IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/ibt/wpaper/wp082023.html

Automation In Shared Service Centres: Implications For Skills And Autonomy In A Global Organisation

Author

Listed:
  • Zuzanna Kowalik
  • Piotr Lewandowski
  • Tomasz Geodecki
  • Maciej Grodzicki

Abstract

The offshoring-fuelled growth of the Central and Eastern European business services sector gave rise to shared service centres (SSCs), quasi-autonomous entities providing routine-intensive tasks for the central organisation. The advent of technologies like Intelligent Process Automation, Robotic Process Automation, and Artificial Intelligence jeopardises SSCs’ employment model, necessitating workers’ skills adaptation. The study challenges the deskilling hypothesis and reveals that automation in the Polish SSCs is conducive to upskilling and worker autonomy. Drawing on 31 in-depth interviews, we highlight the negotiated nature of automation processes shaped by interactions between headquarters, SSCs, and their workers. Workers actively participated in automation processes, eliminating the most mundane tasks. This resulted in upskilling, higher job satisfaction and empowerment. Yet, this phenomenon heavily depends upon the fact that automation is triggered by labour shortages, which limit the expansion of SSCs. This situation encourages companies to leverage the specific expertise entrenched in their existing workforce. The study underscores the importance of fostering employee-driven automation and upskilling initiatives for overall job satisfaction and quality.

