Walter Polakov

[2] Walter Polakov was born in Luga, Russian Empire, and attended High School in Moscow before studying for a mechanical engineering degree at the Royal Institute of Technology Dresden in 1902.

Polakov joined Gantt's consulting company in 1910 and got to know Frederick Taylor, Frank Gilbreth and Harrington Emerson.

Polakov joined the Taylor Society at this time and supported a Marxist view of capitalism in their bulletin.

Having helped the US shipbuilders keep up with losses due to German submarine action, the Gantt charts were then applied to managing fleet movements at the U. S. Shipping Board.

Whilst there he worked for the Supreme Soviet of the National Economy to develop the First Five Year Plan.