Talking the talk and walking the walk: How managers can influence the quality of work‐life balance in a construction project

Abstract

Purpose

The construction industry in Australia is characterised by a long work‐hours culture, with conditions that make it difficult for staff to balance their work and non‐work lives. The objective of this paper is to measure the success of a work‐place intervention designed to improve work‐life balance (WLB) in an alliance project in the construction industry, and the role the project manager plays in this success.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper focuses on an alliance case study. Interviews were conducted at two points in time, several months apart, after the interventions were implemented.

Findings

Results showed that staff on the whole were more satisfied with their work experience after the interventions, and indicated the important role that managers' attitudes and behaviours played.

Originality/value

Managerial support for work‐life initiatives is a critical element in achieving WLB and satisfaction with working arrangements. The fact that the manager “talked the talk and walked the walk” was a major contributing success factor, which has not previously been demonstrated.

Citation

Bradley, L., Brown, K., Lingard, H., Townsend, K. and Bailey, C. (2010), "Talking the talk and walking the walk: How managers can influence the quality of work‐life balance in a construction project", International Journal of Managing Projects in Business, Vol. 3 No. 4, pp. 589-603. https://doi.org/10.1108/17538371011076064