Advanced Diploma in Digital Transformations and Work

• Class 1: Introduction to the History of Technology and Work
  
  This course aims to explore the complex relationship between technology and work throughout history, beginning with the social construction of the concept of work. Through an analysis of major historical stages in the organization of work, we will examine how technology has influenced and been influenced by labor practices. Key moments such as the Industrial Revolution and Luddism, the rise of mass production under Taylorism and Fordism, and its connection to distribution models and labor relations will be addressed.
  The class will also focus on the profound transformations brought about by computerization, automation, and digitalization, as well as advances in communication technologies. It will analyze the impact of globalization, particularly financial globalization, on production chains and labor structures, as well as the challenges posed by the rapid pace of technological and organizational change. The role of the pandemic in accelerating these processes and the emergence of artificial intelligence will also be discussed. Finally, the class will reflect on the current state of work and speculate on its possible future trajectories in a context of continuous technological disruption.
  
  Teacher in charge: Marta Novick - Center for Innovation of Workers (CITRA-CONICET), Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 2: A New Stage in History? An Introduction to Digital Capitalism
  
  This class aims, on the one hand, to present different approaches to the depth of the epochal transformations underway and, on the other hand, to characterize the present stage, digital capitalism, based on a set of social, economic and cultural dimensions.
  Thus, the first part of the class compares theories that fall on a spectrum ranging from those that postulate that the transformations associated with digital technologies are part of the usual dynamic of capitalism to those that consider that we are witnessing a unique transformation in the history of humanity that implies the end of capitalism.
  In the second part of the class, a systematic comparison between industrial capitalism and digital capitalism is presented around the following dimensions: technology, information, matter/energy, biology, automation, time/space, organization of production, business models, types of exploitation, theory of the firm, political organization, dominant economic sectors, money, education, culture, communication, subjectivity, axiology, ideology.
  
  Teacher in charge: Mariano Zukerfeld - National University of Quilmes, Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 3: The role of Latin America
  
  The objective of this class is to present perspectives and data on current global dynamics of production and innovation, and the particular role that Latin America plays within them. Digital capitalism presents new forms of industrial organization, while simultaneously reinforcing old logics of connection between centers and peripheries. The hyper-concentration of the technology market in a few giant companies capable of penetrating the most diverse productive activities leads to an increasingly unequal international division of labor, which implies specific and challenging integration models for the development of our region.
  The first part of the class will present a concrete overview of three dimensions of the digitalization of the Latin American economy, key to understanding its position on the global map and its impact on the world of work: the state of digital infrastructure, the digital skills of citizens, and the digitalization of the productive sector. Official regional data will be used, and comparisons will be made with other regions. The second part will present local perspectives on Latin America's techno-productive subordination and some of the conditions for overcoming it.
  
  Teacher in charge: Carina Borrastero - Center for Research in Economic Sciences (UNC-CONICET), Argentina

• Class 4: Digitization of work and first notions: Teleworking; immaterial work; knowledge workers.
  
  This class aims to introduce the trend toward the digitalization of work, starting with the earliest and most widespread conceptualizations. It will address various concepts that, originating in the first decades of digital capitalism and still used today, seek to characterize the processes of work digitalization and capture the specific nature of work with digital technologies in contrast to typical work in industrial capitalism. Notions such as teleworking, promoted by international organizations like the ILO; knowledge workers, both in their management perspective as defined by Peter Drucker and in critical perspectives, such as those proposed by cognitive capitalism; immaterial work, a notion typically used by Italian post-operaism; and others will be addressed in this class. This exploration will seek to understand the criteria underlying these definitions, their scope, and the characteristics of work they illuminate in relation to digital technologies, as well as to establish potential critical points regarding what they fail to capture. In this sense, the groundwork will be laid for a proposed definition of digital work in the following class.
  
  Teacher in charge: Guillermina Yansen - Center for Science, Technology and Society (CTS) of Maimonides University/CONICET, Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 5: Digital work and the information sector
  
  Although it is now common to refer to platforms and robots when discussing the digitization of work, its initial conceptualizations suggest considering work with digital technologies separately. This class aims to further explore the trend toward the digitization of work, starting with a proposed definition that, while acknowledging its links to other phenomena (especially platformization and automation—which will be addressed in subsequent classes), allows for its separate analysis. Is there any type of work that deserves to be called digital? How is it defined, and what are its characteristics? What examples of digital work do we know? In which sector can digital work be situated? What is its relationship to the service sector and the tripartite structure of the economy? To answer these questions, this class first presents the notion of digital or informational work (from an occupational perspective) and that of the information sector (from a sectoral perspective). Second, from a materialist perspective, focusing on the means and product of labor, the central characteristics of this type of work are addressed, establishing a counterpoint with the typical jobs of industrial capitalism.
  
