On the Front Line — Organization of Work in the Information Economy. - Review - book review

Organization Studies, March, 2001

1999, New York: Cornell University Press. 318 pages.

S.J. Frenkel, M. Korczynski, K.A. Shire and M. Tam: On the Front Line -- Organization of Work in the Information Economy

This book is based on a 5-year study of over a 1000 employees and 8 leading companies in the United States, Australia and Japan. If offers a comprehensive analysis of the organization and dynamics of front-line work. It analyzes similarities and differences found in work environments as well as significant contrasts between management approaches used in Japan and those used in the United States and Australia. It shows the common factors that define front line work internationally and offers insights into how customer service jobs should be managed. By examining how work differs among service, sales and knowledge-based settings, it also shows how bureaucratic, entrepreneurial and network forms of organization co-exist in the informational economy.