Algorithmic management in the focus of sociology of technology

Abstract

This article considers the managerial aspect of digital transformation - various programs and infrastructure that have recently received the general name “algorithmic management”. The boom in the use of such tools occurred during the covid-19 pandemic as a unique set of circumstances for the digitalization of human life. The authorities of several countries monitored their citizens’ behavior, including with the QR-code systems that limited their rights, in the fight against the spread of the covid-19, which has caused discussions and even protests. Businesses accelerated their digital transformation in HR management due to government restrictions and lockdown measures and to production needs in the new conditions. Quarantines are over, but the active development of algorithmic management continues; it extends beyond the platform economy and plays an integral role in Industry 4.0, which makes the study of algorithmic management relevant and timely. A significant contribution to understanding algorithmic management was made by the report of the experts from the European Commission and International Labor Organization. Based on the relevant publications up to 2022, they suggested giving up the narrow understanding of algorithmic management as a platform economy issue; however, most studies are still based on this interpretation. The article presents a broader definition to identify additional social contradictions and challenges of digital transformation. The author considers algorithmic management in the perspective of sociology of management and sociology of technology, in particular the works of A. Feenberg and P. Edwards. The approach of sociology of technologies studies (STS) allowed the author not only to analyze the events of the recent pandemic but also to consider the future of such technologies under the transition towards Industry 4.0. The article identifies three elements of algorithmic management together with hidden social-managerial biases and contradictions related to their implementation and shows how the new approach integrates direct and indirect control in management.

Keywords

• algorithmic management
• platform economy
• management
• industry 4.0
• surveillance
• stress
• control