineering (i.e., reducing the variation of) this work only reduces the capacity of workers to do their work and create value, and thereby reduces their work effectiveness, productivity and satisfaction.

pepitoneworldwide has demonstrated consistently that by incorporating the principles of humaneering technology, process performance and the performance of knowledge and service work can be increased dramatically.

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