The Term “Division of Labor, Essay Example

Describe what is meant by the term “Division of Labor.” Also explain the advantages and disadvantages associated with division of labor.

Businesses have always been striving for ways to improve operational efficiency in order to enhance profitability and this very same goal might also have been responsible to give birth to the concept of division of labor. Division of labor could be defined as dividing different tasks among individuals or groups so that everyone or each group focuses on only one particular task. There are both advantages and disadvantages associated with division of labor which are also sometimes determined by the nature of the industryas well as the type of workers.

One of the benefits of division of labor is that it helps workers quickly improve their productivity by repeatedly doing the same task. As a result, learning curve may be significantly reduced if the workers are assigned a new task. Another benefit of division of labor is that it reduces waste of limited time resources by minimizing the need from moving one task to another. When workers move between tasks, time element is not only involved in switching between tasks but even speed is affected as one’s mind becomes accustomed to the requirements of the other task.

Division of labor may also result in everyone being assigned to the task they are best at. As a result, there is efficient allocation of human capital. When people do what they are best at, their concentration to the task may be higher. Even the motivation levels may improve among workers who do not prefer variety but instead just want to focus on what they can do best. Similarly, division of labor may also suit to business models with high product volume and standardized products.

Just as there are advantages of division of labor, there are potential shortcomings, too. First of all, division of labor forces employees to specialize in one task which may turn out to be a liability if their skills go out of demand or outsourced. This will make it difficult for them to maintain job security since they do not have diverse skill set.

Another shortcoming of division of labor is that there are limitations to how much productivity can be enhanced. Workers may become productive by repeatedly doing the same task but eventually the rate at which they enhance their productivity will start slowing down and eventually disappear as they have achieved the maximum productivity they are capable of. One limited to the growth in productivity may also be fixed assets with a particular capacity and once the capacity has been reached, there will be little workers could do to enhance productivity.

Division of labor may suit to some who like to do one task only but it may also lead to boredom for some who prefer variety of tasks to keep things excited. It may also be ill-suited to those who want to learn about the whole business rather than just one aspect of it. Division of labor may also result in an inflexible organization with workers who have limited set of skills and may find it difficult to cope with change in the external environment.Division of labor might have worked in the past but more and more companies now operate in the service sector where employees need a diverse range of skills set to provide satisfactory solutions to the clients.

Division of labor concept might have been created out of desire to enhance productive efficiency. While it has advantages and is well suited to some business models, it also has certain shortcomings including an inflexible workforce and low job security for the employees in the long term.