Abstract

The paper explores the mutual dependencies which characterise the parallel evolution of technology and organisational structures, and their impact over the development of capabilities and the creation of knowledge. Referring to the ongoing debate about the post-Fordist production models, the paper underlines how the diffusion of innovative technologies involves a deep change in the nature of labour, and consequently requires to update the principles driving the choice of a specific labour organisation. The need for a parallel approach to the evolution of technology and organisation is explored through three subsequent steps. The first part of the paper reviews the concept of technology and outlines the connection between technology-based competition and the creation and development of new knowledge and capabilities within the organisation. The second part explores the links between the organisational structure and the required capabilities, while the last one deepens the concept of "labour" as the result of the capabilities development. An analysis of the contents of labour within different productive contexts underlines the need for coherence between the process of labour division and the attempt to develop the capabilities required within the organisation.