  Teacher in charge: Guillermina Yansen - Center for Science, Technology and Society (CTS) of Maimonides University/CONICET, Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 6: From theory to empirical research: Software and IT services sector
  
  This course aims to analyze the Software and IT Services (SSI) sector as a case study for reflecting on the transformations of the world of work within the framework of digital capitalism. As an introduction and contextualization, we will trace its historical process of emergence and consolidation as one of the strategic sectors of the economy. We will develop a comparative analysis of its different productive and labor characteristics in core and peripheral countries, with a focus on Latin America. Within this framework, we will examine the "software factory" model prevalent in our region and its integration into the international division and outsourcing of labor. We will characterize the different forms of employment adopted by the SSI sector under this productive scheme, considering freelance and remote work as paradigmatic examples. Finally, we will delve deeper into the implications of the regional production model on the unequal working and educational conditions of IT workers.
  
  Teacher in charge: Marina Adamini - Institute of Geography, History and Social Sciences (IGEHCS-CONICET/UNICEN), Argentina

• Class 7: Introduction to platforms
  
  This class aims to discuss what platforms are and how they redefine economic relationships. Three approaches to their definition will be presented: platforms understood as technological architectures, as market facilitators, and as organizational forms. A brief genealogy will be presented to historically contextualize their growth, and we will review some key concepts for understanding the dominance of platforms and the trend toward concentration: the network scale effect and the enclosure effect. Recognizing the wide spectrum of platform companies that exist today, we will propose some typologies to highlight common aspects and identify the particularities of each type. Finally, we will focus on labor platforms, characterizing their business models based on the central concepts of this class. We will analyze how these models shape two central features of the labor management that these platforms mobilize: on the one hand, they allow piece-rate pay and an increase in unpaid work time; and on the other hand, they simplify the outsourcing process by creating instances of “decentralized” control and evaluation.
  
  Teacher in charge: Mariana Fernández Massi - Institute of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences (IDIHCS-CONICET/UNLP), Argentina
  
  
• Class 8: Impacts and transformations in the workplace
  
  This class aims to describe the main characteristics of work in platform companies. Considering the diversity of existing work platforms (some involving online work – web-based – and others requiring physical activity – geolocation-based; some demanding highly skilled workers and others requiring only a mobile phone to access; some geographically based and others bringing together workers located in diverse parts of the world), the commonalities and divergences in how these companies organize and manage their workforce will be presented. To this end, the following will be discussed: 1) the particularities of the employment relationship (based on the lack of formal recognition of the employment relationship); 2) the characteristics of the work process (focusing on the dimensions of time and place of work, as well as on algorithm-mediated work management); and 3) working conditions (income, health and social security coverage, and risks). 4) Collective organization (the potential and limitations of collective construction, resistance, the role of unions). The general characteristics of each of these four aspects will be presented, and the specificities they acquire in the Latin American context will be identified.
  
  Teachers in charge: Cora Arias and Nicolás Diana Menéndez - Interdisciplinary School of Advanced Social Studies of the National University of San Martín (EIDAES-UNSAM), Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 9: From theory to empirical research: Digital work platforms in Latin America
  
  This paper presents the broader field of recent processes of platformization and digitization of the economy and social life. Within this general framework, it introduces the phenomenon of digital work platforms, addressing their history, their production model, the different types of platforms (web-based and geolocation-based), and their various implications for the world of work. The specific characteristics of these labor markets in Latin America are also discussed. The analytical framework used in our research is then presented, which considers the following dimensions in the analysis of these platforms: (i) Productive organization based on new digital socio-technical infrastructures and algorithmic control strategies; (ii) The profile of the workforce, employment status, and regulatory debates; (iii) The different forms of organization and collective action, and of group and individual resistance; (iv) Constructions of subjectivity and everyday work experiences. The concept of work subjectivities, which is the focus of our recent research, is explored in depth.
  Finally, the ongoing Fondecyt project, “Identity Construction Processes of Digital Platform Workers in Chile: Contributions to the Debates on Digitalization, Fragmentation, and Precariousness of Work Experiences in Latin America,” is presented. The project design, methodological strategy, and fieldwork are discussed, including interviews with key informants, narrative interviews with workers from five types of platforms (delivery, transportation, home services, online microtasks, and freelance projects), focus groups with workers, and shadowing of workers during their workday. The main findings are shared, along with a reflection on the challenges of conducting empirical research in this labor market.
  
