Organizational career management in a protean and boundaryless world: A mixed-methods study

Abstract

Employee development is integral component of strategic human resources management. Many career theorists have said that organizational responsibility for career management has decreased, yet few studies have examined these changes. We place organizational career management (OCM) under the research microscope in two linked studies. First, data on the types and frequencies of individual OCM practices used and reported in the 1996, 1999, 2006, 2008/2009, and 2015 Australian Cranet surveys was examined. Counterintuitive findings indicate that the use of more than half the OCM practices increased over time. Second, we interviewed 17 employees to investigate their perception of OCM. Employees identified both formal and informal OCM, and findings highlighted that rather than operating in opposition, individually- driven career development and OCM are working in partnership. These findings indicate OCM remains an important component of an overall human resources strategy.