New Forms of Work Organization and the High Road to Innovation: European Experiences

Abstract

Europe’s attempts to create a successful knowledge economy in an increasingly volatile world demands management and work organization practices that break with the past. Employee involvement through partnership, participative teamworking, continuous improvement and high involvement innovation are seen by a growing number of employers as core planks of competitive strategy. A growing body of evidence shows that participative working has a high impact on performance especially when adopted systemically throughout the organization; equally there is evidence that the majority of European organizations lag well behind in the systemic adoption of proven methods. The sustainability of European competitiveness and public services depends on continued progress in this direction, though the gap between leading practice and common practice is widening. Some EU countries, including Germany, have taken the challenge of workplace innovation seriously for decades; the majority have failed to do so.