Documents Dörrenbächer, Christoph 9 results

"This article deals with the impact of foreign direct investment (FDI) on transformation processes in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Our specific interest is in the effects of FDI on the organisation of work and labour relations at the enterprise level; in a more general sense we are concerned with the contribution of FDI to the creation of the microeconomic foundation essential to functioning market economies. We hold that there is a discernible process of selective harmonisation taking place between outside influences and existing domestic factors. In this context we postulate that the importance of FDI is further enhanced by influencing a broad array of societal transformation processes beyond the enterprise itself, thus contributing to a process which could develop into what we have labelled a European-style environment. Admittedly, the outcome can as yet only be rudimentarily defined, especially since a European-style environment, as a point of reference, is itself currently undergoing continuous change. But we hypothesise that it will be a process which reflects to varying degrees both the endogenous and exogenous sources of its making."

"Multi-national corporations (MNCs) are constantly undergoing a process of standardisation and reorganisation (S&R), which is fuelled by the rapid development of information technology (IT). These developments require an in-depth and systematic inquiry as they have serious ramifications for labour and workers' participation across Europe. Moreover, there is a lack of systematic research into the effects of these new, and especially IT based, S&R measures on the quality of labour and labour relations in European MNCs.
This report provides a comprehensive overview of new (and renewed) S&R trends in European MNCs and their effects on labour. It draws on a systematic analysis of relevant literature and expert interviews. Departing from an overview on the various phenomena related to S&R processes to be found in the literature, the expert interviews led to the identification of six main S&R trends: 1) the renewed impact of ‘lean production' principles and ‘lean thinking' on standardisation; 2) the critical role of outsourcing for standardisation processes; 3) new developments in HRM process standardisation; 4) IT-based standardisation; 5) standardisation by Big Data and Industry 4.0; and 6) compliance-induced measures of process standardisation. In practice, all six trends often interconnect to exert a strong impact on labour and labour relations in contemporary MNCs. Hence, the report explores the critical impact of the six trends on labour and workers' participation across Europe, and also addresses their interconnectedness in relation to the powerful managerial rationales which trigger the observed new (and renewed) S&R moves."

"This book was first published in 2011. The current financial and economic crisis has negatively underlined the vital role of multinational companies (MNCs) in our daily lives. The breakdown and crisis of flagship MNCs, such as Enron, WorldCom, Lehman Brothers, Toyota and General Motors, does not merely reveal the problems of corporate malfeasance and market dysfunction. It also raises important questions, both for the public and the academic community, about the use and misuse of power by MNCs in the wider society, as well as the exercise of power by key actors within internationally operating firms. This book examines how issues of power and politics affect MNCs at three different levels; the macro-level, the meso-level and the micro-level. This wide-ranging analysis shows not only that power matters but also how and why it matters, pointing to the political interactions of key power holders and actors within the MNC, both managers and employees."

"Etwa zehn Prozent der sozialversicherungspflichtig Beschäftigten in Deutschland arbeiten in Tochterunternehmen ausländischer Konzerne. Anhand von 21 systematisch ausgewählten Fallstudien erarbeitet diese Studie ein differenziertes Bild der Mitbestimmungskultur in diesen Unternehmen. Das Spektrum reicht von sozial- und konfliktpartnerschaftlichen bis zu latent oder akut konfliktorischen Arbeitsbeziehungen. Die Mitbestimmungskultur hängt nicht nur vom Herkunftsland der Investoren ab, sondern zum Beispiel auch von der Rolle des deutschen Standorts in der globalen Wertschöpfungskette des Konzerns."