Fad, fashion and "t: An examination of quality circles, business process re-engineering and statistical process control

Abstract This paper reports the major "ndings of a literature-based study which has examined the extent or otherwise to which quality circles (QCs), business process re-engineering (BPR) and statistical process control (SPC) follow the path of fad, fashion and "t. The "ndings indicate that QCs exhibit boundary conditions between the fad and fashion stages, BPR is in the fad phase, and it was dicult to position SPC using the methodology employed in the study. In tracking the development of management initiatives, from fad through fashion to "t the literature was evaluated using the six-stage model developed by Van der Wiele (Beyond Fads, Eburon, Rotterdam, 1998); however, some diculties were encountered due to the lack of de"nition precision, in particular that of fashion. The methodology used to assess the literature in terms of the degree to which the paper describing each initiative represented fad, fashion or "t conditions was relatively successful and this is detailed

Stimulating the innovation potential of 'routine' workers through workplace learning

Governments worldwide seek to upgrade the ‘basic skills' of employees deemed to have low literacy and numeracy, in order to enable their greater productivity and participation in workplace practices. A longitudinal investigation of such interventions in the United Kingdom has examined the effects on employees and on organizations of engaging in basic skills programmes offered in and through the workplace. ‘Tracking’ of employees in selected organizational contexts has highlighted ways in which interplay between formal and informal workplace learning can help to create the environments for employees in lower grade jobs to use and expand their skills. This workplace learning is a precondition, a stimulus and an essential ingredient for participation in employee-driven innovation, as workers engage with others to vary, and eventually to change, work practices. © 2010, SAGE Publications. All rights reserved