In the decade since the publication of Julian Orr's Talking About Machines: An Ethnography
of a Modern Job, the field of organization studies has yet to develop a rich and complete …

Julian Orr's ethnographic study of copier technicians explores three themes—practices,
practitioners, and learning—gathered under the heading of 'work'and situated in geographic …

Orr's work falls on one side of a marked divide separating rule-based theories from practice-
focused research. From within the tradition of workplace studies (which show themselves …

'The knowledge worker is a welcome addition to the ethnographic investigation of high-tech
work. The author's thoughtful comparative approach, contrasting the oft-studied American …

Julian Orr's Talking About Machines (TAM) is celebrated for communicating something of the
richness and complexity of work practices. Our endeavour is to connect the current wave of …

Ia landmark 1945 essay on ''The Use of Knowledge in Society,''Frederick Hayek spoke about
the time we spend in on-the-job learning, and about the unique ''knowledge of people, of …

In this essay I argue that organizational theorizing would benefit from incorporating a richer
understanding of work and occupations. To demonstrate how, I turn to recent literature …

Recent ethnographic studies of workplace practices indicate that the ways people actually
work usually differ fundamentally from the ways organizations describe that work in …

Both professional work and the sociological study of professional work experienced a
“golden age” in the mid-20th century. When dramatic changes began to shake the …

Despite growing interest in the knowledge economy, the work practice of its key workers has
remained neglected. This article reviews the key sociological and managerial debates about …