Analyzing the Effect of Express Orders on Supply Chain Costs and Delivery Times

Delivery time differentiation is a supply chain concept that has been implemented in various industries, but not yet in the automotive industry. One reason is that the effects of delivery time differentiation on the supply chain are not well understood. The BMW Group, for instance, has considered offering an express order option, where express orders bypass standard orders in the supply chain processes to achieve short delivery times. Express orders distort planning processes, increase operations cost, and increase the delivery times of standard orders, however the effects have not been quantified yet. This study analyzes the impact of express orders on the supply chain, when express orders are built‐to‐order. To understand the supply chain consequences of express orders better, we analyzed the relevant supply chain processes at BMW Group. We determine the effect that built‐to‐order express orders have on delivery times and on component demand. To analyze the effect of introducing express orders on expected delivery times and expected cost, we use queuing theory and derive expressions for the transient behavior of a discrete time batch queue. Our analyses indicate that many supply chain processes are only marginally affected. However, the orders to the suppliers become considerably more uncertain, which must be compensated by additional safety stock. Our results indicate that express orders can be an attractive option for BMW and other automotive companies. If the fraction of express orders stays at a reasonable level, express orders can be delivered within about two weeks.     

The cosmopolitan perspective: sociology of the second age of modernity*

'Second age of modernity' is a magical password that is meant to open the doors to new conceptual landscapes. The whole world of nation sovereignty is fading away – including the 'container theory of society' on which most of the sociology of the first age of modernity is based upon. In this article I propose a distinction between 'simple globalization' and 'reflexive cosmopolitization'. In the paradigm of the first age of modernity, simple globalization is interpreted within the territorial compass of state and politics, society and culture. This involves an additive, not substitutive, conception of globalization as indicated for example by 'interconnectedness'. In the paradigm of the second age of modernity globalization changes not only the relations between and beyond national states and societies, but also the inner quality of the social and political itself which is indicated by more or less reflexive cosmopolitization as an institutionalized learning process – and its enemies.     

Collective Wage Agreements and Firms’ Employment Policies

This paper provides evidence on the way collective wage agreements affect the adjustment of employment, working hours and other production factors when service‐sector firms are faced with demand shocks. The estimation results indicate that collective wage agreements significantly influence firms’ employment policies. It is shown that recruitment is a widespread instrument for service firms to cope with demand fluctuations which are negatively affected by collective wage agreements. The employment of freelance workers is also negatively affected by collective wage agreements, while their effect on using short‐term employment contracts as a reaction to demand shocks is positive.     

Unpacking cosmopolitanism for the social sciences: a research agenda

This article calls for a re-conceptualization of the social sciences by asking for a cosmopolitan turn. The intellectual undertaking of redefining cosmopolitanism is a trans-disciplinary one, which includes geography, anthropology, ethnology, international relations, international law, political philosophy and political theory, and now sociology and social theory. Methodological nationalism, which subsumes society under the nation-state, has until now made this task almost impossible. The alternative, a 'cosmopolitan outlook', is a contested term and project. Cosmopolitanism must not be equalized with the global (or globalization), with 'world system theory' ( Wallerstein ), with 'world polity' ( Meyer and others ), or with 'world-society' ( Luhmann ). All of those concepts presuppose basic dualisms, such as domestic/foreign or national/international, which in reality have become ambiguous. Methodological cosmopolitanism opens up new horizons by demonstrating how we can make the empirical investigation of border crossings and other transnational phenomena possible.     

The Management of Redundancies in Europe: The Case of Germany

The paper presents the findings of comparative and interdisciplinary legal and economic study on managing labour redundancies in seven EU member countries. It is structured for immediate comparability between the systems examined. The introductory section contains an account of the evolution of the German labour market, with special reference to redundancy trends, of the features of the programmes for managing redundancies, of the roles of firms and the ‘external environment’ in handling workforce adjustments. The second section presents a map of policies that work to prevent labour redundancies (preventive measures) such as flexibility, training etc. Next, the instruments for handling temporary labour redundancies (retentive measures) are examined (e.g. short-time working, temporary layoffs etc.). The following section is devoted to instruments and programmes involved in the management of permanent labour redundancies (expulsive measures), e.g. collective dismissals, severance pay etc. The final section provides an overall assessment of the German system for managing labour redundancies, and briefly discusses the national debate on the prospects for reform, in light of the principles and policies of convergence set forth by the European Commission.     

Towards a re-conceptualization of flow in social contexts

The antecedents and outcomes of individual-level flow are well documented in a large body of literature. However, flow does not only occur in isolation - quite to the contrary, recent evidence suggests that social interaction can facilitate the experience of flow. Therefore, we propose a taxonomy, which distinguishes five different flow states according to two global factors: interactional synchrony and self-other overlap. Solitary flow bears all characteristics developed by Csikszentmihalyi. Co-active flow is facilitated or hampered by the presence of other people. Private interactive flow emerges on the grounds of a minimal unidirectional interaction with more passive others; only the active subject is in flow. In shared interactive flow, a fully synchronized activity between group members takes place and all group members are in flow. In group flow, all members reach a level of complete self-other overlap with the group, which leads to a collective experience of flow on the group-level. In addition to differences and commonalities of the different types of flow, suggestions for how to induce and study social flow are discussed.