The demand for products continues to increase in today’s society, and to meet this demandcompanies are searching for new ways to improve the performance of their workers.Therefore, there is a constant push to develop and implement new technological solutionswithin the Industry 4.0 approach. The aim of this study is to research the different pathwaysone could take when implementing these technological solutions and what challenges itwould entail, with a focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI). This is done in collaboration withSaab Surveillance within their production division, who wishes to increase theirperformance within their white-collar environment. In this study, performance is defined andmeasured through productivity. The main indicators of productivity will, therefore, be timededicated to a task as well as the potential to improve the quality of a task. The result of thisstudy is presented with a roadmap framework where seven key areas, i.e., work processes,were discovered that could benefit from AI applications. These areas were uncovered byconducting a contextual inquiry and semi-structured interviews, and were then matched withrelevant AI applications. The discovered key areas are categorized based on a cost-benefitanalysis, with the scale of; low, medium, and high. The roadmap illustrates in which areas itcould be most beneficial to implement the suggested AI applications. Using this study, Saaband other companies can make more informed decisions on the pathways for adopting newtechnological solutions that will improve the performance of their white-collar workers.

The aim of the study is to determine the nature and utilisation of an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) in a white-collar work environment, and, more specifically, in a South African context. Information about the research topic was obtained from accumulate records of the Standard Bank's Employee Well-being Programme (EWP), structured interviews which were conducted with eleven EWP practitioners and a union representative, and from self-administered questionnaires which were completed by a sample of 153 of the bank's employees. The study includes an in-depth literature review on EAPs in general and issues such as the nature and scope of the bank's EWP, the extent to which the EWP addresses employees' needs, the nature and extent of the marketing of the EWP, and the extent to which the workforce is utilising the programme, were explored and described. The main findings are that the EWP shows evidence of acceptance by employees as well as a degree of utilisation that compares favourably with local and international trends. It also shows an incongruence between marketing and employee orientation and training initiatives and reveals that programme evaluation efforts are insufficient and could be significantly improved. Accordingly, recommendations have been made pertaining to the needs of employees, employee and union involvement, a multi-disciplinary approach to case management, marketing, training and evaluation with regard to the EWP, an EWP database, and a post-treatment follow-up. / Social Work / M.A. (Social Work)

The aim of the study is to determine the nature and utilisation of an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) in a white-collar work environment, and, more specifically, in a South African context. Information about the research topic was obtained from accumulate records of the Standard Bank's Employee Well-being Programme (EWP), structured interviews which were conducted with eleven EWP practitioners and a union representative, and from self-administered questionnaires which were completed by a sample of 153 of the bank's employees. The study includes an in-depth literature review on EAPs in general and issues such as the nature and scope of the bank's EWP, the extent to which the EWP addresses employees' needs, the nature and extent of the marketing of the EWP, and the extent to which the workforce is utilising the programme, were explored and described. The main findings are that the EWP shows evidence of acceptance by employees as well as a degree of utilisation that compares favourably with local and international trends. It also shows an incongruence between marketing and employee orientation and training initiatives and reveals that programme evaluation efforts are insufficient and could be significantly improved. Accordingly, recommendations have been made pertaining to the needs of employees, employee and union involvement, a multi-disciplinary approach to case management, marketing, training and evaluation with regard to the EWP, an EWP database, and a post-treatment follow-up. / Social Work / M.A. (Social Work)

