1,720,969 research outputs found
The lean labour process::Global diffusion, societal effects, contradictory implementation
Get PDFIn the 1930s, engineers at Toyota began to work on adapting Fordist mass production to the conditions in Japan at the time: a small market that could not justify huge volumes with dedicated machinery, coupled with severe resource constraints. Their goal was to develop a production system based on lower volumes with low inventories. Toyota didn’t implement its first compete just-in-time system until 1958, and was not able to fully debug its kanban (continuous flow) system until 1962, after which it was adopted companywide (Tolliday 1998). Core elements of what became the Toyota Production System were widely adopted across Japanese industry, although companies such as Nissan, Honda, NEC and others adopted the practices selectively and integrated them into their own systems (Boyer 1998; Freyssenet et al. 1998; Kenney and Florida 1993)
Lean production in post-communist Europe:Formalization and employee involvement in Russia
No full textTheorizing Teamwork: A Classical Sociological Approach
No full textPrevious researchers pointed out that the current literature on teams is in a theoretical impasse (Vallas, 2006). The existing theories of work seem to not be sufficient in explaining the complex nature of teams and the unanticipated consequences associated to current workplace transformation. In order to expand our theoretical understanding of teamwork, this paper offers an original incursion into the sociological roots of the concept of teamwork. Based on the classic works of Marx, Durkheim, Weber and Simmel, the paper shows how the understanding of teamwork can be expanded to incorporate deeper meanings and consequences related to diversity, group dynamics and social interaction in teams. As an area dominated by organizational behavioral and psychological approaches, the study of teamwork would benefit tremendously from a cross-disciplinary approach
Just-in-Time Workforce: Temporary Workers as a Structural Aspect of Lean Production
No full textTemporary employment is estimated to be around 20% of the US auto industry. Based on extensive fieldwork at the big three Japanese factories (Toyota, Honda and Nissan) and auto suppliers, this paper documents the impact of temporary workers on the shop floor and their role in the context of lean production. This article fills an important gap in the existing research as one of the few empirical studies that examine the effects of temp work in the auto industry. We conclude that the just-in-time workforce as a human buffer for sick or injured team members and an addition when production volume goes up is a core structural aspect of lean production. The lean, loyal and long-term principles of mature lean production to protect permanent workers are based on the disloyal and short-term use of temporary workers
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Dominant Divisions of Labor: Models of Productions that have Transformed the World of Work
No full textThis brief volume takes a panoramic view of the candidates for the most succinct theory of the 21st century division of labor that would replace Fordism, Taylorism and scientific management.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/facbooks2014/1044/thumbnail.jp
Framing and Managing Lean Organizations in the New Economy
No full textThis book examines the dominance and significance of lean organizing in the international economy. Scholars from each discipline see lean production as positive or negative; the book blends theory with practice by sorting out these different academic views and revealing how lean is implemented in different ways.
The first part synthesizes academic research from a range of disciplines—including, engineering, sociology, and management—to present the reader with an integrated understanding of the benefits and drawbacks of lean management. The second part links this theory to practice, with a set of case studies from companies like Apple, Google, Nike, Toyota, and Walmart that demonstrate how lean is implemented in a variety of settings. The book concludes with three models, explaining how Toyotism, Nikefication with offshoring, and Waltonism provide full or less complete models of lean production. It clearly presents the positive and negative aspects of lean and insights into the culture of lean organizations.
With its rich interdisciplinary approach, Framing and Managing Lean Organizations in the New Economy will benefit researchers and students across a range of classes from management, sociology, and public policy to engineering.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/facbooks/1035/thumbnail.jp
The Romanian American Dream: Permanent Migration, Identity and Integration of Romanian Immigrants in the United States
Get PDFInternational migration is one of the most spectacular social changes that affected post-communist Romania. Despite a growing body of research on Romanian migration to Europe, there is a huge gap in the literature on Romanian immigration to the United States. In this paper, we reveal the dynamics of permanent migration to the US, how does the American dream look like for the Romanian immigrants, what are their motives for migration and their process of acculturation in the US. Two sets of theories were used. The first one focuses on the push and pull factors that contribute to Romanian migration to the United States, and the second one looks at Berry’s (1997) four stages of acculturation. Based on in-depth interviews with 33 Romanian immigrants in the United States and hundreds of hours of participant observation of Romanian communities in Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco, the findings emphasize Romanians’ choice for integration in American society and the long term and achievement orientation for their migration. The study results also stress the positive influence of English proficiency, strong community support, young age at arrival, and length of residence on Romanian immigrants’ integration in the US. The Romanian American dream, grounded on career success and family stability, is the symbol used to describe the complex equation of high education, high-skill occupational status and low divorce that contributes to the successful integration of Romanian immigrants into the American society
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