Some managers tend to resist virtual work and find it challenging to manage the productivity of subordinates working virtually. This phenomenological study examined managers' perceptions of subordinate productivity in virtual work arrangements. Adaptive structuration theory and McGregor's X and Y theory guided this study. The primary research questions focused on the managers' perceptions of worker productivity in virtual work arrangements and the related challenges. Data collection included semistructured interviews with 40 business managers responsible for overseeing the productivity of virtual workers. The study was conducted in the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area. Utilizing the Stevick'Colaizzi'Keen method of data analysis, 3 primary themes emerged: (a) subordinate productivity was not negatively affected by the use of virtual work arrangements, (b) virtual work arrangements posed challenges for managers responsible for overseeing virtual worker productivity with the lack of face'to'face interaction identified as the most significant, and (c) there was managerial support for the use of virtual work arrangements. Social change implications, given the findings, include an increased awareness of worker productivity in virtual work arrangements, which could lead to increased opportunities for individuals to work in a virtual setting. The increase in virtual work arrangements benefits society by reducing fuel consumption, road congestion, and related pollutants. Organizational leaders can use the findings from the study to develop business strategies to sustain virtual worker productivity and address the related challenges to improve the quality of life for managers of virtual workers.

Alternative work arrangements (AWA) policies allow employees to select varied work schedules that are both conducive to the organization’s goals and to employees’ personal needs. Though common in the business sector, such policies are rarely articulated within American colleges and universities. Practitioners within the student affairs profession regularly work beyond the average 40-hour week due to the fundamental nature of their work with students’ co-curricular involvement outside of the classroom; as a result, the lack of work-life balance can result in high employee turnover which can be detrimental to an organization. Utilizing grounded theory, a qualitative methodology that allows researchers to espouse new theories to explain phenomena based on data, 14 student affairs practitioners employed at a large research institution in the southeast were interviewed to examine their experiences which emanated from the institution’s AWA policy implemented in 2007. The emergent theory collectively affirmed the importance of flexibility as participants indicated that they expected variations in their work hours given the unusual hours that are commonly associated with the student affairs profession. They reported benefits such as better work-life balance, increased productivity, reduced stress, and increased job satisfaction. Conversely, participants expressed concerns that AWAs were not consistency available to all employees and awareness of the policy was limited. They also experienced feelings of guilt and often felt the need to prove that they were working. Finally, participants recommended that AWA policies should be transparent, regularly assessed, and benchmarked against existing policies at other universities. Results provided evidence of how proven strategies used in corporate human resource models can be applied in a higher education setting, and the findings further suggested that employees and employers could greatly benefit from the establishment of formal policies that allow flexibility in the workplace through the use of AWAs. Implementation of these policies may provide employees with more opportunities for work-life balance, thereby improving job satisfaction and increasing employee retention in the student affairs profession.

In this study, the way how the new challenges faced in the post-Fordist period affected labour work arrangements and European social policy making is analyzed. In this regard, the formation of flexible work arrangements and forms of flexibility are examined. The attempts of the European Union to produce effective strategies to connect economic developments to social progress are discussed.

The effort to harmonize work self-realization with the care of children brings parents in the Czech Republic number of problems. Gender stereotypes cause that it is mainly women who must cope with the double load. This thesis deals with the most problematic areas such as the lack of alternative employment or small extension of alternative care for childern. The aim is to define the reasons for this and propose possible solutions that makes easier harmonzation of family and work in the Czech Republic.

Syftet med denna studie är att undersöka ledarskap på distans och urskilja skillnader från traditionellt ledarskap i en svensk storbank. Covid-19 penademin förändrade storbankens förutsättningar och tvingade fram en strukturförändring från kontors baserat arbete till distansarbete. Studien utforskar hur förutsättningar för arbetet hos medarbetare och ledare inom storbanken påverkats. Vidare identifieras risker och utmaningar med virtuellt ledarskap i samband med distansarbete. Frågeställningarna som ligger till grund för studien lyder följande “På vilket sätt har ledarskapets förutsättningar förändrats från arbete på kontor till arbete på distans” samt “Hur kan ledare anpassa sig för att kunna leda medarbetare på distans?” Arbetsmarknaden har utvecklats snabbt och i samband med den digitala utveckling har nya arbetssätt tillkommit. Pandemin påskyndade utvecklingen ytterligare och på grund av restriktioner tvingades organisationer ändra arbetsstruktur för att kunna fortgå. Distansarbetet medförde helt nya förutsättningar samt risker och utmaningar för ledare. Genom att identifiera förutsättningar inom distansarbete samt urskilja skillnader mellan traditionellt ledarskap och virtuellt ledarskap kan man möta risker och utmaningar i distansarbetet. Ledare kan få bättre förutsättningar och en ökad förståelse om hur man leder medarbetare på distans. Det empiriska underlaget har samlats in genom intervjuer och respondenter som legat till grund för dataunderlaget är anställda inom storbanken. Av totalt åtta respondenter har sex stycken rollen som ledare och två medarbetare. Den teoretiska referensramen har legat till grund för vår analys av dataunderlaget. Resultatet indikerar på att ledare behöver strukturera en interaktionsplan med medarbetare som arbetar på distans. En individualisering av sociala utvärderingar kan tillgodose medarbetarens behov efter stöd och motivation. Utöver dessa insatser är det viktigt att ledare implementerar sociala icke arbetsrelaterade aktiviteter för att skapa gemenskap och stärka relationer inom organisationen. / The aim of the study is to examine remote leadership and distinguish differences from traditional leadership in a swedish bank. The pandemic known as covid-19 forced the swedish bank to organizational structure change from office based work to remote work. The study investigates how coworkers and leaders in the swedish bank were affected as their conditions in the bank changed to virtual leadership. Furthermore identifying risks and challenges with virtual leadership in a remote working environment. The issue for the base of this study is “In what way have the conditions for leadership changed fromwork in the office to remote work” and “How can leaders adapt to lead employees remotely?” The labor market has developed rapidly and in connection with digital development, new working methods have been added. The pandemic further accelerated development and due to restrictions, organizations were forced to change their workstructure in order to survive. Remote work brought completely new conditions as well as risks and challenges for leaders. By identifying conditions in remote work and distinguishing differences between traditional leadership and virtual leadership, one can meet risks and challenges. Leaders can get better conditions and an increased understanding of how to lead employees. The empirical data has been collected through interviews and respondents who formed the basis for the study are employees of the Swedish bank. Out of 8 respondents, 6 are employed as managers and 2 employees at the major bank. The theoretical frame of reference has formed the basis for our analysis of the empercial data. The results indicate that leaders need to structure an interaction plan with employees who work remotely. An individualization of social evaluations for employees can satisfy the employee's need for support and motivation. In addition to these efforts, it is important that leaders implement social non-work-related activities to create unity and strengthen relationships within the organization.

