Organizational Career Research Articles

Organizational career management practices, career satisfaction, and intention to quit among Indian employee: Examining the moderating effect of ‘four types of work experience’

This study examined the interactive effect of organizational career management practices and different types of work experience on career satisfaction and intention to quit the organization in 386 Indian employees. The results showed that after controlling for the effect of the demographic variables and organizational career management practices, different types of work experience played unique roles in predicting career satisfaction and intention to quit the organization. It was found that that organizational career management practices correlated positively with career satisfaction and negatively with intention to quit the organization. The results further showed that organizational experience moderated the relationship between organizational career management practices and career satisfaction, and organizational tenure moderated the relationship between organizational career management practices and intention to quit. These findings carry implication for research and practice on career satisfaction and intention to quit the organization.

A multilevel analysis of individual and organizational factors that influence the relationship between career development and job-performance improvement

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to investigate individual and organizational factors that influence the relationship between career development and job performance improvement.Design/methodology/approachThis study adopts multilevel analysis, using the 2013 Human Capital Corporate Panel data set compiled by the Korea Research Institute for Vocational Education and Training.FindingsTaking into consideration 572 employees over 61 companies, our findings reveal that job satisfaction and organizational commitment are significant individual factors that affect job performance through career development. Moreover, mentoring/coaching is found to be an organizational factor that influences job performance improvement through career development, while job rotation interferes with job performance through career development.Research limitations/implicationsThe framework of the present study is consistent with the framework for organizational career development created by McDonald and Hite (2016), which emphasizes considering both organizational and individual factors together.Practical implicationsThe results of this study provide empirical evidence and practical implications for leaders, line managers and human resource managers who are responsible for employees’ career development when they plan career development interventions.Originality/valueThis study offers a conceptual framework for career development, paying special attention to multi-level development.

Career-related dispositional factors in relation to retention within the retail sector: An exploratory study

The study aimed to explore the extent to which employees’ organisational commitment and career adaptability predicted employee retention factors in the South African retail sector; taking employee demographics into account. A sample of 224 early to mid-career permanent retail employees participated in the study (single = 51.3%; female = 53.1%; mixed-race = 50.9%). The participants responded to surveys on their organisational commitment, career adaptability, and retention factors. A stepwise regression analysis was computed to predict employee retention factors from their organisational commitment and career adaptability. Results suggested the organisational commitment and career adaptability to explain 16% of the variance in employee retention factors. Of the organisation commitment factors, affective commitment was the most predictive of employee retention; followed by normative commitment. The career adaptability factor of curiosity predicted work-life balance. Talent retention in the retail sector appears to be explained by organisational commitment factors relatively more so than by career adaptability factors.

Organizational career management practices and objective career success: A systematic review and framework

The theorization of the relationship between organizational investments in career development and individual success remains underdeveloped, and empirical tests of this relationship, which have been dispersed among several disciplinary areas, have produced inconsistent results. Addressing these issues, the purpose of this article is to propose a theoretical framework that illustrates why and how organizational career management practices translate into career success and under what circumstances the relationship is effective. Using a systematic review of empirical studies on career management practices and objective success, we identify three theoretical mechanisms - developmental, informational, and relational - and two groups of contingency factors that explain this relationship. Our framework advances the extant literature on organizational career management and provides suggestions to companies for designing effective career management systems.

Antecedent of Employees’ Career Satisfaction: An Empirical Investigation of Pharmaceutical Sector of Pakistan

The study is conducted to determine the significant relationships among Job Satisfaction, Organizational Commitment, Supervisor’s Support, and Employee Career Satisfaction. The data have collected from the employees of ten major pharmaceutical companies in Pakistan. Pharmaceutical sector of Pakistan is growing day by day even in law and order situation and energy crisis in country. But high turnover is also reported. This study is conducted to check employee career satisfaction within company and industry. The instrument to measure the variables was adopted from different relevant studies and data was collected from 155 respondents. The SPSS was run on the collected data and analyzed the results. The current study finds a positive correlation between job satisfaction and employee career satisfaction; organizational commitment and employee career satisfaction; and supervisor’s support and employee career satisfaction. The main reason to conduct research on the proposed construct is to fulfill the gap and to provide theoretical as well as empirical evidences for researchers, practitioners, and marketers (specially belonging to pharmaceutical organizations). In the real practice, this research is helpful to companies as well as employees of the pharmaceutical industries to understand the behavior of their attitudes towards their profession and the field.

