Transforming knowledge and skills: Reconfiguring the productive system of a local authority

This paper draws on the analytical framework offered by the concept of
‘productive systems’ which shifts attention away from examining sites of
work as self-standing units to one which places them in a configuration of
relationships. The concept is used in this paper to track how the
introduction of a call centre can reconfigure knowledge and skills from
one part of the system to another. The empirical evidence for the paper
draws from a case study of a call centre which was set up as the primary
access point to services provided by a local authority in the Midlands. The
paper argues that the productive system perspective highlights the ways in
which this call centre facilitated the rationalization of organizational
procedures and practices in its back offices, while simultaneously
promoting a degree of personalized service.