The impact of technological change on the content of jobs and accompanying skills is a central topic across disciplines. To date, ample research has directly linked the technological change to shifts in skills use; however, organisational change is rarely considered as an influencing factor. Based on a panel survey, this paper uses a Luhmannian approach to understand the relationship between technological change and organisational context. This theory is tested quantitatively and shows the importance of considering the working environment's nature when studying skills changes. The results show small effects by the technological change on changing skills use but larger effects by changes in the working environment. Recommendations for future research and practical implications are discussed.

1. Organisation, technological change and skills use over
time: a longitudinal study on linked employee surveys
Steven Dhondt, TNO/KU Leuven
Karolus Kraan, TNO
Michiel Bal, KU Leuven
EUWIN, February 8th 2022
@Transform_H2020
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills

2. @Transform_H2020

3. Is this a skill or is this an assigned task?
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills
• Checking to prevent errors from being made
• Planning the activities of others
• Cooperating with others in a team

4. The (Dutch) sociotechnical perspective
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills
Preparation tasks
(planning, assigning)
Supportive tasks
(quality control, information collection)
Regulating tasks
(choosing methods, solving problems)
Executive tasks
(manual, administrative, …)

5. The (Dutch) sociotechnical perspective
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills
Preparation tasks
(planning, assigning)
Supportive tasks
(quality control, information collection)
Regulating tasks
(choosing methods, solving problems)
Executive tasks
(manual, administrative, …)

6. The technological perspective
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills
Preparation tasks
(planning, assigning)
Supportive tasks
(quality control, information collection)
Regulating tasks
(choosing methods, solving problems)
Executive tasks
(manual, administrative, …)
Education needs to
prepare for these
tasks

7. Starting point: technology and skills (Van de
Berg et al., 2018)
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills

8. What does this mean?
• Technology changes, skill demands change
• Organisations become complexer, skill demands
change
• Result: more polarization, more upskilling

9. Starting point: technology and skills (Van de
Berg et al., 2018)
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills
Variable:
- Technological change
Variables:
- Working environment
- Skills use
- Control variables
N = 2,780
N = 1,550
N = 4,220
N = 4,791
LLL 2017
NSS 2017
NSS 2012

10. Logic
@Transform_H2020
• Starting point: results from NSS
• Understanding skills surveys
• Linking skills to organisational environment
• What does this mean?

11. Skills surveys reflect more task division
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills
SES + NSS PIAAC
Executive, operational tasks
Physical Skills The use of physical strength and/or stamina (+ your agility to perform a
task)
Client Communication selling a product or service, counselling or caring for customers or
clients
relating to customers (~Horizontal Communication)
Horizontal
Communication
working with a team of people, listening carefully to colleagues
(+dealing with people; giving feedback to colleagues)
Team work, working with others,
participate in projects and tasks, cultural sensitivity,
Preparation tasks
Planning planning activities, organising one’s own time and thinking ahead
(+planning activities of others)
Management Planning (self and others), organisation, responsibility
Support tasks
Problem-Solving detecting, diagnosing, analysing and resolving problems Recognising problems and devising and implementing a plan of action,
discovering a rule or principle underlying the relationship between two or
more objects and applying it when solving a problem
Checking Skills noticing and checking for errors
Regulation tasks
High-level
Communication
top-down communication skills, including persuading or influencing
others, instructing, training or teaching people, making speeches or
presentations and writing long reports
negotiating (~Horizontal Communication)
Creativity/
entrepreneurship
Initiative, creativity, ability to assess and take risks.
Information processing Thinking skills, managing information

12. So, …
@Transform_H2020
• … we suddenly find ourselves in the world of task
analysis.
• … but tasks are ‘de-coupled’ from the organisational
context.

13. What does our analysis show?
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills

14. Social skills Literacy and
communication
skills
ICT and mathematics
skills
β β β
Working environment (-1= from complete to incomplete; 0= no change;
1 from incomplete to complete)
.22*** .23*** .22***
Technological change (1=No, not at all; 5= to a very large extent) .03 .02 -.05 ±
Sex (0=female; 1=male) .02 .01 .04
Age -.08** -.07* -.06
Occupation (Managers, and Professionals (ISCO 1&2) = reference
category):
- Technicians and associate professionals (ISCO 3) -.03 -.02 -.00
- Clerical support workers (ISCO 4) -.02 .02 -.03
- Services and sales workers (ISCO 5) .02 -.01 .08*
- Craft and related trades, and Skilled agricultural workers (ISCO 6&7) -.06 -.02 -.03
- Plant and machine operators and assemblers, and Elementary
occupations (ISCO 8&9)
-.08* -.04 -.06
- Unknown ISCO -.01 -.01 -.00
R² 6.1% 5.7% 6.5%
Main hypothesis

15. What does this mean?

16. What does this mean?

17. So, technology?
2,000
2,25000
2,5000
2,75000
-,2000 ,05000 ,3000 ,55000 ,8000 1,05000
u_rekstict2017
2017:
Mathematics
and
ICT
competences
(range
1=not
at
all
important
-
5=crucial)
Technological developments at work which have changed job content
(0=No (not at all)/somewhat; 1=To a (very) large extent)
With linear regression multivariate corrected means on '2017 Mathematics & ICT
competences', by 'Job completeness in 2012 and 2017' and 'Technological
developments at work which have changed job content'.
2012 ánd 2017 incomplete job
2012 incomplete, 2017 complete job
2012 complete, 2017 incomplete job
2012 ánd 2017 complete job

18. 2,000
2,25000
2,5000
2,75000
-,2000 ,05000 ,3000 ,55000 ,8000 1,05000
u_rekstict2017
2017:
Mathematics
and
ICT
competences
(range
1=not
at
all
important
-
5=crucial)
Technological developments at work which have changed job content
(0=No (not at all)/somewhat; 1=To a (very) large extent)
With linear regression multivariate corrected means on '2017 Mathematics & ICT
competences', by 'Job completeness in 2012 and 2017' and 'Technological
developments at work which have changed job content'.
2012 ánd 2017 incomplete job
2012 incomplete, 2017 complete job
2012 complete, 2017 incomplete job
2012 ánd 2017 complete job
Technology ‘dampens’ skill changes

19. Thank you!
DISCUSSION
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills

20. Sources
• Dhondt, S., Kraan, K.O., Bal, M. (2022). Organisation, technological
change and skills use over time: a longitudinal study on linked
employee surveys. New Technology, Work and Employment, First
published: 31 December 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/ntwe.12227
• Van den Berg, E., P. Van Eldert, D. Fouarge and B. Ter Weel (2018),
Taken en vaardigheden op het werk. Bevindingen uit de eerste en
tweede Nederlandse Skills Survey. Report ROA-R-2018/6, (ROA/SEO,
Maastricht/Amsterdam, Netherlands).
EUWIN - Organisation, technology and skills