Academic discussion Welbeing and HRM

• Geography
• Special Education

Academic discussion 

Well-being and HRM

by Wei Soon (i6340919) & Luca (i6286679)

What to do?

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4. Have fun! 

Overview of today

• Introduction 
• The relationship between HRM and Well-being
• Research by Cañibano
  
• Research by Kowalski & Loretto


• Recap!

Introduction

Context 

• Organizations around the world are changing 
  
• People are changing 

Relevance 

"... many organisations are introducing innovative HRM practices assuming that they will improve performance. However if possible well-being effects are counterbalanced by  negative unintended outcomes on other well-being dimensions... Being aware of the possible side-effects and managing  them should optimize the benefits." 

(Cañibano, 2013)

Relationship between HRM & Well-being

What is well-being?

Definition of the WHO 

"a three-dimensional concept composed of physical, psychological and social aspects"

(Cañibano, 2013)

What is innovative HRM?

• HRM appears to have a positive effect on performance and employee-wellbeing  
  
• There is a consensus about the link to performance, however there is no consensus on the link between HRM and employee wellbeing

(Cañibano, 2013)

Two schools of thought 

Mutual gains 

Conflicting outcomes

employers and employees equally benefit from the implementation of innovative HRM and the implementation also boosts employee well-being 

implementation of innovative HRM boosts organisational performance at the expense of the well-being of employees

Mutual Gains

Conflicting Outcomes

Two schools of thought

(Cañibano, 2013)

statements

Statements 1/3

"A company adopts a flexible work arrangement policy that allows employees to choose their working hours and location. This approach promotes work-life balance and employee well-being, resulting in increased job satisfaction and productivity. Employees feel empowered and motivated to perform their best, leading to improved organizational performance and higher retention rates."

What do you think?

Stand up: Mutual gains

Remain seated: Conflicting outcomes 

statements

Statements 1/3

"A company adopts a flexible work arrangement policy that allows employees to choose their working hours and location. This approach promotes work-life balance and employee well-being, resulting in increased job satisfaction and productivity. Employees feel empowered and motivated to perform their best, leading to improved organizational performance and higher retention rates."

What do you think?

Stand up: Mutual gains

Remain seated: Conflicting outcomes 

statements

Statements 2/3

"An organization implements comprehensive health and wellness initiatives, such as providing gym facilities, wellness programs, and mental health support. By prioritizing employee well-being, the company witnesses reduced absence, increased employee morale, and improved work satisfaction. Healthy and happy employees are more likely to perform at their best, leading to enhanced organizational performance."

What do you think?

Stand up: Mutual gains

Remain seated: Conflicting outcomes 

statements

Statements 2/3

"An organization implements comprehensive health and wellness initiatives, such as providing gym facilities, wellness programs, and mental health support. By prioritizing employee well-being, the company witnesses reduced absence, increased employee morale, and improved work satisfaction. Healthy and happy employees are more likely to perform at their best, leading to enhanced organizational performance."

What do you think?

Stand up: Mutual gains

Remain seated: Conflicting outcomes 

statements

Statements 3/3

"A company embraces innovative HRM practices by implementing advanced technology and automation to streamline processes and increase efficiency. However, some employees may experience resistance or difficulty adapting to the technological changes, leading to decreased job satisfaction and performance. The conflicting outcomes arise as the organization faces a trade-off between technological advancement and employee well-being."

What do you think?

Stand up: Mutual gains

Remain seated: Conflicting outcomes 

statements

Statements 3/3

"A company embraces innovative HRM practices by implementing advanced technology and automation to streamline processes and increase efficiency. However, some employees may experience resistance or difficulty adapting to the technological changes, leading to decreased job satisfaction and performance. The conflicting outcomes arise as the organization faces a trade-off between technological advancement and employee well-being."

What do you think?

Stand up: Mutual gains

Remain seated: Conflicting outcomes 

Research by Cañibano

Research and methods

• exploring the implementation of 3 innovative HRM practices 
  
• Spanish division of a major international consultancy firm 
• Qualitative methods: 50 semi-structured interview + document analysis

3 innovative HRM practices 

• Telework
  
• Communication 
• Participation 

Teleworking

Split in 3 groups! Each group should come up with a positive/negative outcome of the HRM practice in terms of well-being

- physical 

- psychological

-social 

Teleworking

Communication

Split in 3 groups! Each group should come up with a positive/negative outcome of the HRM practice in terms of well-being

- physical 

- psychological

-social 

Communication

Participation

Split in 2 groups! Each group should come up with a positive/negative outcome of the HRM practice in terms of well-being

- psychological

-social 

Participation

Results 

(Cañibano, 2013)

Limitations

• The innovative HRM practices have not been analyzed 
  
• factors such as personality etc. have not been taken into account 
• the analysis is exploratory and bounded to this single case, so results cannot simply be generalized

(Cañibano, 2013)

BREAK

Take some time to walk around, get coffee or check your Instagram! 

What is still about to come? 

• Research by Kowalski & Loretto
  


• Recap and Conclusion!

In the changing workplace?

How about...

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

From Kowalski and Loretto:

"It is commonly reported in the HR literature that it is the people, or human capital, that can provide companies with the competitive advantage, further supporting the rationale to place employee well-being at the forefront of HR strategy in the twenty-first century."

