The impact of digitalization on production management practices: A multiple case study

With the diffusion of Industry 4.0, manufacturing firms can decentralize their operational decisions and enable real-time data-driven decision-making. Using a socio-technical approach and the manufacturing shop-floor as a unit of analysis, this article studies the changes induced by digitalization on operational decision-making, organizational structures, and individual competencies. A cross-country multiple case study conducted in the automotive sector suggests three main areas on which firms have to focus: decentralized data-driven decision-making, front-line managers’ upskilling, and production workers’ involvement. The successful implementation of digitalization and the actual decentralization of decision-making depend on individual factors related to the competencies of front-line managers, who acquire a central role in this skill-biased technological and organizational change.