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1 – 10 of over 73000This article describes findings from a series of recent Catalyst studies. Several of these studies investigated the use of flexible work arrangements in business, exploring…
Abstract
This article describes findings from a series of recent Catalyst studies. Several of these studies investigated the use of flexible work arrangements in business, exploring employee and employer attitudes towards, opinions about, and experiences with, these alternative arrangements. Together, findings from these studies help to delineate current approaches to flexibility initiatives in business, the increasing interest in these arrangements, the key benefits to business from the use of these alternatives, and the continuing barriers to the use of flexible arrangements. They also help to clarify effective strategies and practices for successful flexibility initiatives, along with critical skills needed by supervisors and employees using these arrangements. Detailed examples from two Catalyst Award‐winning organizations – The Bank of Montreal and Deloitte & Touche LLP – are included.
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Ayesha Khatun, Vishal Singh and Akashdeep Joshi
Studies have so far focused on learning in organizations, factors affecting learning, learning effectiveness and so on but the concept of learning in a hybrid work arrangement is…
Abstract
Purpose
Studies have so far focused on learning in organizations, factors affecting learning, learning effectiveness and so on but the concept of learning in a hybrid work arrangement is yet unexplored. The purpose of this study is to measure the perception of faculty members in higher education institutions towards learning in a hybrid work arrangement and also to measure the differences of perception towards hybrid work arrangement based on employees’ gender and organization type.
Design/methodology/approach
The data was collected from a sample of 390 faculty members composing of Assistant Professors, Associate Professors and Professors, purposely chosen from two of the premier higher education institutions (one private and one public) located in Punjab, India. A self-structured questionnaire was administered to the faculty members who are working on a regular basis and have minimum of two years of work experience with the chosen university. For analysing the collected data exploratory factor analysis and other descriptive statistics have been applied.
Findings
The findings of the survey show that in terms of gender differences, it is the female employees who are more satisfied with different aspects of hybrid/remote work arrangement as compared to male employees. In regard to organizational differences in the perception towards learning in a hybrid work arrangement it is found that public university employees have a more positive attitude so far as individual factors are concerned, but in terms of organizational factors, it is the private university that is scoring better than the public university.
Research limitations/implications
The study is limited to only two higher education institutions, and its findings to be applicable in all higher education institutions, further studies may be required on a larger canvas. Future studies may be undertaken using advanced statistical tools like structural equation modelling to explore various variables associated with learning in a hybrid work arrangement.
Originality/value
Applicability of hybrid work arrangement is very high in higher education institutions and to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study which adds to the literature on perception of employees towards organizational learning in a hybrid work arrangement.
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Sagi Akron, Ofek Feinblit, Shlomo Hareli and Shay S. Tzafrir
The purpose of this study was to explore the relation between diversity in work group members’ employment arrangements and the actual performance of the work groups.
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to explore the relation between diversity in work group members’ employment arrangements and the actual performance of the work groups.
Design/methodology/approach
A field study was conducted on 31 work groups in a public plant belonging to the industrial sector that constitute a unique data set. The 441 employees are contracted under four significantly different employment arrangements and are mixed together in heterogeneous work groups, but perform similar tasks.
Findings
The results indicated that the influence of employment arrangement diversity on work group performance is best represented as variation, and work arrangements diversity is positively correlated with improved work group performance.
Research limitations
The study design prevented assessment of employees’ opinions. Rather, the authors used objective type of employment arrangements as the basis for calculating diversity as separation. Using mean Euclidean distance as suggested by Harrison and Klein (2007), the authors arbitrarily set the distance between two different employment arrangements as one.
Practical implications
The research results help in the stages of recruiting, structuring and development and application of necessary work team. Formal emphasis of diversity in work arrangements improves performance.
Originality/value
To the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies using unique data set analyzing real-life team diversity and performance in the public sector. The research highly contributes to organizational decision-making processes regarding the importance of incorporating non-standard work arrangements in organizations. Management’s implementation of formal diversity seems to alleviate the negative sides of diversity and increases its positive performance effects.
