Abstract
As organizations continue to face social, political, technical, environmental, and economic related challenges, many are forced to adopt remote work arrangements as a method of mitigating work-related barriers. Based on potential future of work impacts, this non-experimental cross-sectional survey research sought to uncover how the 2020 shift to remote work altered professionals' perceptions of relationships with their managers, their innovative behaviors, and psychological safety within their work unit. One hundred eight mid-career professionals across industries completed an online survey that was comprised of four areas: managerial relationships, innovative behaviors, communication patterns, and psychological safety within a work unit. Five major findings connected to the 2020 shift to remote work: (1) the correlations between manager relationships, innovative behavior, and psychological safety was strengthened in the shift to remote work; (2) perceptions of managerial relationships slightly declined, particularly around the sense that their manager knew their needs; (3) communications patterns shifted to virtual mediums impacting professionals' willingness to speak up; (4) professionals indicated an increase in self-reliance and innovative behaviors; and (5) informal social connections decreased in the virtual environment highlighting challenges associated with building relationships with colleagues. The findings provided key implications for practice including: organizational leaders advocating for remote work while providing time and financial support to encourage innovative practices; professionals embracing emerging technologies that foster collaborative engagement and networking opportunities, and diversifying their skillsets; hiring managers broadening their recruitment and onboarding approaches in a virtual environment; and educational entrepreneurs supporting intellectual adaptability.Keywords: leader-member exchange, psychological safety, innovative behavior, remote work
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