Press release from the University of Kassel "Crowdwork in the company: The rules have to be right"

The University of Kassel has issued a press release on the occasion of the completion of the study "The Internal Crowd" prepared by the Department of Information Systems (Prof. Dr. Jan Marco Leimeister) and funded by the Hans Böckler Foundation, which we are also communicating again here:

Both employees and employers can benefit from internal crowdwork. However, clear rules are needed to ensure that it works and that employees do not suffer from additional workloads, have to work in their free time or that the working atmosphere deteriorates due to increasing competitive pressure. This is shown by a recent study sponsored by the Hans Böckler Foundation and conducted by the Department of Information Systems (Prof. Dr. Jan Marco Leimeister) at the University of Kassel.

Crowdwork is on the rise in the modern working world. This involves assigning tasks to a large number of workers online via an open call. One variant of this is so-called internal crowdwork: companies invite their own employees to apply for work assignments on IT-based platforms. The business information scientists Prof. Dr. Jan Marco Leimeister, Dr. David Durward and Benedikt Simmert from the University of Kassel have investigated this new form of work organization. According to their findings, it certainly has advantages: it can enable employees to work independently and help companies to become more flexible and efficient. However, the conditions for this must be right. Central to this are precisely defined rules that prevent competitive thinking and work intensification.

For their study, the researchers interviewed experts in several companies and conducted surveys among employees. Internal crowds are used there to develop solutions to logistical problems, assess the potential of new product ideas or have entire projects worked on by "cross-functional teams", among other things. Participation is always voluntary and the tasks assigned must be completed alongside the actual work.

According to the scientists, this form of work organization is attractive for companies in several respects. It creates a "flexible resource pool" that makes it possible to compensate for capacity fluctuations by quickly assembling teams of highly motivated employees. Unused potential in the workforce - unused skills and knowledge - is exploited. This leads to cooperation across team and departmental boundaries, which can help to break down "silo thinking". Many tasks could be completed more cost-effectively, faster and to a higher quality.

The researchers have also identified advantages for employees. There is the prospect of variety beyond the routine, and collaboration with colleagues from other areas allows them to "think outside the box". The opportunity to decide autonomously over part of their personal working time and to be involved in solving tasks in a self-determined manner is perceived by many employees as a "valuable contribution to personal development and growth". This has a positive effect on both satisfaction and identification with the company.

However, there are also downsides, the authors warn. The tasks that arise in the crowd often represent additional work for employees, which they have to integrate into their daily work routine. There is a risk that work could be compressed or performed in their free time. If performance as a crowdworker has an influence on the overall assessment of employees, the pressure to participate increases. This could create stress and intensify competition within the workforce. To prevent this from happening, Leimeister, Durward and Simmert recommend that management should create scope for crowdworking and set clear rules for its use. This is not possible without a "new form of leadership based on trust".

The current study:

- Jan Marco Leimeister, David Durward, Benedikt Simmert: Die interne Crowd -- Mitarbeiter/innen im Spannungsfeld neuer Arbeitsformen, Study der HBS Nr. 436, March 2020. Download: https://www.boeckler.de/de/faust-detail.htm?sync_id=8898

Further studies by the Hans Böckler Foundation in cooperation with the University of Kassel on this topic:

- Leimeister, J.M., Zogaj, S. (2013): New work organization through crowdsourcing: a literature study (HBS-Studie 287): www.boeckler.de/pdf/p_arbp_287.pdf
- Leimeister, J.M., Durward, D., Zogaj, S. (2016): Crowd workers in Germany: an empirical study on the work environment on external crowdsourcing platforms (HBS Study 323): www.boeckler.de/pdf/p_study_hbs_323.pdf
- Leimeister, J.M., Durward, D., Zogaj, S., Blohm, I. (2016): Systematization and analysis of crowdsourcing providers and crowdwork projects (HBS Study 324): www.boeckler.de/pdf/p_study_hbs_324.pdf

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