Knowledge Creation & Commitment despite Closure

MA-Thesis / Master von Melanie Fliedner, Marek Worsch, Jens Hoffmann

Abstract:

The Master Thesis „Knowledge Creation & Commitment despite Closure” presents the final scientific work of three upper-level students participating in the programme ‘Managing Dynamic Organizations’ at the School of Management and Economics, Växjö University, Sweden. It was accomplished in the academic year 2003/04.

The thesis comprises the results of studies at the production site of an international company operating in the transportation sector, situated on the Swedish east coast. During a period from February to May 2004, the authors explored existing work structures. Initially, their objective and assignment was to improve existing work processes in order to facilitate the creation and advancement of knowledge at the production site. After an unexpected change of conditions, i.e. the announcement of the site’s closure by its parent company, the authors were assigned to seek ways of re-establishing and assuring the commitment of the site’s operators, which was achieved through the development of a tailored outplacement process. Hereby, the thesis depicts the transition of the notion of knowledge as a competitive advantage of an organisation to that of an individual’s advantage in search of re-employment. This process is depicted in the overall structure of the work, which can thus be divided into two loops of scientific research.

In the first loop, the authors develop, based on the theories of Peter M. Senge („The Fifth Discipline”) and Ikujiro Nonaka & Hirotaka Takeuchi („The Knowledge-Creating Company”), and empirical information gathered at the site, a new work process which proposes a combination of both, specialisation, and job enlargement and job enrichment. This process was designed to ensure advancement of relevant knowledge, therefore, enhancing the production site’s long-term competitiveness through a better utilisation of operators’ individual experience, skills and capabilities. As a welcome side effect, operators’ commitment to their organisation could be strengthened because from their perspective, the new work process was perceived more convenient than the existing one.

The second loop takes into account the announcement of the site’s closure by the end of 2005. Obviously, other issues appeared to be of higher priority now, above all the issue of stimulating employees who are facing redundancy. As inchoate projects had to be finished within quality and delivery requirements, management had a demand for a work force that would still work highly committed for the remaining time frame of 18 months. The authors’ subsequent research process employed commitment theories as well as psychological theories with a focus on layoff settings. As a result, a tailored outplacement process aimed at reestablishing and assuring operators’ commitment through providing them individually with a new perspective for their time after the termination of the production site. Peculiarities of the Swedish labour market were taken into consideration.

The final model for the outplacement process is presented comprehensively in the last chapter, which can be read separately and has the style of an application manual. Thus, this chapter provides the reader with the instruction for the model and all necessary parts for the successful implementation of the outplacement process. In the very beginning the time schedule is drafted, followed by general comments about the work structure and the evaluation time and a detailed presentation of the different modules. So, the reader who is not inclined to deal with theoretical details may immediately skip to the solution part and be able to follow and comprehend the model, though.

Even though the model is highly specialised regarding the case company and its real-time circumstances, the basic principles of the developed outplacement process, i.e. fostering and enhancing commitment among individuals through providing them with a new perspective, can easily be vested to other organisations as well. Further, the discussion of relevant theoretical concepts gives input to a huge amount of organisational issues, as well as the suggested empirical tools, namely guidelines for interviews and questionnaires, are adaptable to the demands of other organisations, too. Therefore, this thesis is a valuable source for both, students and practitioners.

Remark: On request of the case company, its name has been made unrecognisable.

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