[pt] O presente trabalho procurou identificar os fatores que predominam no processo de construção do contrato psicológico dos indivíduos com as organizações. A proposta de utilização da teoria do contrato psicológico deveu-se ao pressuposto de que este modelo permitiria reconhecer fatores explícitos ou implícitos que caracterizavam a relação entre a organização e o próprio indivíduo, seja na elaboração do contrato ou mesmo na quebra das expectativas dos novos empregados. Optou-se por desenvolver estudo de caso qualitativo com características exploratórias. A organização selecionada foi uma empresa estatal federal brasileira com sede no Rio de Janeiro que, no período de janeiro de 2008 a junho de 2009, renovou cerca de 37% do seu quadro de pessoal efetivo, com a contratação de mais de 600 empregados. A estratégia adotada para a coleta de dados teve por base questionários semi-estruturados e entrevistas coletivas com empregados de várias formações de nível superior, visando identificar os principais motivos que estimularam a entrada dos mesmos na estatal e como suas experiências e maneiras de pensar influenciam sua relação com a organização. Os resultados confirmaram algumas crenças correntes a respeito da motivação dos indivíduos para optarem por um emprego estatal, destacando-se entre elas a busca por uma situação de maior estabilidade, principalmente para aqueles acima de uma determinada faixa etária, aliada à possibilidade de um melhor gerenciamento da qualidade de vida. Embora os resultados conduzam à percepção de uma imagem positiva do setor público e uma relação de reciprocidade entre o indivíduo e a organização, eles ainda acreditam que há necessidade de melhorias em relação às oportunidades concretas de crescimento profissional e ao sistema de avaliação de gestão por competências, fatores estes que, principalmente, para os indivíduos mais jovens podem acarretar o rompimento do contrato psicológico. / [en] This study sought to identify the factors that dominate the process of construction of the psychological contract of individuals with organizations, focusing on a particular organization. The proposed use of the theory of psychological contract was due to the assumption that this model would recognize explicit or implicit factors that characterized the relationship between the organization and the individual, whether in contract preparation or even break the expectations of new employees. We decided to develop qualitative case study with exploratory characteristics. The organization selected was a Brazilian federal state enterprise based in Rio de Janeiro, in the period January 2008 to June 2009, renewed 37% of effective staff with the hiring of more than 600 employees. The strategy adopted for data collection was based on semi-structured questionnaires and group interviews with employees of some higher levels of education, identifying the main reasons that prompted the entry of the same state and how their experiences and ways of thinking influence their relationship with the organization. The results confirm some common beliefs about the motivation of individuals to choose a state employment, foremost among them the search for a more stable situation, especially for those over a certain age group, combined with the possibility of better management quality of life. Although the results lead to the perception of a positive image of the public and a reciprocal relationship between the individual and the organization, they still believe there is need for improvement in relation to concrete opportunities for professional growth and evaluation system for management skills. All of these factors, especially for younger individuals may lead to the disruption of the psychological contract.

[pt] O presente estudo busca identificar questionamentos, expectativas e dilemas enfrentados por indivíduos que trabalham nas empresas de propriedade de suas famílias, no que diz respeito às suas identidades sociais, ao seu contrato psicológico com a empresa e às suas relações com os familiares. Trata-se de uma abordagem que tenta privilegiar o foco sobre aspectos relativos à subjetividade dos indivíduos, e não sobre as características das empresas familiares ou dos comportamentos esperados dos membros envolvidos na gestão, como costuma ser usual na maioria dos estudos voltados para esse tipo de organização. Tópicos gerais da administração, como no caso comportamento organizacional, muitas vezes, também não levam em conta as características profundas e específicas que tais empresas possuem. A relação profissional tão intimamente ligada às relações familiares traz questões bastante complexas ao ambiente organizacional. Sob uma abordagem qualitativa, a pesquisa descritiva e explicativa foi baseada em entrevistas com 18 profissionais (herdeiros e gestores) que trabalham na empresa de suas famílias na cidade do Rio de Janeiro. A amostra concentrou-se em pessoas a partir da segunda geração que ocupam cargos gerenciais ou de diretoria. Os resultados apontam para uma forte influência da família e da sua condição de filho do dono sobre a identidade social do herdeiro, o qual utiliza, muitas vezes, seu pai - antigo sucessor ou fundador - como referência de comportamento. Os profissionais que escolheram trabalhar na empresa da família de maneira mais livre e racional tendem a se sentir mais satisfeitos com sua trajetória de carreira. Além disto, seu comprometimento com o trabalho parece ser conseqüência do comprometimento com sua própria família. O relacionamento com familiares, assim como sua satisfação no trabalho influenciam o contrato psicológico com a empresa da família. / [en] Through a qualitative research approach, this study examines the diverse issues faced by individuals that work at family-owned businesses. The research investigates their social identity, their psychological contract with the company and their family relationships. Unlike other family business studies which detail expected managerial behavior, this research is focused on the subjectivity of individuals. Business management topics like organizational behavior often do not consider the profound and specific characteristics of family firms. The mixed professional and family relationships bring complex issues to the company atmosphere. The foundation of the research is based on eighteen interviews with professionals who work at family-owned firms in Rio de Janeiro. The sample was concentrated on second and third generation members working at the executive level. The results indicate a strong family influence on the individual social identity. Being the owner´s son, the individual usually takes their father (previous successor or founder) as a behavior reference. Choosing to work at the family firm in a free and rational way tends to make the professionals feel more satisfied with their career development. Their commitment to work seems to be a consequence of their commitment to family. The family relationships, as well as their work satisfaction, influence their psychological contract with the family firm.