Suggested Citation

  • Zuzanna Kowalik & Piotr Lewandowski & Tomasz Geodecki & Maciej Grodzicki, 2023. "Automation In Shared Service Centres: Implications For Skills And Autonomy In A Global Organisation," IBS Working Papers 08/2023, Instytut Badan Strukturalnych.
    • Handle: RePEc:ibt:wpaper:wp082023
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://ibs.org.pl/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Automation-in-Shared-Services-Centres-Implications-for-Skills-and-Autonomy-in-a-Global-Organisation_IBS_WP_08_23.pdf
    File Function: English Version
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Piotr Lewandowski & Albert Park & Simone Schotte, 2022. "The global divergence in the de-routinisation of jobs," IBS Working Papers 08/2022, Instytut Badan Strukturalnych.
    2. Herbert, Ian P. & Seal, Will B., 2012. "Shared services as a new organisational form: Some implications for management accounting," The British Accounting Review, Elsevier, vol. 44(2), pages 83-97.
    3. Janssen, Marijn & Joha, Anton, 2006. "Motives for establishing shared service centers in public administrations," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(2), pages 102-115.
    4. Uma RANI & Damian GRIMSHAW, 2019. "Introduction: What does the future promise for work, employment and society?," International Labour Review, International Labour Organization, vol. 158(4), pages 577-592, December.
    5. David H. Autor & Frank Levy & Richard J. Murnane, 2003. "The Skill Content of Recent Technological Change: An Empirical Exploration," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(4), pages 1279-1333.
    6. Caitlin Allen Whitehead & Zaakhir Asmal & Haroon Bhorat, 2023. "Co-ordination to support inclusive growth in developing countries in the context of globalization: The case of the business process outsourcing sector in South Africa," Working Papers 202307, University of Cape Town, Development Policy Research Unit.
    7. Kotschy, Rainer & Bloom, David, 2023. "Population Aging and Economic Growth: From Demographic Dividend to Demographic Drag?," CEPR Discussion Papers 18400, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    8. Karina Fernandez-Stark & Penny Bamber & Gary Gereffi, 2011. "The offshore services value chain: upgrading trajectories in developing countries," International Journal of Technological Learning, Innovation and Development, Inderscience Enterprises Ltd, vol. 4(1/2/3), pages 206-234.
    9. Claudius Gräbner & Philipp Heimberger & Jakob Kapeller & Bernhard Schütz, 2020. "Structural change in times of increasing openness: assessing path dependency in European economic integration," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 30(5), pages 1467-1495, November.
    10. Gereffi, Gary & Fernandez-Stark, Karina, 2010. "The offshore services value chain : developing countries and the crisis," Policy Research Working Paper Series 5262, The World Bank.
    11. Maarten Goos & Alan Manning & Anna Salomons, 2014. "Explaining Job Polarization: Routine-Biased Technological Change and Offshoring," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(8), pages 2509-2526, August.
    12. Alan S. Blinder & Alan B. Krueger, 2013. "Alternative Measures of Offshorability: A Survey Approach," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 31(S1), pages 97-128.
    13. Wojciech Hardy & Roma Keister & Piotr Lewandowski, 2018. "Educational upgrading, structural change and the task composition of jobs in Europe," The Economics of Transition, The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, vol. 26(2), pages 201-231, April.
    14. Grodzicki, Maciej J. & Skrzypek, Jurand, 2020. "Cost-competitiveness and structural change in value chains – vertically-integrated analysis of the European automotive sector," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 276-287.
    15. David H. Autor & Frank Levy & Richard J. Murnane, 2003. "The skill content of recent technological change: an empirical exploration," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, issue nov.
    16. Acemoglu, Daron & Autor, David, 2011. "Skills, Tasks and Technologies: Implications for Employment and Earnings," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 12, pages 1043-1171, Elsevier.
    17. Laszlo Bruszt & Ludvig Lundstedt & Zsuzsa Munkacsi, 2020. "Collateral benefit: the developmental effects of EU-induced state building in Central and Eastern Europe," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 27(5), pages 1170-1191, September.
    18. Seetha Menon & Andrea Salvatori & Wouter Zwysen, 2020. "The Effect of Computer Use on Work Discretion and Work Intensity: Evidence from Europe," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 58(4), pages 1004-1038, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Aleksandra Parteka & Joanna Wolszczak-Derlacz, 2020. "Wage response to global production links: evidence for workers from 28 European countries (2005–2014)," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 156(4), pages 769-801, November.
    2. Martina Bisello & Marta Fana & Enrique Fernández-Macías & Sergio Torrejón Pérez, 2021. "A comprehensive European database of tasks indices for socio-economic research," JRC Working Papers on Labour, Education and Technology 2021-04, Joint Research Centre.
    3. Rabensteiner, Thomas & Guschanski, Alexander, 2022. "Autonomy and wage divergence: evidence from European survey data," Greenwich Papers in Political Economy 37925, University of Greenwich, Greenwich Political Economy Research Centre.
    4. Einiö, Elias, 2016. "The loss of production work: evidence from quasiexperimental identification of labour demand functions," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 69019, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Zsófia L. Bárány & Christian Siegel, 2018. "Job Polarization and Structural Change," American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 10(1), pages 57-89, January.
    6. Nikolaos Terzidis & Raquel Ortega‐Argilés, 2021. "Employment polarization in regional labor markets: Evidence from the Netherlands," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(5), pages 971-1001, November.
    7. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/4he5e8ba3929rhrgcti3so9af is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Antonio Martins-Neto & Nanditha Mathew & Pierre Mohnen & Tania Treibich, 2024. "Is There Job Polarization in Developing Economies? A Review and Outlook," The World Bank Research Observer, World Bank, vol. 39(2), pages 259-288.
    9. Lewandowski, Piotr & Keister, Roma & Hardy, Wojciech & Górka, Szymon, 2020. "Ageing of routine jobs in Europe," Economic Systems, Elsevier, vol. 44(4).
    10. Rica, Sara De La & Gortazar, Lucas & Lewandowski, Piotr, 2020. "Job Tasks and Wages in Developed Countries: Evidence from PIAAC," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 65(C).
    11. Roupakias, Stelios, 2023. "Employment polarization: evidence from regions in Greece," MPRA Paper 118696, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    12. AndrÉ van Hoorn, 2022. "Automatability of Work and Preferences for Redistribution," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 84(1), pages 130-157, February.
    13. Lewandowski, Piotr & Park, Albert & Schotte, Simone, 2020. "The Global Distribution of Routine and Non-Routine Work," IZA Discussion Papers 13384, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Heyman, Fredrik, 2016. "Job polarization, job tasks and the role of firms," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 246-251.
    15. Orhun Sevinc, 2017. "Skill-Biased Technical Change and Labor Market Polarization: The Role of Skill Heterogeneity Within Occupations," Discussion Papers 1728, Centre for Macroeconomics (CFM).
    16. Dias Da Silva, António & Laws, Athene & Petroulakis, Filippos, 2019. "Hours of work polarisation?," Working Paper Series 2324, European Central Bank.
    17. Wenchao Jin, 2022. "Occupational polarisation and endogenous task-biased technical change," Working Paper Series 0622, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    18. Maximilian Longmuir & Carsten Schröde & Matteo Targa, 2020. "De-Routinization of Jobs and Polarization of Earnings: Evidence from 35 Countries," Working Papers 1397, Economic Research Forum, revised 20 Jun 2020.
    19. Zsofia Barany & Christian Siegel, 2015. "Job Polarization and Structural Change," Working Papers hal-03459762, HAL.
    20. bernhard Boockmann, 2014. "Offshoring Potential and Employment Dynamics," IAW Discussion Papers 111, Institut für Angewandte Wirtschaftsforschung (IAW).
    21. Stefania Albanesi & António Dias da Silva & Juan F Jimeno & Ana Lamo & Alena Wabitsch, 2025. "New technologies and jobs in Europe," Economic Policy, CEPR, CESifo, Sciences Po;CES;MSH, vol. 40(121), pages 71-139.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:ibt:wpaper:wp082023. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: IBS (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ibswapl.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.