  Teacher in charge: Antonio Stecher - Diego Portales University, Chile
  

• Class 10: Digital Automation. Five Theses on AI
  
  This class begins with a general presentation on the social, economic, and cultural transformations associated with recent developments in so-called artificial intelligence, placing labor aspects within the broader context of the evolution of digital capitalism. It then focuses on discussing five central points of debate regarding artificial intelligence (AI), based on a critical review of the literature: 1. Inorganic Agent (the ability to act beyond human limitations), 2. Inscrutable Action (limitation in the possibility of auditing its actions), 3. Incomplete Self-Correction (difficulty in modifying the goals defined for its actions once they have begun), 4. Inhuman Alternative (the possibility of replacing humans not only in economic activities but also in the affective, creative, and other spheres that used to define the essence of humanity), 5. Inclusive Appropriation (a business model based on offering free services alongside the unpaid appropriation of data and copyrighted works by companies).
  
  Teacher in charge: Mariano Zukerfeld - National University of Quilmes, Argentina
  
  
• Class 11: Artificial intelligence and work
  
  The aim of this class is to reflect on how artificial intelligence (AI) is changing jobs and work dynamics. On the one hand, it generates new jobs associated with its development, such as algorithm designers and data specialists, but also other, less visible jobs, such as training and correction tasks performed under precarious conditions. At the same time, it poses significant risks of job displacement or job destruction, especially in jobs susceptible to automation. The class will identify these three sets of occupations, characterizing the work dynamics in each and their geographical distribution, and analyzing North-South dynamics in relation to these types of occupations.
  Next, we will explore four dimensions for discussing the impact that AI has had, and could have, on how work is socially organized. We will review the available evidence on its effects on productivity, the warnings about the distributional impacts of digital automation, the ethical debates surrounding transparency, biases in algorithms and automated decisions, and finally, the political challenges that AI poses for collective organization.
  
  Teachers in charge: Mariana Fernández Massi - Institute of Research in Humanities and Social Sciences (IDIHCS-CONICET/UNLP), Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 12: From theory to empirical research: impacts of GIAs on labor markets, the economy and productivity
  
  This course aims to present various methodologies for measuring the impacts of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GAI) on the labor market (automation/complementarity, employment/unemployment, skills/skilling, productivity, and income) across different occupations, with a focus on Latin American countries. First, it presents the classic theoretical frameworks that have been used to estimate the impacts of digital technologies on the labor market, distinguishing between the effects of automation and complementarity of digital technologies on different occupations. Next, it explores the limitations of these frameworks in addressing the impact of GAI on the labor market. Then, it focuses on theoretical innovations in studies of the impacts of digital technologies on the labor market stemming from the disruption caused by Large Language Models (LLMs) and GAI, and presents key case studies along with their estimates. Methodologies for estimating potential impacts and experimental design methodologies will be reviewed.
  
  Teacher in charge: Andrés Rabosto - Latin America-China Observatory (OLAC-UBA), Argentina
  
  

• Class 13: The regulatory challenges generated by digitalization and new forms of business organization
  
  This course explores the implications of digitalization, platformization, and automation from a legal perspective, analyzing the challenges they pose to labor systems in the region. First, it addresses digitalization as a cross-cutting phenomenon that redefines labor relations, driving remote work modalities and demands for digital skills. This raises the need to update regulations on working hours, digital disconnection, and working conditions. Second, digital platforms have developed ambiguous employment models that challenge traditional definitions of employment relationships. Various regulatory initiatives will be analyzed comparatively, both in Latin America and the Caribbean and in Europe—evaluating their applicability to the Latin American context. Finally, the course will discuss how automation and the use of advanced technologies decentralize and relocate production units, making it more difficult to identify a single employer and for traditional union organization. In this regard, it proposes a reflection on possible union strategies in the face of automation. The course is structured around case studies and regulatory comparisons, highlighting examples from countries that have implemented innovative regulatory frameworks. This analysis aims to generate tools for participants to understand and address the regulatory challenges that arise in an increasingly digitalized and technologically mediated work environment.
  