As organisations operate in a globalised, competitive and ever-changing environment, the process of making strategic decisions, the introduction and implementation of organisational changes, and employees’ responses towards these changes are typical challenges in organisational life. In this content, the recent financial crisis of 2007-2008 had a profound impact on the Greek economy, as the Greek banking sector had undergone a series of profound organisational changes that were met with a mixed response from employees. The aim of this study is to investigate and propose an integrated theoretical model on the relationship among strategic decision-making process (SDMP), organisational change and employees’ responses to change in Greek banks. To achieve this aim, the SDMP by which organisational changes were introduced in Greek banks, and employees’ EVLN behavioural responses towards these changes are examined. Two questionnaire surveys were conducted and data were collected from 11 CEOs and 78 members of top management teams, and 1,259 Greek bank employees. The study adopted the positivistic approach and data were quantitatively analysed by using the statistical software of SPSS version 2.1 and AMOS version 22.0. The findings suggest that top management teams used their Rationality, Intuition and Political behaviour during SDMP, and different contextual factors had a different impact on this process. Moreover, employees’ EVLN behavioural responses varied depending on the type of organisational change and the level of impact of organisational commitment, job satisfaction and psychological contract breach on their responses. Also, significant differences were found on employees’ responses in terms of their age, gender, educational level, length of service at the bank, position at the bank, and the bank they worked for before the changes. The key contribution to knowledge is that this is the first study that develops an integrated theoretical model that examines the relationship among SDMP, organisational change and employees’ EVLN behavioural responses. It also enhances our knowledge and extends the literature on a number of relationships such as the impact of the antecedents of SDMP on SDMP dimensions, the effect of SDMP dimensions on organisational change, and the impact of different types of organisational change on employees’ EVLN responses. Such contribution has significant implications on making strategic decisions and managing change in times of crises.

Magister Commercii - MCom / This study analyses the process that an IT refurbishing organisation used to socialise 15 IT graduates to the norms of the working world. In addition, 5 IT industry and 2 governmental agency interviews were used, and 60 online job advertisements were analysed to develop a system dynamic model. The main motivation for this study was to develop a system dynamics model of the graduate socialisation process, in an attempt to understand the cause and effect of practical exposure, to bridge the IT skill-expectations gap. The main source of data for the model was from a-priori coding and content analysis of job adverts, online blogs and reports created by the students, supported by a review of the existing literature

Since the late 20th Century, the consulting industry has grown significantly. Today, consulting is a widespread, one-size-fits-all term that includes virtually any form of advice-giving in a business setting. Irrespective of the industry, there is a large market and high demand for consulting. Knowing how to engage clients and ensuring successful consulting has never been more critical for consultancies looking to capitalise on scarce client demand. The purpose of this research study was to gain a collective understanding of those aspects that constitute successful consulting, focusing on the implicit dimensions that influence client-consultant engagement. In this regard, the research study aimed to add value by presenting a new perspective on, and extend understanding of the implicit dimensions influencing the client-consultant relationship by focusing on both clients and consultants though the unique lens of the Psychological Contract. This exploration of the Psychological Contract between client and consultant was conducted through the interpretivist paradigm, or to be more specific, a social constructivist approach. This approach allowed the researcher to explore the Psychological Contract between client and consultant through the constructed meanings that both clients and consultants attach to their experience of the client-consultant relationship, and enabled the researcher to explore their perceptions and interpretations of the dimensions that influenced that relationship. The researcher furthermore applied a qualitative research design and constructivist grounded theory method to explore the subjective meanings of clients and consultants, and to discover their reality. This design and method generated rich, in-depth data and understanding of the participants’ beliefs, perceptions, and subjective experiences to develop a comprehensive framework of the Psychological Contract between client and consultant. / Dissertation (MCom)--University of Pretoria, 2011. / Human Resource Management / unrestricted

