Which term describes a world economic system characterized by a more flexible set of production practices in which goods are not mass-produced; production is accelerated and dispersed globally by multinational companies that shift production, outsourcing it around the world and bringing places closer together in time and space than would have been imaginable at the beginning of the twentieth century?

Which term describes a world economic system characterized by a more flexible set of production practices in which goods are not mass-produced; production is accelerated and dispersed globally by multinational companies that shift production, outsourcing it around the world and bringing places closer together in time and space than would have been imaginable at the beginning of the twentieth century?

• A. Post-Fordist
• B. Growth Poles
• C. Technopoles
• D. Just-in-time delivery

Answer: (A)

Post-Fordist production describes a world economic system where production practices are flexible, avoiding mass production in favor of adaptable, networked manufacturing. Multinational companies shift production across borders, outsource steps of the process, and coordinate dispersed activities to bring different stages of production closer in time and space through rapid logistics and communication. This contrasts with Fordism’s standardized, long-run, mass production. The just-in-time delivery idea is a tool used within post-Fordist systems to minimize inventory, but the broader concept described here is post-Fordist production. Growth Poles and Technopoles point to regional development patterns and technology clusters, not to the global organization of production. Just-in-time delivery, while related, does not by itself define the global production system.

Post-Fordist production describes a world economic system where production practices are flexible, avoiding mass production in favor of adaptable, networked manufacturing. Multinational companies shift production across borders, outsource steps of the process, and coordinate dispersed activities to bring different stages of production closer in time and space through rapid logistics and communication. This contrasts with Fordism’s standardized, long-run, mass production. The just-in-time delivery idea is a tool used within post-Fordist systems to minimize inventory, but the broader concept described here is post-Fordist production. Growth Poles and Technopoles point to regional development patterns and technology clusters, not to the global organization of production. Just-in-time delivery, while related, does not by itself define the global production system.