Global production networks, labour and small firms

The literature on global production networks (GPNs) and global commodity/value chains has generally conceptualised small firms as being at the bottom of the commodity chain hierarchy, and thus subordinate to larger firms. As a consequence, small firms and their employees are typically imagined to be...

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Main Authors: Rainnie, Al, Herod, A., McGrath-Champ, S.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Sage journals 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24602
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author Rainnie, Al
Herod, A.
McGrath-Champ, S.
author_facet Rainnie, Al
Herod, A.
McGrath-Champ, S.
author_sort Rainnie, Al
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description The literature on global production networks (GPNs) and global commodity/value chains has generally conceptualised small firms as being at the bottom of the commodity chain hierarchy, and thus subordinate to larger firms. As a consequence, small firms and their employees are typically imagined to be fairly powerless to shape the structure of GPNs. By way of contrast, in this paper we argue that small firms and their employees are not lacking in the capacity to affect the way GPNs and commodity chains develop, but can in fact shape them in potentially significant ways. This recognition becomes evident if, instead of starting any analysis of small firms in GPNs with the governance structures of production networks or managerial strategies, we instead start the analysis with the organisation and control of the labour process in concrete settings, and tie this to broader understandings of uneven and combined development under capitalism.
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-246022017-09-13T15:13:57Z Global production networks, labour and small firms Rainnie, Al Herod, A. McGrath-Champ, S. Global production networks small firms uneven and combined - development agency labour The literature on global production networks (GPNs) and global commodity/value chains has generally conceptualised small firms as being at the bottom of the commodity chain hierarchy, and thus subordinate to larger firms. As a consequence, small firms and their employees are typically imagined to be fairly powerless to shape the structure of GPNs. By way of contrast, in this paper we argue that small firms and their employees are not lacking in the capacity to affect the way GPNs and commodity chains develop, but can in fact shape them in potentially significant ways. This recognition becomes evident if, instead of starting any analysis of small firms in GPNs with the governance structures of production networks or managerial strategies, we instead start the analysis with the organisation and control of the labour process in concrete settings, and tie this to broader understandings of uneven and combined development under capitalism. 2013 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24602 10.1177/0309816813481337 Sage journals fulltext
spellingShingle Global production networks
small firms
uneven and combined - development
agency
labour
Rainnie, Al
Herod, A.
McGrath-Champ, S.
Global production networks, labour and small firms
title Global production networks, labour and small firms
title_full Global production networks, labour and small firms
title_fullStr Global production networks, labour and small firms
title_full_unstemmed Global production networks, labour and small firms
title_short Global production networks, labour and small firms
title_sort global production networks, labour and small firms
topic Global production networks
small firms
uneven and combined - development
agency
labour
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24602