E. Anne Bardoel

The provision of formal and informal work‐family practices: the relative importance of institutional and resource dependent explanations versus managerial explanations

Examines the relative importance of institutional and resource dependent explanations versus managerial explanations of variations of formal and informal work‐family responsiveness. Work‐family responsiveness is defined in two ways: formal policies and practices that an organization offers, designed to assist employees to balance their work and family lives; and a work environment that is accommodating of its employees’ work‐family needs. Focuses attention on the important role that managerial attitudes have on the provision of work‐family practices and an accommodating work‐family workplace. Concludes that by integrating the insights of several theoretical perspectives, a more comprehensive model of organizational responsiveness in relation to work‐family practices is developed and a set of testable propositions that can guide future research can be made. Indicates that an additive theoretical model combining managerial and institutional factors offers the most appropriate theoretical explanation for identifying factors related to the provision of work‐family benefits and whether the workplace is accommodating of work‐family issues.

Employee characteristics associated with the provision of work‐family policies and programs

Are organizations responding to significant changes in Australian labour force demographics by providing more family‐friendly programs? This article explores whether or not variations across companies in the implementation of work‐family programs and policies relate to demands of key constituent groups. Findings of the present evaluation indicate that certain employee demographic factors, particularly employees with dependents, women, union members, and long‐serving employees are more likely to predispose an organization to offer work‐family benefits. Employers need to be able to characterise the demographics of their workforce to plan the type of policies and programs that might be most suitable and contribute to productivity outcomes.

The role of the cultural audit in implementing quality improvement programs

This paper discusses the adoption of total quality management in seven Australian organisations based on case study research. It reports on the reasons for adopting TQM, planning and implementation issues, benefits achieved and the limitations and difficulties associated with the introduction of TQM. The analysis concludes that the effect of TQM on an organisation’s culture should not be underestimated as it is a radical change to the organisation’s strategy which is geared to changing the culture in the long term. The analysis indicates that the principles found for successful introduction of effective cultural change are also applicable when implementing TQM programs in organisations. The implementation of a five step cultural audit as a prerequisite for the successful introduction of TQM into organisations is proposed.

Positive spillover from the work—family interface: A study of Australian employees

While work—family conflict has received much attention in the literature, there is a dearth of empirical evidence about work—family positive spillover. Further, we have little understanding of positive spillover in an Australian setting. Using structural equation modelling, we tested positive spillover on 420 Australian public and private sector employees, and found work—family positive spillover was negatively associated with psychological distress and turnover intentions, while family—work positive spillover was negatively linked with psychological distress, and positively linked with family satisfaction. The findings indicated that positive spillover had the greatest influence on outcomes associated with the same domain, for example positive spillover from the workplace and turnover intentions. The findings support the notion that not all work and family experiences are negative, and experiences from the work and from the home can improve outcomes both inside and outside the workplace.

A review of work—life research in Australia and New Zealand

As many organisations and employees seek ways to better manage the tensions between work and other life demands, there has been a growing body of research in the area of work—family conflict and work—life issues. Despite the recent surge in research and practice addressing work—life issues, there has been no comprehensive review identifying where Australia and New Zealand stand in terms of work—life research. This paper addresses this issue with a review of research conducted in Australia and New Zealand between 2004 and 2007. Our review identifies the major themes and research methods that have dominated this research and discusses the implications for future research, policy and management in this field.

Organizational Predictors of Work-Family Practices

This study used Olivers (1991) five predictors of strategic responses to develop hypotheses regarding organizational characteristics associated with the provision of work-family practices. Specifically, the influences investigated were organizational size, the percentage of women in the organization, age of the workforce in the organization, public versus private sector ownership, and track record in human resource management. A survey was administered to 217 employees. Each respondent provided the work-family practices of the organization in which they were employed. The evidence from this sample indicated that large organizations are better able to provide a broad base of work-family benefits than smaller organizations. Larger organizations tended to adopt more policies pertaining to individual support (e.g. personal counselling, relocation assistance), leave, life-career strategies, and also child- and dependant-care benefits than smaller organizations. Similarly, organizations with a perceived superi...

Employee resilience: an emerging challenge for HRM

Given turbulent economic times, the concept of employee resilience is receiving increasing attention in many organisations. This paper brings the discussion of employee resilience into the field of human resource management (HRM). We explore the foundations of resilience in theories of positive psychology and the conservation of resources (COR); we discuss its relevance for HRM and develop a set of testable hypotheses to guide future research. The first key finding of this paper is that the concept of resilience can be developed from strong theoretical foundations. Second, a coherent set of resilience-enhancing HR practices have the potential to contribute to employees’ psychological capital, attitudes and behaviour, and to organisational performance not only in turbulent circumstances but also during periods of relative calm. Given the theoretical framing, formal resilience training should be viewed as a single component of a broader, coherent set of resilience-enhancing HR practices.

‘Quality’ part-time work in Australian organizations: implications for HRD

Abstract Part-time work is an international phenomenon. Many western countries show similar patterns to Australia, with a significant increase in part-time work in the last twenty to twenty-five years. In Australia, part-time work has developed some unique features, particularly as it often involves lower wages and poor conditions. Part-time employees in Australia are often excluded from human resource development (HRD) activities such as training and career tracks provided to full-time workers. The experience of particular Australian organizations illustrates possible avenues for quality part-time work. This paper examines practical examples of quality part-time work in eight Australian organizations across five industries (nursing, hospitality, retail, local government and the legal profession). Using case study research, the paper discusses the dimensions of quality part-time work in different industry and occupational contexts from an HRD perspective.

What does ‘work–life management’ mean in China and Southeast Asia for MNCs?

Translating global policy into local practice presents a substantial challenge for the human resource (HR) function in many multinational corporations (MNCs). We present the findings of interviews conducted with HR and Diversity managers to explore the ways in which eight MNCs manage work–life issues, with particular focus on the dynamic markets in China and Southeast Asia. Further, we explore how the competing global and local demands for work–life initiatives are managed in MNCs operating in Asia and identify themes that have important implications for managers and employees. We conclude that the competition for talent in Asia highlights the potential for work–life policies to serve as a tool to attract and retain employees.

Success to the Successful: The Use of Systems Thinking Tools in Teaching OB

This paper discusses the use of an experiential pedagogy based on two systems thinking tools that can be incorporated in the teaching of organizational behavior (OB) concepts and case studies. It is contended that combining causal loop diagramming techniques and the application of Senges archetypes provides useful tools in assisting students to understand interdependencies, difficulties of implementation, impacts of assumptions, and provide further insights into OB concepts. This paper demonstrates the insights that these systems thinking tools can provide by using the “Success to the successful” archetype as an example.