Algorithms and Control
On the Limitations of »Algorithmic Management« as an Analytical Category
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32387/prokla.v54i217.2148Keywords:
Algorithmic Management, Control, Employee Participation, Labour Conflicts, Work ProcessAbstract
Research on »Algorithmic Management« (AM) at the workplace has produced important insights into new forms of control and mechanisms of domination. Nevertheless, we see four deficits in the political and scientific discourse on AM: conceptual vagueness; the equation of AM with direct control of work performance; an algorithm-centered view of changes at the workplace and the overestimation of algorithmic performance; and the underestimation of the power of workers to shape AM. Analyzing the actual practices of AM at a case of a food delivery service, we argue for a more differentiated perspective that overcomes these shortcomings.
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