Mattia Martini

The role of perceived workplace development opportunities in enhancing individual employability

This paper explores the effects on workers’ employability of workplace development opportunities during employment as perceived by the workers themselves. Data was collected through a survey conducted in 2012 in Italy using a sample of 558 workers. The aim was to test the effects of participation in training courses, workplace learning opportunities and career development support on career development in 2013. Results show that the main predictors of subjective career success are related to the career development support provided by supervisors, including mentoring and career counselling, and workplace learning opportunities provided through processes of job enrichment, job enlargement and job rotation. By contrast, participation in training courses does not bring any significant effects. The study also reveals that employees’ opportunities for increasing their employability in the workplace depend on a number of personal and occupational characteristics. The study reaches the conclusion that firms can play a significant role in enhancing the career success of an individual and that employability can been encouraged by a mix of on-the-job workplace development opportunities.

Addressing Information Needs in Employment Services Provision in Italy: The Role of Codesign Networks

ABSTRACT This article examines how coproduction can contribute to information quality in support of labor-market decision-making. Data was gathered on different types of Labor Market Intelligence (LMI) as decision-support systems for stakeholders, and subsequently by analyzing a specific program, with a focus on the role of information within its coproduction process. Results confirm the importance of information systems to support employment services design, but highlight the limitations of existing channels, and outline the types of information needed for policy effectiveness: those that are gathered through continuous relations with employers and jobseekers, and that often derive from participation in policy networks.

Functional Reforms in Italian Employment Policies: Institutional Impact at the Macro and Micro Level

This article explores the institutional impact of Italy’s administrative decentralization of employment policies since the mid-1990s, by focusing on the Lombardy region. These reforms have produced significant shifts in terms of transfer of responsibilities from the national to the regional level, liberalization, and participation of private actors. By relying on two case studies—the regional public agency in charge of coordination of employment policies and a private provider of employment services—the reforms’ implications in terms of reorganization and stakeholder participation are explored. The results point to a required shift in terms of strategy, organization, and operations for both institutions.

Exploring the effect of network governance models on health-care systems performance

This article is aimed at exploring the relationship between network governance models and performance in a longitudinal multiple setting. Network governance models is a topic widely explored in the literature. However, few studies have tried to assess the relationship between network governance models and performance, and have not considered multiple settings or longitudinal comparisons. Using data from 2004 to 2008 on hospital networks in Lombardy, Italy, we map the effect of patient transfer on hospital performance. We discuss the implications of these findings within both the network structure and governance of interorganizational communities and public policy research.

A case of employment services in Italy: From a tentative quasi-market to focused partnership programmes

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to illustrate the recent evolution of the employment services system of a Northern Italian region (Lombardy), which was planned according to principles inspired by quasi-markets and horizontal subsidiarity theories, with a focus on its design and implementation challenges. It aims to provide practical and theoretical insights for the design of public services’ governance systems that similarly feature public-private competition and/or cooperation and users’ freedom of choice. Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews and integrates previous empirical research analysing the programmes that are part of the recent evolution of Lombardy’s employment services system, in order to draw insights and lessons. Findings – The paper suggests areas where closer scrutiny and related intervention is warranted on the part of the institution in charge of the system’s design (in this case the regional administration), especially in terms of appropriate design of incentive mechan...