You know the ironic repeated some time ago that "anyone, being good at anything, one can use it anytime and anywhere no matter how" The very fact that 'we did a satire shows that everyone realize that we must "use abilities" and for that to know them.

The old system of examinations and competitions addresses this need for selection. We all know that it responds poorly, because he considers most often as the qualities of memory and that they are not everything. We do not undertake here, however, the criticism that would take us too far.

Even in professions that require less knowledge, we use the methods of examination and selection. Whether it's the highlight of the hall or tank tops, many are experimenting with these businesses who give up after one or two days, only more powerful still.

On the other hand, we also know that there is, for each profession, a question of learning, practice: "Practice makes perfect." Work performance can be greatly increased by the habit, and more when corrects the vicious attitudes, gestures unnecessary, and so on. The research of Taylor and his followers have taught us all that can make a scientific study of the work on this and the huge performance improvement of any school, when one applies the scientific principles of organization.

Throughout history, the military, often unconsciously, sought methods of examination and selection of men. In peacetime, we measured the boards review the size, weight, girth of conscripts to determine their fitness for a particular weapon had to be a minimum height to be paid in a given body of cavalry, etc.. ..

As when to use any mobilized men, whoever they are, they arrived - without well-defined rules, however - to divide the quota. in military service and auxiliary, separating the men from the armed service in fit and unfit for the infantry, artillery, automobiles, etc..

Tests are planned at the entrance to special weapons, for the appointment of officers, etc.. This means that we recognize the need to choose, to make a selection according to the abilities of each, before beginning an apprenticeship.

In some cases, where the qualities of courage, composure, speed, decision and execution are particularly needed, we even pushed much further and review procedures we have made very precise and scientists. Such is the case of methods for the selection of airmen (Nature No. 2225) and Machine Gun.

These methods have nothing particular to the army and do not employ special methods. A long time ago that the psycho-physiologists have devised methods for the examination of various mechanisms humans and have proposed numerous stress tests to measure memory, the association of ideas, attention, speed of motor reflexes, emotion, fatigue, etc..

While all proposed review procedures are not perfect, all are subject to some criticism because of the complexity of human actions, even the simplest. But when an individual submits to a series of tests and well-chosen sufficiently large, we can obtain a set of answers that will classify this man without significant error, with an accuracy far greater than any written or oral examination in the usual form that we know, and most importantly, we will be able to assess many important qualities on which the examination usually gives no indication. It is evident, for example, as an employee, being a bachelor, and to know the Latin is no more important than being quick in his decisions, or to have the memory for faces, or to know the mental arithmetic or to leave work to meet a sudden appropriately to a question, etc.. All these qualities are valuable in the commercial life of every day, are ignored and therefore often not used by the leader who simply choose at random its staff or the simple view of university degrees.

Look at France, where our public servants to staff so many - too many - is chosen on the basis of parchment, progressing to seniority, and assigned to a task without any choice and unanswered.

It is a ministry office where the most important cases pass through the hands of employees less active, with no memory, who forget the files on the tables or in boxes. This is the post office, where we find a man at the counter slow in his movements, uneven, unable to move quickly from one task to another, etc.. Examples abound so that point is the time to multiply. The appearance of Mr. Bureaucrat familiar to us all and we know too its faults, mistakes, weaknesses. But instead of laughing and making the subject of cartoons, would it not be better to seek a remedy?

The present war has at least the advantage of leaving all of his usual lifestyle, to reveal its qualities and faults, to highlight specific forms of activity, without limitation due to the traditional environment to all of us. As little used without initiative and without great future proved an enterprising man; such officer lacked decision, as captain of industry, to order men recognized what we can get them and what that must be for that. Everyone has discovered the importance of qualities too little known in ordinary times: energy, activity, spirit away, authority, timeliness, etc..

Tomorrow, in the presence of the economic crisis following the peace, when to restore, expand our domestic production to heal, quickly erase all the wounds of this war, when to reorganize all our industries, while our trade with a labor- the work reduced, rare, costly, it is certain that everyone will not return to his former profession, to his old routine.

On the one hand, an employee who has discovered something he knew not resume its position as clerk, expeditionary, where his abilities can not fully used and where the gain is still too limited. On the other hand, the merchant, the captain of industry, having learned about men, have to be more involved in his business, to increase efficiency, reduce costs of labor strictly necessary, try to choose the best staff and to get the work more useful and more appropriate.

We can therefore anticipate major changes. in our work habits, organization, management and business houses.

Americans have long been in conditions comparable to those where we will find: the rapid development of their industries to coincide with the scarcity of labor have led them to worry more and more of the scientific organization of their business and the rational use of resources work. The Taylor system is that the codification of their efforts in this direction and its growing success is due to the need to increasingly urgent to make the best use all energies.

We must also, we were concerned that the selection of men, their use according to their abilities. And we have much to learn from our new allies across the Atlantic, as well as to select those of their most effective methods for understanding the benefits of the rational organization of labor, and to remove the fears, the prejudices it has already raised in the working world.

Nature has discussed these issues repeatedly. She has known in recent times to its readers, the principles of Taylorism, the different wage systems, many details of organization of plants, such as transport and mechanical handling.

Today I want to indicate the methods proposed and tested currently in the United States for the rational choice employees. Not that we should use them to the letter, without modifications and without criticism, but they can serve as a basic starting point, an example of the way where we could more involved.

Lndustrial Management magazine which, as its title suggests, deals only with well-understood business organization, devoted in recent months, the issue of choice of employees, more extensive studies. I will summarize here the method of examination of the ability of employees recommended by William Kemble Fretz.

After a physical examination, especially interesting in cases where the work requires some planned expenditure of force, the candidate is subjected to a series of tests designed to showcase the various qualities that intends to use: manual dexterity, speed of copy, memory for faces, observation skills and judgment, general knowledge, etc..