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From powerless to empowered: a case study and critique of production teams
journal contribution
posted on 2017-06-08, 01:48 authored by Edwards, RonThis paper examines the introduction of team-based production systems in three Australian manufacturing facilities, all being small parts of much larger global concerns. Using a longitudinal case study approach, the paper identifies a range of problems experienced by the firms when introducing teams. While all firms enjoyed significant productivity growth, at least in part because of teams, a range of other reforms also contributed to this result. The quality of working life for production workers improved but managers and supervisors experienced an increase in work intensity.