Flexible working arrangements have increased significantly, especially as a result of Covid-19. Previous research has described the deregulation of traditional work forms as an opportunity to increase control among employees. On the other hand, research also shows that more flexibility increases the individuals’ responsibility to set boundaries and make time for sufficient recovery. The purpose of this study was to investigate differences in the need for recovery among workers with flextime and non-regulated work hours, while also comparing the employees based on parental status.The study also investigates whether the need for recovery differs among flexible workers parental status, while controlling for the perception of control. A registry study was conducted using a cross-sectional design and data from 830 flexible workers have been analyzed. Results show no significant difference in the need for recovery among employees with flextime compared to non-regulated work hours. Neither did the results show a significant difference among flexible workers based on their parental status. Lastly, results showed that the employees’ perception of control was associated with the need for recovery. In conclusion, no significant differences were found among the groups, but findings suggest that employees’ perception of control is associated with their need for recovery. Keywords: flexible work arrangements, need for recovery, control, parental status

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This bachelor’s thesis is written in collaboration with Skanska. The purpose of this thesis is to implement a time and cost analysis to compare the standard working week with five variations of work arrangements to investigate which is the most profitable. The thesis also examines which factors affects profitability and whether shift work is a good alternative in the construction industry. Depending on choice of working arrangement, it is possible to reduce both time and cost for a project.A calculation model has been created to be able to compare the different working arrangements. The purpose of the model is to clarify how the total price is affected by shorter production time and increased costs due to staff. The model uses a standard project as reference which is based on real figures from four completed projects within house building.The result of the calculation model is that a 53-hour week yields a cost saving of 3,8%. Two-shift yields a cost saving of 3,3%, a 60-hour week 1,9% and three-shift 1,1%. By working with shifts or longer workdays, projects can be completed faster and with, for example, three shifts it is possible to complete a project almost three times as fast. With two shifts it is possible to reduce construction time by half and with the a 60 and 53-hour week the construction time can be shortened by one third and one quarter. This confirms that a shorter construction time leads to a lower final cost despite increased costs due to staff. This since a shorter construction time leads to reduced time-dependent costs.As part of the thesis work a diagram has been created showing how much of the costs that should be time-dependent for the working time alternatives to be profitable. If time-dependent costs accounts for over 50% of the total cost of the project, all working time arrangements in the study are a better alternative than the normal 40-hour week.The conclusion is that a 53-hour week is the most profitable in terms of financial gain. A three shift yields the lowest cost saving, but is the most profitable when it comes to saving time. A shorter construction time provides an economic gain but is also valuable in other ways. It can provide both economic benefit and contribute to benefiting society, which is positive for both companies, customers and third parties. In addition, all work arrangements compared to a 40-hour week also generates a higher cost saving due to the time saving effect.Whether shift work is a good alternative in the construction industry is a difficult question with several different aspects to consider. This thesis only provides an answer from a time and cost perspective, but the thesis also discusses other aspects that are important in choosing work arrangement.

Employers' reliance on asynchronous electronic communications, connective technology devices, and remote work arrangements has led employees to feel preoccupied with staying connected after-hours to be responsive to work-related demands. The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to describe the lived experiences of professional workers who coped with constant pressure to monitor and immediately respond to work-related electronic communications during nonwork hours. The conceptual framework was supported by boundary and border theory and the constructs of work-life balance, flexible work arrangements, information and communication technology. Data were collected using semistructured interviews with 16 professional workers near Washington, DC. Moustakas's modified van Kaam method was used to analyze, code, and organize data. Six themes emerged: mobilize or immobilize, manage expectations, safeguard personal time, work-life fusion, work engagement, and psychological outcomes. Findings revealed that professional workers felt a sense of urgency to reply to work-related e-mails and text messages outside of their regularly scheduled work hours and felt a sense of professional obligation to be available after-hours. Results may be used to shape and support positive social change through effective organizational change programs for technology-related work-life imbalances, thereby benefiting employers and employees.

This thesis focuses on increasing the efficiency of systems with cross-trained workforce and finite storage spaces. Our objective is to maximize the throughput and minimize the setup costs (if they exist). More specifically, we are interested in determining effective cross-training strategies and dynamic server assignment policies for flexible servers in production lines with finite buffers. In the first part of this thesis, we study non-Markovian systems and support the conjecture that effective server assignment policies are robust to service time distributions. Next, we consider understaffed tandem lines with partially or fully flexible servers, determine optimal and heuristic server assignment policies, and show that most of the benefits of full flexibility can be achieved with limited flexibility. Finally, we incorporate the setups to our model, determine the optimal server assignment policy for some systems and show how the effective assignment of servers depends on the magnitude of the setup costs.