 How important is the division of labour to a capitalist economy?

In a capitalist economy, entrepreneurs and private individuals mostly handle and control
businesses. Such economies focus wholly on economic progress, generating wealth through
maximum production based on profit in less time. The division of labour plays a vital role in
the capitalist economy by inducting hyper specialisation trends in the economic system. As
mentioned in the research (Malone, Laubacher and Johns, 2011), the division of labour
encourages productivity as well as efficiency in businesses as the job gets simplified among
different workers with specific performances in a particular field. Individual workers are
encouraged to work repetitively on a single task, and thus they master it, making the
particular task quicker and easier. Not only does the person become proficient in the skills
involved, but also gets liberated to dedicate enough time to their passionate job and innovate
new ideas. The introduction of division of labour streamlines the production process with
extra output with the same cost incurred with specific talents. The continuity in innovation
and introduction of improved technologies further the economic growth in the long run.
Additionally, the division of labour is also morally beneficial for trade and exchange in
businesses as a wider range of goods and services could be availed from different companies
specialised in particular areas, ultimately contributing to overall prosperity in businesses.

 How does the division of labour lead to more efficient production?

The division of labour leads to more efficient production as different workers involved in
different fields, aim to develop specific products with their overall knowledge and skills. The
highly skilled workers thus develop products without faults and extra efficient for the field.
Also, the workers are highly proficient with regular practice in the division of work and thus
can give outputs with properly dedicated time and effort. It also allows them to inculcate
specific technologies and pieces of equipment to tailor the specific task to its best version.
Goods and services produced by specialised companies on a larger scale are further compiled
to make an overall developed product, beneficial for society. This further helps in reducing
costs of efficient product manufacturing by the division of fixed costs on machinery items.
The cost savings and increased scale of production thus improve efficiency. The division of
labour encourages improvements with changing scenarios by eliminating faulty measures
with streamlined processes, new techniques, and knowledgeable workers enhancing
productivity with efficiency and high levels of output. It could be understood from the
example of the company, Topcoders, provided in the research (Malone, Laubacher and
Johns, 2011), that describes how the division of knowledge into differing tasks could lead to
more efficient production by properly analysing and ensuring the quality of work, the
specialised talent needed, and finally by getting the end product, creating competitive
challenges among involving the worldwide community of talented developers

 What are some examples of division of labour and specialisation from your personal
experiences?
The rapid change in the global market and environment has pushed most large organisations
to adopt the concept of division of labour and specialisation. The concept of division of
labour emphasizes efficiency and boosts productivity at the same time, which helps any
organisation to maintain a good position in the competitive market (Malone, Laubacher and
Johns, 2011). The division of labour is also beneficial in identifying the strength of each
individual in a particular task. The factory of heavy machinery also applies the concept of
division of labour to increase production and gain competitive advantage. The plant organizes
production by dividing manpower and automated machines in an efficient way.
Effective allocation of labour can increase the efficiency and productivity of any organisation
(Quain, 2019). Understanding the strength of every labour can help the organisation to grow.
For example, the automobile industry requires various specialised labour to make their
products. The specialisation that can be seen in the automobile industry includes workers
specialised in car designing, engineers for testing the car, marketing experts to increase the
sell, workers specialised in assembly and many more. The industry also needs painting
experts and safety and security experts to build its products for consumers. Technology
experts are also needed to add new features to cars. Without proper division of labour and
specialisation of labour, it is not possible for the automobile industry to sustain itself in the
market. In conclusion, we can say that the specialisation of labour can result in increased
productivity for the automobile or any industry.
Reference list

Malone, T., Laubacher, R. and Johns, T. (2011). The Big Idea: The Age of
Hyperspecialization. [online] Harvard Business Review. Available at:
https://hbr.org/2011/07/the-big-idea-the-age-of-hyperspecialization.

Quain, S. (2019). How the Specialization of Labor Can Lead to Increased Productivity.
[online] Small Business - Chron.com. Available at:
https://smallbusiness.chron.com/specialization-labor-can-lead-increased-productivity-
12347.html.