Fordism is DeadDefinitions: Fordism encompasses the mass production systems and consumption characteristics of the highly developed economies of the 1940s-1960s. At the time, the emphasis was on specialization, standardization and control. Mass production was based on the presumption that activities should be simplified and controlled from above. Post-Fordism was seen as a direct confrontation with the principles of Fordism. This involved the introduction of an increasingly skilled, highly motivated and extremely flexible workforce. The main objective was to engender flexibility and innovation through the decentralization of power. Neo-Fordism was originally subsumed within the more general concept of post-Fordism. This implies a modification of Fordist practices rather than direct confrontation. Changes brought about by neo-Fordism include the centralization of research and management functions in advanced industrialized countries, the transfer of production to lower-cost countries, and the use of flexible models of production and work organizations in order to reduce costs. Effects of a changing economy: 1. GlobalizationNeed to be flexible and able to reconfigure resources in order to take full advantage of the potential benefits of globalization. There may be benefits to coordinating activities on a global scale, but opportunities at the local level should not be ignored – aspects of standardization and flexibility must be integrated. Increased globalization means increased complexity for a business and therefore bureaucratic businesses associated with Fordism must adapt to deal with complexity.2. New technologiesNew technologies have facilitated greater interdependence between organizations. The options created by the Internet and ICT have led to a whole new area of ​​choice when it comes to organizational structures. Technology has enabled greater flexibility in production and has also contributed to the development of mass production. Technology has therefore facilitated the expansion of Fordist production practices, but has also enabled businesses to move away from original Fordism and organizational structures.3. Knowledge-based environmental value is increasingly created by the way information and knowledge flows and, therefore, organizing to maximize production efficiency is less relevant. Since Fordism was based on the principle of mass production combined with low costs, we can clearly see how the importance of Fordism is diminishing. The growth of low-cost production economies has resulted in a dual need for organizations: to motivate individuals to contribute to the generation of organizational knowledge and to design organizational arrangements to support organizational learning processes. The bureaucratic and rigid structure used during the period of Fordism does not actively encourage such needs and must be adapted.4. HypercompetitionMarkets are being redefined as consumers develop new needs and wants.