This study aims to analyze factors and individual characteristics that affect the outcomes:work-life balance, work engagement and sense of coherence for white-collar workers whenworking remotely. In today’s society where technology is constantly evolving, hybrid and remote work optionsare becoming more common. Research has shown that work-life balance, work engagement,and sense of coherence affect employee well-being and organizational performance. Theresearch on the extent to which remote work can contribute to sustainable work andemployee well-being is mixed, and most of the research on remote work has been conductedeither before or during the COVID-19 pandemic. Further post-pandemic research cancontribute to more sustainable work and society as a whole. To analyze what factors affect the outcomes in a remote work setting, a mixed-methodapproach was used to gain a comprehensive understanding, including a quantitative and aqualitative study. The quantitative method included bivariate correlation tests, multiple linearregression and group difference testing on cross-sectional survey data collected from twolarge Swedish companies. The qualitative method included six interviews with experiencedwhite-collar workers, which helped us interpret the findings and gain a more in depthunderstanding of quantitative results. To analyze the study findings the theoretical model ofhuman, technology, and organization (HTO) was applied. The quantitative study showed that social support from superiors, remote leadership quality,functionality of digital management systems and digital learning climate were identified asfactors that were associated with work-life balance, work engagement and sense ofcoherence. However, digital resources and social support from superiors were found to beinfluencing work engagement and sense of coherence to a greater extent. For work-lifebalance, social support from superiors and remote leadership quality was found to besignificant. The qualitative study showed that the interviewees' perception of work-lifebalance, work engagement, and sense of coherence was affected by flexible workingarrangements, functionality and use of digital tools, social interaction, collaboration,communication, inspirational relationships at the workplace, supportive colleagues, andsupportive and responsive superiors. Better understanding of what factors affect employees'personal and working life when working remotely can help organizations to promoteoccupational well-being and performance, which can contribute to more sustainable work. / Denna studie syftar till att analysera faktorer och individuella egenskaper som påverkarutfallen: balans mellan arbete och privatliv, arbetsengagemang och känsla av sammanhangför tjänstemän som arbetar på distans. I dagens samhälle där tekniken ständigt utvecklas, blir hybrid- och distansarbeten alltvanligare. Forskning har visat att balans mellan arbete och privatliv, arbetsengagemang ochkänsla av sammanhang påverkar medarbetarnas välbefinnande och organisatorisk prestation.Forskningen om i vilken utsträckning distansarbete kan bidra till hållbart arbete ochmedarbetarnas välbefinnande är blandad, och det mesta av forskningen om distansarbete harbedrivits antingen före eller under COVID-19-pandemin. Ytterligare postpandemiskforskning kan bidra till ett mer hållbart arbete och samhället. För att analysera vilka faktorer som påverkar utfallen i distansarbete användes en blandadmetod för att få en övergripande förståelse, inklusive en kvantitativ och en kvalitativ studie.Den kvantitativa metoden inkluderade bivariata korrelationstester, multipel linjär regressionoch tester av gruppskillnader. Tvärsnittsdata samlades in från två stora svenska företaggenom en enkät. Den kvalitativa metoden inkluderade sex intervjuer med erfarna tjänstemänoch hjälpte oss att tolka utfall och få en mer djupgående förståelse av kvantitativatestresultat. För att analysera studiens resultat användes den teoretiska modellen förmänniska, teknologi och organisation (MTO). Den kvantitativa studien visade att socialt stöd från överordnade, ledarskapskvalitet pådistans, funktionalitet av digitala ledningssystem och digitalt lärandeklimat identifieradessom faktorer som korrelerade med utfallen. Digitala resurser och socialt stöd frånöverordnade visade sig dock ha en större förknippning med faktorerna som påverkararbetsengagemang och känsla av sammanhang. För balans mellan arbete och privatliv varsocialt stöd från överordnade och ledarskapskvalitet på distans betydande. Den kvalitativastudien visade att intervjupersonernas uppfattning om balans mellan arbete och privatliv,arbetsengagemang och känsla av sammanhang påverkades av flexibla arbetsarrangemang,funktionalitet och användning av digitala verktyg, social interaktion, samarbete,kommunikation, inspirerande relationer på arbetsplatsen, stödjande kollegor, samt stödjandeoch lyhörda överordnade. Bättre förståelse för vilka faktorer som påverkar anställdaspersonliga liv och arbetsliv när de arbetar på distans kan hjälpa organisationer att främjayrkesmässigt välbefinnande och prestation, vilket kan bidra till ett mer hållbart arbete.