  Teacher in charge: Federico Rosenbaum - Catholic University of Uruguay, Uruguay
  
  

• Class 14: Public policy, technology and work
  
  The diffusion of digital technologies presents a challenge for Latin America due to its heterogeneous productive structure, informal labor, inequalities, and technological dependence. Faced with these changes, opposing positions have emerged: a neo-Luddite approach that seeks to restrict technology because of its negative effects on employment, and another that promotes its unrestricted adoption to facilitate integration into the global market. Both approaches have limitations, so this course will address the need for public policies that balance innovation and equity. Three key areas will be analyzed: fostering local technological development to reduce external dependence, understanding changes in the world of work to prevent precarious employment, and overcoming technological determinism through a debate on productivity and job creation. Thus, the aim is to achieve technological adoption that not only boosts efficiency but also guarantees inclusion and labor rights.
  
  Teachers in charge: Verónica Robert and Nicolás Moncaut - Interdisciplinary School of Advanced Social Studies of the National University of San Martín (EIDAES-UNSAM), Argentina
  
  
  
• Class 15: Cooperative and solidarity-based digital platforms as an alternative for and by workers
  
  Among the various strategies workers employ to appropriate, shape, and channel technological change processes to their advantage, this class focuses on experiences and projects driven by cooperatives, networks, and social organizations, in which workers and communities design, develop, and govern their own technologies. Initially, the practices and principles that guide these initiatives will be presented: self-management, decent work, collective ownership, democracy, and transparency in data policies. Next, the different notions used to conceptualize these experiences will be addressed: “platform cooperativism,” “worker-owned platforms,” and “digital solidarity economies.” This multiplicity of approaches will illuminate the fact that these experiences are not solely about digital technologies, although they do include them. Nor are they exclusively cooperatives; rather, they adopt diverse legal and organizational forms. From a critical and situated perspective, we will describe the universe of what is known as platform cooperativism, using examples and case studies.
  In Latin America, this group of initiatives intertwines with previous experiences framed within the social, solidarity, and popular economy, as well as with free software communities and academic lines of inquiry linked to technologies for social inclusion. In this sense, platform cooperativism not only refers to technologies that are alternatives to the main platforms, but also engages with the digital transformation processes of existing cooperatives and cooperatives of software and IT services. Finally, we will discuss the limitations and challenges of these experiences within the context of digital capitalism.
  
  Teacher in charge: Denise Kasparian - Gino Germani Research Institute (FSOC-UBA/CONICET), Argentina
  
  

You must be registered in the CLACSO Single Registration System (SUIC) and enter your username and password. If you are not registered, click here. hereTo access the registration form, you must click the "Register" button on the webpage of the Diploma you are interested in.

Upon completion of the registration process, you will receive a confirmation in your email.

Classes will begin in April and will conclude in July 2026.

All registered participants will receive, on the first day of activities, the necessary instructions to access the classes, bibliography, and discussion forums through the CLACSO Virtual Training Space.

Accessing and navigating the Virtual Learning Environment is very simple and user-friendly. In any case, a technical and academic support team will always be available. For inquiries, you can write to [email protected]

 You must write an email with the request to [email protected] We will send you the requested certificate as soon as possible.

Exceptional criteria: In exceptional cases and within the first 20 days of starting the Higher Diploma, the student may write to [email protected] Requesting withdrawal and stating the reasons. After the case is evaluated, a response will be sent to the request. If approved, the student may resume the Higher Diploma program if a new cohort is offered the following year. After that period of time has elapsed since the start of the course, no requests will be accepted.

Money paid will only be refunded in cases where the organizing institutions decide to cancel the activity. 

Yes, the advanced diploma is certified by CLACSO. The diploma will be sent digitally and is completely free of charge.

Payment can be made in one installment, by credit card or bank transfer. We also offer the option of paying in 3 installments.

Yes. There will be discounts for students belonging to CLACSO Member Centers and CLACSO Associated Centers, for CLACSO Associate Researchers, and for all those who pay within the discount period.

You can check if you belong to a member center here: 

https://www.clacso.org/institucional/centros-asociados/

The Advanced Diploma program integrates a dynamic of asynchronous and synchronous classes. Classes are primarily asynchronous. The schedule for synchronous sessions will be communicated by the Diploma coordinator at the beginning of the program, and participation in these sessions is not a prerequisite for passing the program.