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Josje Dikkers, Marloes van Engen and Claartje Vinkenburg
This study sets out to examine how gender and ambition are related to work hours and the utilization of other flexible work‐home arrangements, and how this use is – in turn …
Abstract
Purpose
This study sets out to examine how gender and ambition are related to work hours and the utilization of other flexible work‐home arrangements, and how this use is – in turn – associated with career‐related outcomes (i.e. job level, and career satisfaction).
Design/methodology/approach
In total, 212 Dutch working parents from different organizations participated in a questionnaire survey. Underpinned by an inter‐disciplinary theoretical framework, hypotheses were developed on the associations of gender, ambition, work‐home arrangements and career‐related outcomes.
Findings
It was found that ambitious parents made more use of flexible work‐home arrangements and worked more hours per week than less ambitious parents. This relationship was especially strong for mothers. Furthermore, parents' work hours and utilization of flexible arrangements were positively related to their job level and career satisfaction. Finally, the association of ambition with career‐related outcomes was mediated by work hours.
Practical implications
Employers should support their working parents in using flexible work‐home arrangements, thereby simultaneously assisting them in balancing work with care‐giving responsibilities, preventing them from losing their ambition, and promoting their career success.
Originality/value
The study made a pioneering effort to conceptualise and operationalise career‐related ambition. By showing that utilization of flexible work‐home arrangements is positively related to career success, the study also adds to the business case for these arrangements. Moreover, the study challenges the popular assumption that Dutch women's ambition vanishes into thin air once they become mothers.
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Olivia Kyriakidou, Joana Vassilopoulou and Dimitria Groutsis
The unanticipated disruption caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic led to the extensive use of flexible working arrangements. In such a boundaryless work environment, however…
Abstract
The unanticipated disruption caused by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic led to the extensive use of flexible working arrangements. In such a boundaryless work environment, however there are significant concerns, especially around inclusivity and discrimination. Given the increasing concerns surrounding hybrid and remote work settings, the authors investigated whether the extent of working in substantially flexible working arrangements relates to employees’ perceived ostracism and inequality, distinguishing between working from home, in a hybrid mode or from the office. In addition, the authors theorised that in flexible working arrangements, high-quality leader relationships, such as leader–member exchange (LMX) and servant leadership are likely to reduce perceptions of ostracism and inequality. Based on a survey of 161 professionals, who worked to varying degrees in flexible working arrangements, the authors found that employees who worked extensively in a hybrid mode were less likely to report experiences of ostracism and inequality in comparison to employees who worked mainly from home or in an office. Furthermore, a moderation analysis showed that the effects of LMX and servant leadership on perceptions of ostracism and inequality were much stronger for individuals who work in hybrid working arrangements than those who work at the office or from home. This research makes an important contribution to our understanding of how different degrees of flexible working arrangements affect employees by demonstrating the role of high-quality leader relationships in reducing perceptions of ostracism and inequality at different degrees of work flexibility.
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Laura den Dulk, Pascale Peters, Erik Poutsma and Paul E.M. Ligthart
The purpose of this paper is to propose an “extended conceptualization of the business case” including both organizational characteristics and institutional conditions to analyse…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose an “extended conceptualization of the business case” including both organizational characteristics and institutional conditions to analyse employer involvement in extra statutory childcare and leave arrangements. Special attention is given to Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.
Design/methodology/approach
The (multi‐level) multinomial regression analyses included company‐level data on human‐resource practices of 2,865 firms nested in 19 countries, representing all European welfare state regimes.
Findings
The extended business case appeared fruitful in order to explain variations in employer involvement. Particularly, state support was found to be negatively related to employer involvement. In the liberal regime, employer involvement was high, but variations across organizations were significant. In CEE‐countries, employer involvement was lowest, and did not vary by organizational business‐case factors.
Research limitations/implications
The paper used data from a cross‐sectional survey. To capture the long‐term trends, dynamics and nuances in employer involvement within and across various institutional contexts, a longitudinal in depth study is needed.
Practical implications
While state support in many CEE countries is declining, the analyses showed that employers will not automatically step in by providing additional work‐family arrangements. Social partners could use institutional pressure to stimulate a balance between state support and employer involvement.