From Kowalski and Loretto:

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

This is a mindmap.

What comes to mind when you think about:

The implications of well-being in organisations

Changing nature of work

Ageing

Population

Extended working lives

Greater precarity in work

Higher geographical mobility

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

1.
"An Australian piece of research by Bahn (2015) highlighted that due to the ongoing skills shortage there, reliance on skilled migrant workers is high"

1. Ageing population
2. Ext. working lives
3. Higher geographical mobility
4. Greater precarity in work

2.
"rise of advances in communication technologies"

1. Ageing population
2. Ext. working lives
3. Higher geographical mobility
4. Greater precarity in work

3.
"move away from permanent contracts and a shift towards less routine systems, such as temporary and zero hour contracts"..."in parallel with the rise of the ‘gig economy’"

1. Ageing population
2. Ext. working lives
3. Higher geographical mobility
4. Greater precarity in work

4.
"it is a common assumption that in the contemporary workplace organisations workload is intensifying and employees are being required to ‘do more with less’"

1. Ageing population
2. Ext. working lives
3. Higher geographical mobility
4. Greater precarity in work

Changing role of HR

Changes in HR practices

• a shift towards a more strategic role for HR practitioners 
• a trend towards outsourcing and outsourcing of the HR provision itself 
• greater opportunities for flexible working
• managing a multi-generational workforce
• devolvement of some HR functions to line managers

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Flexible working

How can it affect the way HR professionals work?

Flexible working

How can it affect the way HR professionals work?

• presents a challenge in terms of managing remote/virtual teams
• should processes be measured? or outputs?

Is investing in well-being then a mutual gain or can it lead to conflicting outcomes?

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Revisiting Well-Being

Why does it still matter?

Quick Recap

Quick Recap

Challenges in defining well-being

Can be categorized in many ways:

• Employee Engagement
• Job Satisfaction
• Even "Burnout"

No singular definition - creating one may even be more obstructive and oversimplistic than useful

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

The New Economics Foundations' 

‘5 ways to well-being’

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Connect

Be Active

Take Notice

Keep Learning

Give

Investing time in people around you

Community Service

Go for a walk or run

Bouldering

Being curious

Savouring the moment

Reflect on your experiences

Signing up for a new self-defense course

Take on a different responsibility at work

Rediscover an old interest

Reaching out to neightbours

Thank someone

Current:

• existing focus on the relationship between HRM and performance ‘has been pursued at the expense of a concern for employee well-being’ (Guest, 2017)

• lack of context and external considerations in HRM practices contributing to well-being

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Current:

Proposed:

• existing focus on the relationship between HRM and performance ‘has been pursued at the expense of a concern for employee well-being’ (Guest, 2017)

• lack of context and external considerations in HRM practices contributing to well-being

• taking an 'alternative route to high performance', with well-being at the 'centre stage' (Guest, 2002, 2011)

• consider a more empirical and comprehensive method in conducting further research about well-being

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Sustaining employee well-being

Challenges in sustaining employee well-being

Challenges in sustaining employee well-being

Rapidly advancing technologies

Toxic leadership

Bullying

Cyber-Bullying

Rise in performance pressure

High workload

Poor communication methods

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Is well being the responsibility of the individual? Or the organisation?

Individual

Organisation

Joint Responsibility in Well-Being

"It is not disputed here that this is important and worthwhile, however, this continuing spotlight on individuals and the individual response to working conditions, casts a shadow over looking at the broader organisational and contextual issues described earlier which can serve to influence well-being at work too."

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Joint Responsibility in Well-Being

• Calvard and Sang: individual approaches alone prevent more close scrutiny of governments and organisations taking place, which in turn can serve to reinforce power imbalance and inequality in the workplace.

• Veld and Alfes: in an austere working environment, doing more with less employees can still enable high levels of wellbeing if organisation fosters a climate that makes employees feel valued.

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Joint Responsibility in Well-Being

Franco-Santos and Doherty in performance management:

"Directive" HR practices:

• giving orders, rules and regulations
• negatively related to staff perceptions of wellbeing

"Enabling" HR practices:

• high staff involvement and communication
• more positive relationship with employee perceptions

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Positive factors facilitating
work life balance
(pg. 17)

Implications for the future?

                  Benefits

• focus on individual characteristics and coping mechanisms
• mindfulness and resilience training
• extremely valuable in terms of strengthening individual psychological capital

Downsides

• Can detract from what organisations can be doing
• providing decent work, fair pay and working conditions, or legislative changes

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

To conclude...

We need to shift from a notion of 'best practices' to one that encourages 'good practices' all around.

‘One size does not fit all’ - if contextual factors are not taken into account, this can potentially have adverse consequences for the effectiveness of any intervention. Further research should strive for a holistic approach to HRM and well being.

(Kowalski & Loretto, 2017)

Let's recap!

What did you learn today?

Thank you for your attention and participation

Thank you for your attention and participation!

References 

•  Cañibano, A. (2013). Implementing innovative HRM: trade-off effects on employee wellbeing. Management Department, 51(3) pp. 643-660. 
• Kowalski, T. H. P. & Loretto, W. (2017). Well-being and HRM in the changing workplace. The international Journal of Human Resource Management, 28(16) pp. 2229-2255.