Medvetna källor till förväntningar från målgruppen visade sig vara tidigare chefer, organisation de tidigare arbetat i, föräldrar, kollegor, utbildning, vänner, underhållning och media och samhällsnormer. Det organisationen gör är betydande för att skapa förväntningar, hos gruppen unga oerfarna chefer. Rekryteringsprocessen, både internrekrytering och externrekrytering, ger tillfällen att hantera, justera och skapa förväntningar under tiden fram till tillträdet både genom explicita diskussioner och erfarenheter inom organisationen. Respondenterna visade tecken på att se vissa förväntningar som självklara, som om deras ursprung var ett slags självklar eller grundläggande allmängiltig sanning. De ser i vissa hänseenden de viktigaste förväntningarna som för självklara för att nämnas. Syftet med denna studie är att bidra till kunskap om ursprung till medvetna förväntningar på den första tjänsten som operativ chef. De mest framträdande ursprungen till förväntningar visade sig i empiriinsamlingen vara tidigare chefer och andra ledarförebilder samt organisationer som respondenterna har erfarenheter ifrån. / Conscious origins of expectations for the respondents were previous managers, the organisation they had worked in, parents, colleagues, educational environment, friends, entertainment and media, and societal norms. What the organisation does is important for creating expectations for the group of inexperienced young managers that were studied. The recruitment process, both internal and external, provides opportunities to handle, adjust and create expectations before employment start, both through explicit discussions and through experiences within the organisation. Respondents showed signs of viewing some expectations as self-evident, as if their origin were a sort of obvious or general truth. They to some degree view the most important (to them) expectations as too self-evident to mention (to a recruiter). The purpose of this study is to contribute to knowledge of origins of conscious expectations on the first position as operative manager. The most common origins in this sample turned out to be previous managers and other leader role models as well as organisations that the respondents have experienced.

Between 2003 and 2011, 1.2 million U.S. workers were laid off every year. Some organizational leaders of information technology/telecommunications organizations lack strategies to improve affective commitment to the organization after downsizing events. The strains of overwork, organizational changes, anxiety over job insecurity, and lack of choice often result in physical illness, emotional trauma, and extreme disengagement termed survivor syndrome. The purpose of this single case study was to explore strategies organizational leaders in the Midwest United States in information technology/telecommunications organizations used to improve affective commitment to the organization after downsizing. The conceptual framework was Herzberg's 2-factor theory. Data were collected via semistructured interviews, retention records, and organizational documents specific to postdownsizing activities. Data were compiled, disassembled, and reassembled into patterns and themes. The data revealed 4 themes: internal communications, organizational support, training, and employee manager relationships. The findings suggested establishing a formalized strategy to support survivors of corporate downsizing is needed to ensure consistency throughout the company. This research might contribute to social change within the organization by identifying and providing strategies to improve affective commitment to the organization after a downsizing event, which might lead to better individual and organizational performance and decrease residual employee turnover. This research could also contribute to social change by stabilizing the emotional state of the employee and removing a source of family instability.

Intern kriskommunikation syftar till kommunikation som sker inom en verksamhet i samband med en kris. Utan förberedelser för en välfungerande intern kriskommunikation, ökar risken för att krisen resulterar i stora konsekvenser för både verksamheten och dess anställda. Syftet med studien är att undersöka anställdas upplevelse av den interna kriskommunikationen under covid-19-pandemin, samt hur upplevelsen relateras till eventuella psykologiska kontraktsbrott. 12 semistrukturerade intervjuer med undersköterskor och vårdbiträden inom äldreomsorgen utfördes. Resultatet om informanternas upplevelse av den interna kriskommunikationen kan sammanfattas i tre teman; Motstånd eller samförstånd, Värdelös eller värdefull samt Reaktiv eller proaktiv. Beroende på hur den interna kriskommunikationen upplevts av den anställde, kan relationen till psykologiska kontraktsbrott sammanfattas i de två teman Bortglömd eller uppskattad samt Individ eller verksamhet. Resultaten diskuteras i relation till tidigare forskning om intern kriskommunikation och psykologiska kontraktsbrott, och bidrar med ny kunskap inom området.

