Riesgos existentes y medidas preventivas

The most distinctive development in the w ork organisation typology is within the fourth quadrant - the non-coincidence o f space and time (see Figure 5.1). By way o f comparison, before the advent o f com puting and telecom m unications, organisational operations and activities exploited all the modes o f work organisation as shown in quadrants 1. 2 and 3. However, in many ways, these forms o f w ork still involve limited freedom in terms o f activity operations because o f the need to ensure that one o f the dimensions, either space or time, is synchronised or fixed. However, with the development o f IT. this fixed nature o f space and time has been liberated. Work organisation can now be diversified from any o f the quadrants. This does not mean that all work activities will eventually move to and cluster in the fourth quadrant, but rather that organisations will have w ider opportunities in w hich to operate along the full spectrum, with reasonable flexibility from the individual through to the organisational level. A simple review o f the direction o f change is given by W hittaker et al. where telecommuting, peripatetic working and globalisation o f w ork are given as examples o f the changing mode o f work in the fourth quadrant:

The first is telecommuting, with a num ber o f corporations experim enting with employees working from home ... There are also increases in people working away from the office, e.g. from custom er sites or from hotel rooms while travelling. ... A final trend is the globalisation o f m anufacturing, with designers, suppliers and manufacturers being increasingly located in different countries and time zones. ...(1993:813)

Perhaps the most important developm ent is at the individual level. The individual has reached the position o f full flexibility, with the m axim um choice available to them for m aking locational decisions when organising w ork activities. The organisational level, flexibility is particularly useful in circumstances o f fluctuating resources in periods o f uncertain demand. The basic opportunities for change and variants in operations already practised in industry is clearly docum ented in Figure 5.2, in w hich the mode o f communication, work practices and perform ance m easures are distinguished.

Figure 5.2: Opportunities for change and conceptual variations using the mode of com m unication, w ork practice and perform ance measures

S y n c h r o n o u s A s y n c h r o n o u s P e r s o n t o p e r s o n d i a l o g u e T e l e - a n d v i d e o ­ c o n f e r e n c i n g : t e l e p h o n e Fa x: c o m p u t e r m e d i a t e d c o m m u n i c a t i o n s : Vo i c e - m a i l : e - m a i l P e r s o n t o s y s t e m d i a l o g u e C A L d e l i v e r e d o n C D - R O M . d is c, i nt er ac ti v e v i d eo: C D i N o i n t e r ac t io n _{B r o a d c a s t r a di o} a n d T V Pr in t, a u d i o a n d V i d e o c a s s e t t e s D i f f e r e n t P l a c e S a m e P l a c e R c m o li: .\ I n c l i n e s .Audi o c o nt ' e r e n c in u \ i d eo c o n f ' er e nc i nu S c r e e n s h a r i n g S p o n t a n e o u s e l e c t r o n i c m e e t i n g s .\ k-s.scifiii})! \ ' o i c e a n d el ec tr on i c m e s s a g i n g C o m p u t e r c o n f e r e n c i n g S h a r e d c a l e n d e r s G r o u p w r it i ng S h a r e d d a t a b a s e w o r k f l o w

l-'uL C -iii-la ci.' n tc u l i l i e s

El ec t r o n i c w h i t e b o a r d s PC s c r e e n p r o j e c t o r s El e c t r o ni c a l l y s u p p o r t e d m e e t i n g l l 'u m C t K i r J i n a i i o n El ec t r o n i c medi ca l C u r r e n c y por tf ol i o m a n a g e m e n t F a ct o r y c on t ro l ro om S o u r c e : BI r ch al l & L y o n s ( 199?), S a m e D i f f e r e n t I i m e T i m e S o u r c e : G r a y e t al ( 1 9 9 3 ) . F i x e d R e m o t e F l e x i b l e 5> n c h r o - F l o x i b l e S P A C E C o n v e n t i o n a l O f f i c e D i s p e r s e d t e a m s R e m o t e b a c k - o f f i ce T e l e c e n t r e s V a r i a b l e l o c a t i o n M o b i l e w o r k i n g N o n ­ c o i n c i d e n t P r e s e n c e p ro du c t i v i t y Product iv ity F l e x i - t i m e J o b s h a re D e s k s h a r i n g G e o g r a p h i c a l l y s e p a r a t e d T o t a l l y H e xi b l e w o r k i n g L o c a t i o n & t i m e i n d e p e n d e n t C o i n c i d e n t P r e s e n c e P r o d u ct i v i t y P r es e n c e C o i n c i d e n t N o n - c o i n c i d e n t T I M E S o u r c e : S k y r m e ( 1994). S o u r c e : A d a p t e d f r o m B e l c h e r ( 1994) .

Discussions concerning the direction o f change in the various modes o f com m unication and work practice have been more than sufficiently covered by many authors (Sproull & Kiesler, 1991; Britton, 1994). Studies on perform ance measures however have only recently been highlighted, for example, discussions around control issues where work is measured by results at all levels o f operation (Leeds, . 1997:353; Suomi, 1997:381). This is certainly a different perspective from that o f the traditional work practice, which is measured by time spent on activities. Leeds (1997:351) em phasises that at professional and managerial levels, tasks may be broken down into deliverables, where results are easier to define for some tasks, she cites, for example, which project-based activities have clearly defined param eters, such as custom er's requirements, outputs, deliverables expected, tim etables and deadlines (Leeds, 1997:352). Productivity measures from other work profiles are yet to be researched and documented.

Additionally, the reason for adopting any one direction o f change is best explained by the criteria for decision-making. Earlier postulations have been well described by Cowan where:

Decision makers need to com m unicate in the course o f their work, under two sets o f circumstances. The first is on matters o f emergency, when [a] quick Joint decision is called for to regulate the working o f routine functions o f production, m arketing and so on. The second is in matters o f consultation, w hen broad strategy and speculation about the future [is] being planned. In the first case, individual com munication via television may enable the elites to carry out most o f their work from home. In the second case, the need for conference centres could replace central business districts. And as the affairs o f the w orld become ever so inter-linked, the location o f these meeting places may change (1969:270).

It is clear from the above that the organisation o f work is obviously based on the requirement for decision making, where the least im portant decision w ould most

probably make use o f the options available in quadrants 2, 3 and 4 and the most important decisions would m ake use o f options in quadrant 1. This will independently affect individuals within the organisation.