A Social Design Approach: Enhancement of Local Social Dialogue on the Transformation of Work by Digital Technology

We present the results of a research-action initiative to strengthen participation by social dialogue stakeholders (union representatives, managers and workers) in companies that are being digitally transformed. For this, we used activity-centred ergonomics. After presenting a co-design process, i.e., “Social Design,” we describe how the initiative was carried out in a large industrial company and how it was re-designed “in use.” We thus helped certain union representatives participate in dialogue on the topical issue of digital transformation, thereby helping define a new organizational structure in the workplace and further developing the “Social Design” approach.

Publisher: Département des relations industrielles de l’Université Laval