Originality/value
The extended business‐case perspective contributes to the theory on the institutional embeddedness of decision making of employers. Moreover, it adds to the knowledge on employer involvement in institutional contexts which have hardly been studied before.
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Laura den Dulk, Anneke van Doorne‐Huiskes and Joop Schippers
Focuses on how government policy regarding work‐family arrangements affects the labour market position of women and men in the European Union. Discusses the statutory provisions…
Abstract
Focuses on how government policy regarding work‐family arrangements affects the labour market position of women and men in the European Union. Discusses the statutory provisions of three different work‐family arrangements: leave arrangements, child care and part‐time work. Finds that the development of work‐family arrangements differs between member states, although these differences can be placed in a typology of welfare state regimes. To determine whether there is more equality between men and women in countries with a more extensive government policy, uses four indicators: the gender‐related development index of the Human Development Report, female labour participation, wage differences between men and women and segregation in the labour market. Suggests from a review of the indicators that there is a positive relation between the presence of statutory work‐family arrangements and gender equality in the labour market. Notes, however, that occupational segregation is less affected by work‐family arrangements. Concludes that a relation between the use of work‐family facilities and the persistence of segregation seems plausible. Argues that if work‐family arrangements are only available to women or if men do not use the existing facilities, inequality in the labour market will be maintained rather than reduced.
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This paper synthesizes the extant geographically distributed work literature, focusing on how geographic distribution affects coordination and communication, knowledge sharing…
Abstract
This paper synthesizes the extant geographically distributed work literature, focusing on how geographic distribution affects coordination and communication, knowledge sharing, work design, and social identity. Geographically distributed audit arrangements, such as group audits and offshoring, are becoming increasingly prevalent in audit practice. However, little empirically is known about how working across cities, countries, and continents affects auditors, the audit process, or audit quality. To this end, the synthesis seeks to stimulate research investigating the implications of geographically distributed work arrangements in auditing, by surveying the extant literature within the management and social psychology disciplines and developing eighteen research questions for future audit research to consider. The synthesis reveals that geographically distributed audit work is likely to be very different from work performed in more traditional arrangements and therefore cannot be treated by audit researchers, practitioners, or standard setters as replications of domestic processes abroad. As a result, the synthesis focuses on building a greater understanding of the changes in day-to-day auditing, the consequences of such changes, and interventions that may moderate the challenges encountered in geographically distributed audit arrangements.
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Sara Ann McComb, Melissa Woodard Barringer and Kristina A Bourne
Part-time employment is a vital portion of the U.S. labor force, yet research to date has provided only limited insights into how to successfully create and manage this sector of…
Abstract
Part-time employment is a vital portion of the U.S. labor force, yet research to date has provided only limited insights into how to successfully create and manage this sector of the workforce. We propose that these limitations are due, at least in part, to an inadequate explication of the levels issues inherent in this area. In this article, we present a summary framework of constructs at the economic, industry, organization, individual, and work levels that influence part-time work arrangements. We then specify a cross-level moderator model that examines how the number of hours worked by employees influences their attitudes and behaviors. We posit that this relationship is moderated by a number of contextual effects at multiple levels. Using this sample model, we demonstrate the way in which researchers examining part-time work arrangements can effectively address levels issues. Our article concludes with a discussion of the implications that this summary framework has for researchers, practitioners, and policy makers.
Suman Choudhary and Kirti Mishra
This paper aims to explore the implications of virtual work arrangements on employee knowledge hiding (KH) behaviour and the different strategies of KH used by employees in these…
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore the implications of virtual work arrangements on employee knowledge hiding (KH) behaviour and the different strategies of KH used by employees in these arrangements.
Design/methodology/approach
Following a grounded theory approach to understanding KH, 21 semi-structured in-depth interviews were conducted with employees engaged in virtual working setups. The data collected from these informants were then analysed using qualitative methods.
Findings
The study revealed that virtual work arrangements increase employee KH behaviour because of three reasons: ease of hiding, digital burnout and loss of control. Further, the study found that rationalized hiding is the most commonly adopted strategy by employees engaged in virtual work arrangements, while inclinations towards evasive hiding strategy decrease in this arrangement.
Originality/value
This is the first study in knowledge management literature that seeks to explain KH in the virtual work context.
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