Beyond Taylorism

This book explores two major contemporary changes in the workplace: the impact of computerization on skills and the organization of production; and the role of quality circles in the 'democratization' of the workplace and the reorganization of bureaucratic decision-making. It is concerned with the labour processes which experience deskilling, reskilling and shifts in the lines of demarcation between occupations. Participation in quality circles raises issues of conflict rather than labour-management cooperation and management's attempt to undermine collective bargaining agreements.

This intellectual history interprets recent American business management ideas as political theory, describing their underlying assumptions about power and value. According to Stephen Waring, most business management theory descends from either Frederick Taylor's 'bureaucratic' theory of scientific management or Elton Mayo's 'corporatist' idea of human relations. Waring discusses the subsequent evolution of several management theories and techniques, including organization theory, computer simulation, management by objectives, sensitivity training, job enrichment, and innovations usually attributed to the Japanese, such as quality control circles.

Every now and then, a book comes along that you positively want to be asked to read and review, and this is one of them a major work of scholarship in its own right, while at the same time, a ground-clearing exercise for what is to follow. . . . This, it should be emphasized, is a hugely impressive body of work, an expansive statement of Jessop s contribution as a major figure within the world of regulation approaches. Ray Hudson, Economic Geography This book presents a detailed and critical account of the regulation approach in institutional and evolutionary economics. Offering both a theoretical commentary and a range of empirical examples, it identifies the successes and failures of the regulation approach as an explanatory theory, and proposes new guidelines for its further development. Although closely identified with heterodox French economists, there are several schools of regulation theory and the approach has also been linked to many topics across the social sciences. Bob Jessop and Ngai-Ling Sum provide detailed criticisms of the various schools of the regulation approach and their empirical application, and have developed new ways of integrating it into a more general critical exploration of contemporary capitalism. The authors go on to describe how the regulation approach can be further developed as a progressive research paradigm in political economy. Also presented is a detailed philosophical as well as theoretical critique of the regulation approach and its implications for the philosophy of social sciences and questions of historical analysis (especially periodization). Addressing the implications of the regulation approach for both the capitalist economy and the changing role of the state and governance, this book will be of great interest to a wide-ranging audience, including institutional and evolutionary economists, economic and political sociologists and social and political theorists.

This collection examines the evolution of the philosophy and practice of human resource management (HRM) and industrial relations (IR) over the twentieth century. By combining history, contemporary practice, and future trends, these well-known experts present both scholarly and practitioner perspectives. Drawing on in-depth interviews and surveys with HRM executives at leading corporations, the contributors explore key trends and issues facing global companies in such areas as equal opportunity, compensation practices, and expatriation programs. The book also takes an in-depth look at one particular player in the story - Industrial Relations Counselors, Inc., the first non-profit research and consulting organization dedicated to improved HRM/IR practices - which was founded by John D. Rockefeller in 1926, and has played a central role in the development of key labor legislation including the Social Security Act.

Comprises 11 essays which analyse changes in work life and in working and management practices since the 1970s, and explore future trends. The essays cover the developments and trends which have shaped and promoted change; government, business and trade union initiatives and policies in regard to work organization; practical experiences in restructuring work organization; and work design.

Lifelong Learning is essential to all individuals and in recent years has become a guiding principle for policy initiatives, ranging from national economic competition to issues of social cohesion and personal fulfilment. However, despite the importance of lifelong learning there is a critical absence of direct, international evidence on its extent, content and outcomes. Lifelong Learning in Paid and Unpaid Work provides a new paradigm for understanding work and learning, documenting the active contribution of workers to their development and their adaptation to paid and unpaid work. Empirical evidence drawn from national surveys in Canada and eight related case studies is used to explore the current learning activities of those in paid employment, housework and volunteer work, addressing all forms of learning including: formal schooling, further education courses, informal training and self-directed learning, particularly in the context of organisational and technological change. Proposing an expanded conceptual framework for investigating the relationships between learning and work, the contributors offer new insights into the ways in which adult learning adapts to and helps reshape the wide contemporary world of work throughout the life course.

Following the volumes on Henri Fayol, this next mini-set in the series focuses on F.W. Taylor, the initiator of "scientific management". Taylor set out to transform what had previously been a crude art form in to a firm body of knowledge.