Remote Cooperation:
CSCW Issues for Mobile and Tele-Workers
Alan Dix and Russell Beale (eds.)

In today's market environment of high product customisation, low volumes and high variety of manufactured goods, the traditional approach to sales is no longer appropriate. What is required is a new approach, an approach which is highly cognizant of the manufacturing load placed on the factory by each individual order, an approach which focuses on the manufacturing process and not on the Manufactured Product. This approach necessitates the use of computer supported cooperative work (CSCW) between the sales personnel and the production/manufacturing managers. The CSCW approach not only enables the sales person to give to the customer more accurate estimates, but also enables them to become proactive and gain opportunistic sales, thus improving the competitive position of the organisation concerned whilst, simultaneously, giving greater job satisfaction and satisfying customer needs.