Ralph C. Davis

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Ralph Currier Davis (Dec. 24, 1894 – c. 1960) was an American industrial and consulting engineer, Professor of Business Organization at Ohio State University, and organizational theorist. He is known for his work on top management, especially his 1951 extension of Henri Fayol's work. [1] [2]

Ohio State University public research university in Columbus, Ohio, United States

The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State or OSU, is a large public research university in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1870 as a land-grant university and the ninth university in Ohio with the Morrill Act of 1862, the university was originally known as the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College (Mech). The college began with a focus on training students in various agricultural and mechanical disciplines but it developed into a comprehensive university under the direction of then-Governor Rutherford B. Hayes, and in 1878 the Ohio General Assembly passed a law changing the name to "The Ohio State University". It has since grown into the third-largest university campus in the United States. Along with its main campus in Columbus, Ohio State also operates regional campuses in Lima, Mansfield, Marion, Newark, and Wooster.

Management Coordinating the efforts of people

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Henri Fayol Developer of Fayolism

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Contents

In his 1951 book, entitled The Fundamentals of Top Management, Davis built on Fayol's "early work on the scientific approach to management and introduced the rational-planning perspective, which has had enormous influence on both the theory and practice of strategy ever since." [3]

Biography

Youth education and early career

Davis was born in 1894 in Mohawk, New York, son of Frank Colin Davis and Susie Helen (Greene) Davis. [4] He graduated from high school in 1912, [5] In 1916 he obtained his MSc of Engineering from Cornell University, and later in 1926 his MA from Ohio State University. [4]

Mohawk, Herkimer County, New York Village in New York, United States

Mohawk is a village in Herkimer County, New York, United States. The population was 2,731 at the 2010 census. The village was named after the adjacent Mohawk River.

Cornell University Private Ivy League research university in Upstate New York

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After high school graduation Davis had started his career, in 1913, in the industry as special machinist apprentice. From 1916 to 1918 he was Junior industrial engineer at the Winchester Repeating Arms Company, and in 1919 served as industrial engineer at The Gleason Works, now Gleason Corporation in Rochester. [4]

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Gleason Corporation is a prominent machine tool builder based in Rochester, New York, USA. It has manufacturing plants in the USA, Britain, India, China and Germany, and sales offices in those and additional countries.

Further career and honours

After another four year, from 1919 to 1923, as assistant labor commissioner at the Cleveland Chamber of Commerce, Davis started his academic career at the Ohio State University in 1923 as assistant professor. He last appointment in the industry was head of the management department of the General Motors Institute, where he served from 1927 to 1930. [4]

In 1930 back at the Ohio State University he was appointed associate professor, and in 1936 became Professor of business organization. [4] He served at the College of Commerce and Administration of the Ohio State University until his retirement. In those years he was also Visiting professor at the Arkansas University, Columbia University, Indiana University, New York University, and at Stanford University.

Columbia University Private Ivy League research university in New York City

Columbia University is a private Ivy League research university in Upper Manhattan, New York City. Established in 1754, Columbia is the oldest institution of higher education in New York and the fifth-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. It is one of nine colonial colleges founded prior to the Declaration of Independence, seven of which belong to the Ivy League. It has been ranked by numerous major education publications as among the top ten universities in the world.

Indiana University university system, Indiana, U.S.

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In 1948 Davis served as president of the Academy of Management. [6] In 1958 Davis was awarded the Taylor Key by the Society for Advancement of Management. In 1964 he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science from the Wayne State University. One of his notable students was Dillard E. Bird, president of the Society for Advancement of Management from 1949 to 1951.

Selected publications

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References

  1. ↑ John C. Wood, Michael C. Wood. Henri Fayol: Critical Evaluations in Business and Management. 2002. p. 164.
  2. ↑ John B. Miner. Organizational Behavior 3: Historical Origins, Theoretical Foundations, and the Future. M.E. Sharpe, 2 mrt. 2006. p. 112.
  3. ↑ Roger Courtney, Strategic Management for Voluntary Nonprofit Organizations. 2002. p. 61
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 John W. Leonard, Winfield Scott Downs, M. Lewis (M.) Who's who in Engineering, Volume 5. 1941. p. 432
  5. ↑ Nelson Greene, History of the Mohawk Valley, gateway to the West, 1614–1925. 1925. p. 608.
  6. ↑ "Ralph C. Davis, President (1948) - Academy of Management". aom.org. Retrieved 2017-09-28.
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