Critique of the notion of flexibility

Journal title EDUCAZIONE SENTIMENTALE
Author/s Bruno Maggi
Publishing Year 2013 Issue 2013/19 Language Italian
Pages 14 P. 54-67 File size 669 KB
DOI 10.3280/EDS2013-019007
DOI is like a bar code for intellectual property: to have more infomation click here

Below, you can see the article first page

If you want to buy this article in PDF format, you can do it, following the instructions to buy download credits

Article preview

FrancoAngeli is member of Publishers International Linking Association, Inc (PILA), a not-for-profit association which run the CrossRef service enabling links to and from online scholarly content.

The article proposes a theoretical and methodological critique of the notion of flexibility. This critique is based on evaluation criteria of the concepts offered by the social sciences research methodology. Through this exercise, the notion of flexibility appears to be derived from the explanatory functionalist framework of variability and change, which is not able to interpret the firm and work transformations as the current literature is emphasizing.

Keywords: Flexibility, concepts evaluation, variability and change, firm and work transformations

  1. Browne J., Dubois D., Rathmill K., Sethi S.P., Stecke K.E. (1984). Classification of Flexible Manufacturing Systems. The FMS Magazine, 2, 2: 114-117.
  2. Burns T., Stalker G.M. (1961). The Management and Innnovation. London: Tavistock Publications.
  3. Child J. (1972). Organization Structure and Strategies of Control: A Replication of the Aston Study. Administrative Science Quarterly, 17: 163-177. DOI: 10.2307/2393951.
  4. Cohendet P., Llerena P. (1999). Flexibilité et modes d'organisation. Revue Française de Gestion. Dossier: Les flexibilités, 123: 72-79.
  5. De Toni A., Tonchia S. (1998). Manufacturing Flexibility: A Literature Review. International Journal of Production Research, 36, 6: 1587-1617. DOI: 10.1080/002075498193183.
  6. De Toni A., Tonchia S. (2001). La flessibilità dei sistemi produttivi: concettualizzazioni e misurazioni sul campo. Atti del 2° Workshop di Organizzazione aziendale. Università di Padova: CD Rom.
  7. Emery F.E., Trist E.L. (1960). Socio-technical Systems. In: Churchman, C.W., Verhulst M. (Eds.). Management Science, Models and Techniques, 2: 83-97. New York: Pergamon.
  8. Gerwin D. (1987). An agenda for research on the flexibility of manufacturing processes. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 7, 1: 38-49. DOI: 10.1108/eb054784.
  9. Gerwin D. (1993). Manufacturing Flexibility: A Strategic Perspective. Management Science, 39, 4: 395-410. DOI: 10.1287/mnsc.39.4.395.
  10. Gerwin D., Tarondeau J.C. (1984). La flexibilité dans les processus de production: le cas de l'automobile. Revue française de gestion, 46, 1984: 37-46.
  11. Gerwin D., Tarondeau J.C. (1989). International Comparisons of Manufacturing Flexibility. In: Ferdows K. (Ed). Managing International Manufacturing, 169-185. Amsterdam: North-Holland.
  12. Gouldner A.W. (1959). Organizational Analysis. In: Merton R.K., Broom L., Cottrel L.S. Jr. (Eds.). Sociology Today, 400-427. New York: Basic Books.
  13. Gupta Y.P., Goyal S. (1989). Flexibility of Manufacturing Systems: Concepts and Measurements. European Journal of Operational Research, 43: 119-135. DOI: 10.1016/0377-2217(89)90206-3.
  14. Hannan M.T., Freeman J. (1977). The Population Ecology of Organizations. American Journal of Sociology, 82, 5: 929-964. DOI: 10.1086/226424.
  15. Hannan M.T., Freeman J. (1989). Organizational Ecology. Cambridge (Mass.): Harvard University Press.
  16. Lawrence P. R., Lorsch J. W. (1967). Organization and Environment. Boston: Harvard University Press.
  17. Maggi B. (2003). De l'agir organisationnel. Un point de vue sur le travail, le bien-être, l'apprentissage. Toulouse: Octarès Editions.
  18. Mandelbaum M. (1978). Flexibility in Decision Making: An Exploration and Unification, Doctoral Dissertation. Toronto: University of Toronto, Dept. of Industrial Engineering.
  19. Mariotti S. (1994). I vantaggi competitivi del nuovo modo di produzione, In: Mariotti S. (Ed.). Verso una nuova organizzazione della produzione. Le frontiere del post-fordismo, 17-51. Milano: Etas Libri.
  20. Merton R.K. (1949). Social Theory and Social Structure. Glencoe (Ill.): The Free Press.
  21. Perrow C. (1967). A Framework for the Analysis of Organizations. American Sociological Review, 32: 194-208. DOI: 10.2307/2091811.
  22. Pfeffer J., Salancik G.R. (1978). The External Control of Organizations. New York: Harper & Row.
  23. Pugh D.S., Hickson D.J., Hinings C.R., MacDonald K.M., Turner C., Lupton T. (1963). A Conceptual Scheme for Organizational Analysis. Administrative Science Quarterly, 8: 289-315. DOI: 10.2307/2390971.
  24. Pugh D.S., Hickson D.J., Hinings C.R., Turner C. (1968). Dimensions of Organization Structure. Administrative Science Quarterly, 13: 65-105. DOI: 10.2307/2391262.
  25. Reix R. (1997). Flexibilité. In: Simon Y., Joffre P. (Eds.). Encyclopédie de gestion, 2° ed., 2. Paris: Economica.
  26. Roethlisberger F.J., Dickson W.J. (1939). Management and the Worker. Cambridge (Mass.): Harvard University Press.
  27. Sanchez R. (1995). Strategic flexibility in product competition. Strategic Management Journal, 16, 5: 135-159. DOI: 10.1002/smj.4250160921.
  28. Simon H.A. (1947). Administrative Behavior, 4° ed. 1997. New York: McMillan.
  29. Sethi A.K., Sethi S.P. (1990). Flexibility in Manufacturing: A Survey. International Journal of Flexible Manufacturing Systems, 2, 4: 289-328. DOI: 10.1007/BF00186471
  30. Slack N. (1983). Flexibility as a Manufacturing Objective. International Journal of Operations and Production Management, 3, 3: 4-13. DOI: 10.1108/eb054696.
  31. Supiot A. (Ed.) (1999). Au-delà de l'emploi. Paris: Flammarion.
  32. Tarondeau J.C. (1999a). Approches et formes de la flexibilité. Revue Française de Gestion, Dossier: Les flexibilités, 123: 66-71.
  33. Tarondeau J.C. (1999b). La flexibilité dans les entreprises. Paris: PUF.
  34. Terssac G. de (1992). Autonomie dans le travail. Paris: PUF.
  35. Thompson, J.D. (1967). Organizations in Action. New York: Mc Graw-Hill.
  36. Veneziani B. (Ed.) (1992). Law, Collective Bargaining, and Labour Flexibility in E.C. Countries. Roma: Asap, Istituto poligrafico
  37. Woodward J. (1965). Industrial Organization: Theory and Practice. London: Oxford University Press.
  38. Zelenovich D.M. (1982). Flexibility: A Condition for Effective Production Systems. International Journal of Production Research, 20, 3: 319-337. DOI: 10.1080/00207548208947770.

Bruno Maggi, Critica della nozione di flessibilità in "EDUCAZIONE SENTIMENTALE" 19/2013, pp 54-67, DOI: 10.3280/EDS2013-019007