Bakgrund: Employer brand är en strategi som används för att attrahera och behålla medarbetare i organisationen genom att marknadsföra de fördelar som organisationen erbjuder. Dessa erbjudanden kan tolkas som löften och underförstådda förväntningar hos medarbetare. De underförstådda förväntningar går under begreppet psykologiskt kontrakt som är villkoren för ett ömsesidigt utbytesavtal mellan arbetsgivare och arbetstagare. Tidigare forskning inom området har visat att employer brand har stor inverkan över skapandet av det psykologiska kontraktet då det skapar förväntningar hos arbetstagaren. Däremot upplevs det saknas forskning kring kombinationen av employer brand och psykologiskt kontrakt, samt hur medarbetarnas förväntningar påverkas av en organisations employer brand.Syfte: Syftet med studien är att skapa förståelse för hur medarbetares förväntningar påverkas av en organisations employer brand.Metod: En kvalitativ metod har använts då studien utfördes genom semistrukturerade intervjuer där fokuset var att få en förståelse för individers upplevelse av hur employer brand påverkar förväntningar. Intervjuerna transkriberades och tematiserades genom en tematisk analys. Analysen av resultatet har varit abduktivt då nya teman hittades i empirin och tidigare forskning har använts för att bekräfta eller ifrågasätta resultatet.Resultat: Resultatet visar tydliga brister i organisationens arbete med employerbrand vid tidpunkten då respondenterna anställdes. Respondenterna hade få förväntningar på organisationen som arbetsgivare, men upplever att de förväntningar de haft blivit uppfyllda.Slutsats: Slutsatsen är att en organisation kan ha ett svagt employer med som skapar svaga förväntningar, men ändå attrahera och behålla medarbetare, samt uppfylla det psykologiska kontraktet. En arbetsgivare kan upplevas attraktiv utan att behöva arbeta under konceptet employer brand. / Background: Employer brand is a strategy to attract and retain employees in the organization by marketing the benefits that the organization offers. These offers can be interpreted as promises and implicit expectations of employees. The implicit expectations fall under the concept of psychological contract, which are the conditions for a mutual exchange agreement between employer and employee. Previous research in the field has shown that employer brand has a great impact on the creation of the psychological contract as it creates expectations in the employee. On the other hand, there is a lack of research on the combination of employer brand and psychological contract, as well as how employees' expectations are affected by an organization's employer brand.Aim: The aim of the study is to create an understanding of how employees' expectations are affected by an organization's employer brand.Method: A qualitative method has been used when the study was conducted through semi-structured interviews where the focus was to gain an understanding of individuals' experience of how employer brand affects expectations. The interviews were transcribed and thematized through a thematic analysis. The analysis of the results has been abductive as new themes were found in the empirical data and previous research has been used to confirm or question the results.Results: The results show clear shortcomings in the organization's work with employer brand at the time when the respondents were hired. The respondents had few expectations of the organization as an employer, but feel that the expectations they had were met.Conclusion: The conclusion is that an organization can have a weak employer who creates weak expectations, but still attract and retain employees, and fulfill the psychological contract. An employer can be perceived as attractive without having to work under the concept of employer brand.

The HIV and AIDS pandemic is arguably the greatest threat facing the world today. The pandemic has a far-reaching impact on society, including the workplace. The effect in the workplace is observed in various areas including a reduction in certain skills levels, mortality and declining job performance of employees living with HIV or AIDS. In addition, the fear of discrimination and stigmatisation prevents infected employees from disclosing their HIV status, thus driving the pandemic underground. Despite the potential negative impact that is looming, many employers still do not have any workplace support programmes in place to manage HIV and AIDS in their organisations. However, some employers have implemented workplace support programmes. This research thus explored the influence of workplace support programmes on the job performance of employees that were living with HIV or AIDS. The findings suggest that job performance is positively influenced where workplace support programmes have been implemented. / Industrial and Organisational Psychology / M.Comm. (Industrial and Organisational Psychology)