On the Front Line: Organization of Work in the Information Economy (Cornell International Industrial and Labor Relations Reports, No. 35.)

The importance of customer service is widely emphasized in business today. This book offers the first comprehensive analysis of the organization and dynamics of front-line work. The volume is based on a four-year study of over a thousand employees and eight leading companies in the United States, Australia, and Japan. On the Front Line reveals similarities and differences found in work environments―such as variance in authority relations and division of labor―as well as significant contrasts between management approaches used in Japan and those used in the United States and Australia. By examining how work differs among service, sales, and knowledge-based settings, it also shows how bureaucratic, entrepreneurial, and network forms of organization coexist in the informational economy. This seminal analysis of work in the service sector offers both a benchmark for consultants working with customer-contact organizations and valuable information for anyone concerned with the changing nature of work. The book reveals similarities and differences found in work environments - such as variance in authority relations and division of labour - as well as significant contrasts between management approaches used in Japan and those used in the USA and Australia. By examining how work differs among service, sales and knowledge-based settings, it also shows how bureaucratic, entrepreneurial and network forms of organization co-exist in the informational economy Based on case studies of three types of workflow (customer service, sales and knowledge work) in nine service organizations and on a survey of employees and supervisors. Investigates how work organization varies among front-line (customer-oriented) employees engaged in work of varying complexity. Examines the type of work involved and analyses employment relations, management control, co-worker relations and customer relations The importance of customer service is widely emphasized in business. This text offers an analysis of the organization and dynamics of front-line work, based on a five-year study of over 1000 employees and eight leading companies in the USA, Australia and Japan Stephen J. Frenkel ... [et Al.]. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 288-304) And Index. IN the industrial era, scientific management was the handmaiden of mass production.