评论
打印
Epilogue
尾声
So, I learned that my consultation at the shirt factory had not improved production.
就这样，我了解到自己在衬衫厂的咨询工作，并没有起到促进生产的作用。
Well, frankly, I'm not surprised. You see, while working at the Babson Machine Company as an industrial adviser, I took a night class in management engineering at Northwestern University. My company paid the bill. I like that.
不过，说实话，我并不感到意外。你知道，我在巴布森机械公司当工业顾问的同时，还在西北大学上夜校，学习企业管理工程。是公司为我出的学费，我很满意。
Now I have quite a different idea of what it means to be a "consultant". I used to think that the consultant goes into the factory, studies the problems, suggests cures for the problems, and then encourages the management to follow these suggestions.
现在我对当“顾问”的内涵有了完全不同的认识。我过去一向认为，当顾问就是进入工厂，研究问题，提出解决问题的对策，然后再敦促厂方按这些建议去做。
I now believe that consultation doesn't work successfully that way. In my management engineering course I learned that first I have to listen. In the shirt factory I should have listened to the management, the two owners. But then, together, we should have listened to the workers themselves. What did they think the problems were? What were their suggestions for solutions?
现在我认识到，这样做咨询工作不会收到任何成效。我在企业管理工程课上学到，我首先得去倾听别人的意见。在衬衫厂，我应该听听管理人员，也就是两位业主的意见，然后再和他们一起去征询工人们的意见。他们认为有些什么问题？对于解决问题有些什么建议？
I tried to force my suggestions on the owners. The suggestions for improvement weren't theirs or the workers'. If workers and management are seriously involved in the problem solving, change is not only possible, but inevitable.
而我却试图把自己的意见强加给业主。那些建议既不是他们的，也不是工人的。如果工人和厂方都能认真参与问题的解决，那么变革不仅可能，而且是不可避免的。
At any rate, although the experience was painful in many ways, it provided a good lesson for me.
不管怎么说，尽管这段经历在很多方面让人苦恼，却给了我一个很好的教训。
I'm thinking of sending the check for $100 back to Mr. Hobbs. As for the shirts, four of the five in the box didn't fit anyway, and the fifth one didn't have a right sleeve.
我正在考虑把那张100美金的支票退还给霍布森先生。至于那盒衬衫，5件倒有4件一点都不合身，而唯一合身的那一件，又缺了右边的袖管。
