Work, subjectivity and management techniques

a study with commerce workers

Abstract

This study aims to characterize and discuss management techniques applied in the retail business. The analysis was based on the studies of Vincent de Gaulejac on techniques for managing subjectivity and on Psychodynamic of Work. We conducted five semistructured interviews with retailers from Porto Alegre, Brazil, which were analyzed using qualitative methods. The results showed four categories. It was highlighted the primacy of performance management and excellence, ruled by techniques that aim to homogenize behavior management. The results also shed light on particularities and precariousness in the commercial sector, as well as the implications of management techniques on the subjectivity of the workers.