Description
Book SynopsisThe diffusion of work processes across countries through foreign direct investment and technological collaborations is an increasingly important practice in today's global economy. Ayse Saka explores this process both by focusing on the role of actors in appropriating different ways of operating and by examining the effects of the institutional environment in the host country.
The author uses the example of Japanese firms operating in the UK to explore how the diffusion of work systems occurs in practice. She finds that institutional, organisational and group characteristics, have great influence on the degree to which Japanese work systems are put to practice and accepted by UK adopter companies. The degree to which alternative work systems are accepted depends in part on the flexibility of the institutional setting and on social patterns of interaction in organisations.
This unique and original book will appeal to a wide-ranging audience, including researchers, lecturers and scholars specialising in management studies in human resource management, industrial relations, organisational behaviour and international operations management. Cross-National Appropriation of Work Systems will also be invaluable to management practitioners and policymakers.
Trade Review'I would . . . recommend this study in a . . . general way, beyond the specific topic and its disciplinary ambit, for the combination of methodological rigour with qualitative sensitivity in interviewing and analysis. This shows what theoretically meaningful research in the more qualitative veneer, beyond genuflections towards Ragin or Eisenstadt, looks like.' -- From the preface by Arndt Sorge
Table of ContentsContents: Preface by Arndt Sorge Part I: Theoretical Background Introduction 1. Work Systems Diffusion: Neo-institutional Perspectives 2. The Double Embeddedness Barrier Part II: Some Empirical Evidence 3. Research Methodology 4. Appropriation of Japanese Work Systems in the UK: Illustrations from the Automotive Industry 5. Conclusions, Implications and Limitation Appendices References Index
