Information_Technology_and_the_Design_of_Work

Information Technology and the Design of Work In her book, In the Age of the Smart Machine: The Future of Work and Power, Shoshana Zuboff studied the effects on data clerks of a new computer system that automated insurance claims processing. Before the implementation, clerks processed claims by hand using paper, pencils, and ledger books. After the information technology (IT) system was implemented, the clerks used only computer keyboards and telephones—and the latter only occasionally, when they needed to call customers for clarifications. The new IT system created confusion and workers felt distanced from the work process. The clerks did not fully understand where the data on their screens came from, or what the information meant. The sensory satisfaction gained from handling paper forms and writing in ledger books was missing. The information with which the clerks worked became nothing more than streams of data, without apparent meaning or importance. Zuboff found that the clerks were “frustrated by the loss of the concreteness that had provided for them a sense of certainty and control.”2 As one benefits analyst explained, “Now we have numbers without names—no ledgers, no writing, no history, no paper. The only reality we have left is when we get to talk to a customer.” The clerks actually lost skills. A manager described the new system as requiring “less thought, judgment, and manual intervention” than the manual system it had replaced. This sentiment was echoed by a benefits analyst who prided himself on knowing, through memorization and experience, a variety of claims limitations that his job previously required him to know. After the implementation, he noted: “The computer system is supposed to know all the limitations, which is great because I no longer know them. I used to, but now I don’t know half the things I used to. I feel that I have lost it—the computer knows more.” New clerks, when hired, were chosen for their ability to use the computer, not for their ability to understand the processes of the insurance business. The work itself became more routine and mechanical. It was automated, which means that technology replaced the human worker, in contrast to work that had been informated, which occurs when workers are provided with access to a variety of information that allows them to go beyond the requirements of a job to understand the larger picture and more abstract concepts. One analyst distilled his work description down to “pushing buttons.” Other employees observed that they used to work with or for their supervisors, but they now work mainly with machines. The decreased level of human interaction was upsetting to many employees, and some resisted the change imposed upon them.