VOLVO - Job Design

Learning Objectives Identifying the approaches of Volvo Describing the reason Volvo changing Describing main concern regarding Volvo changing Describe how environmental uncertainty influence the process of change

Background Volvo is the Swedish motor vehicle Volvo is one leader in innovations motor vehicle manufacturer since 1970 Volvo commitment to work humanization in manufactured There are 2 complementary explanations for Volvo actions : Gylennhammar identifying the need to reduce labor turnover, because boring & monotonous job Karlsson, said Volvo was one Sweden largest and successful company, their actions and practices were always in the public eye

Phases of Change Volvo adoption of job design began over 29 years ago, now they reached a stage where a group work become the standard approach to work design, assembly line working The Phases are related to investment projects in 1970s,1980s,1990s : Kalmar Torslanda Udenvalla Gent and Born

Phase one – Kalmar Open 1974, it is second largest final assembly plant At Kalmar there is : No assembly line Workers operate in teams Each team having its own dedicated area of the factory This arrangement allowed Kalmar to operate 2 alternatives to moving assembly line : Straight line assembly Dock assembly

Phase Two – Torslanda Built in 1976, at the central assembly plant Torslanda management experimented with the use of large, autonomous work groups to assemble an entire car using a dock assembly approach Phase Three – Uddevalla This was the first all new car assembly plant built by Volvo in Sweden since Kalmar

The design of the plant was the result of a modernization pact between the plant’s management and the metal worker’s union. Unfortunately, the plant was opened at a time when car demand is falling Phase Four – Gent and Born By the late 1980s, Volvo approach to Job Design was widely accepted and practised throughout the company.

The Outcome The key factors which appear to have influenced Volvo to adopt this job design : For economic and business reasons Full employment and lack of wage flexibility precludes more traditional measures for dealing with absenteeism and labor turnover The parallel move by Volvo to adopt a strategy of decentralizing control to plant level Whilst change taken place, both management and workers have found of capturing the knowledge gained other plants and lessons learnt to future projects