In spite of everything

Professionalism as mass customised bureaucratic production in a Danish government call centre

Bibliographic Data

ID21189886
AuthorsPia Bramming (0000-0001-8739-779X, National Research Centre for the Working Environment), Pia Bramming Pia Bramming, Ole Sørensen (0000-0003-0724-3542, National Research Centre for the Working Environment), Ole H Sørensen Ole H Sørensen, Peter Hasle (0000-0002-9340-0040, National Research Centre for the Working Environment), Peter Hasle Peter Hasle
Year2009
Volume3
Issue1
Publication date2009-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueWork Organisation Labour & Globalisation (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1745-641X • E-ISSN: 1745-6428
PublisherPluto Journals (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.13169/workorgalaboglob.3.1.0114
OpenAlexW2622396144
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited23

This paper presents a study of the consequences of the transformation of part of the Danish Tax and Customs Administration (TAX) from a traditional white-collar public administration into a call centre. TAX participated in the study using ‘Amica’ testing methods aimed at improving the psychosocial working environment in call centres. The results showed a surprising and rapid development from a situation where employees reported a stressful and unsatisfying work environment to one where the organisation had taken a giant stride towards improving the work environment, involving a major shift in leadership and employee identity. The paper discusses this change from a traditional white-collar model to a ‘mass customised bureaucratic’ production one in a New Public Management setting that focuses on cost reduction, customer orientation, performance monitoring and documentation

Bureaucracy · Business · Call centre · Danish · Documentation · Economics · Political science · Public relations · Emotional Labor in Professions · Employment and Welfare Studies · Law · Management and Organizational Studies · Public Administration · Accounting