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

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.

Are Participants in the New Career Good Organizational Citizens?

Commentators have argued that a ‘new career’ deal has emerged, captured by the notions of the protean and the boundaryless career, signaling the demise of the traditional organizational career and the rise of independent, self-driven and self-assessed career pathways. Research has explored some of the individual correlates of protean and boundaryless career orientations while largely neglecting their consequences for organizations. Our paper addresses this omission by exploring the link between new career orientations and extra-role behaviours based on the argument that these dimensions of performance are more at risk given their volitional nature. In addition, it explores the role of commitment and perceived organizational support in shaping this relationship. Our study, conducted with 655 employee-supervisor dyads, indicates that a protean career orientation results in gains for organizations, whereas a boundaryless career orientation is potentially associated with lower citizenship behaviours and higher deviant behaviours due to its negative impact on commitment. In addition, our findings suggest that organizations can positively influence the behavior of individuals with high boundaryless career orientations by offering high levels of support.

Not lost in translation: Managerial career narratives and the construction of protean identities

How can managers remain in charge of their own careers based on personal values and motivations, rather than surrendering to the vulnerabilities of modern day corporate bureaucracies? This question represents a core issue for managers whose careers have been significantly affected by changing business environments, new organizational forms and the related changes of work organization in modern day corporations. Managers can no longer rely on the traditional linear models of organizational careers. It is increasingly demanded that they be more flexible and direct their own careers, which is captured in new career concepts, such as the ‘protean career’. Drawing on narrative identity theory, this study sets out to investigate how managers construct a protean identity and how specific narrative practices support individuals in shaping, implementing and defending this identity. The life stories of 29 individuals, all of whom have experienced significant career changes, are analysed. Based on these stories, four core narrative building blocks at the heart of protean identity construction and related narrative practices are identified, including (i) the discovery of conflicting expectations, (ii) the exploration of one’s own values and capabilities, (iii) the commitment to one’s own path and (iv) defending that path.

Organizational Career Scenarios for Talented Workers

The paper is devoted to the research of organizational career of workers included in the corporate program of talent development. It proves the proposition that the organizations realizing these programs make essential impact on the character of the career capital of workers with a high potential. On the base of the empirical data from two large Russian companies several specific scenarios of career development are revealed, namely, a career leader, career outsider, and career challenger. We identified the mechanism of realization of the opportunities and restrictions when converting career competences of workers into organizational career. Also, for the first time we discuss the risks of participation in the program of talent development which are born by workers. The factors of these risks are empirically established. The paper demonstrates the benefits of applying the propositions of the stakeholder theory in theoretical development and implementation of the talent management concept.

CAREER MANAGEMENT PRACTICES IN SRI LANKA: AN EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION

Career management is considered as one of the fastest developing areas of Human ResourceDevelopment. This paper explores the career management practices in Sri Lankan organizationsand bringing the discussion in international perspectives. The authors surveyed 216 Sri Lankanorganizations, which were listed in the Colombo Stock Exchange. The data was gathered fromeither the human resource manager or the manager who is responsible to handle humanresource development activities. Factor analysis, independent sample t- test and one-way anovamethods were used to test the hypotheses of the study and findings of the study revealed, amongthe 19 organizational career management practices, 17 applied beyond the moderate level andthey were clustered into four groups. Resulting clusters were not significantly associated withcertain demographic factors. The implications and limitations of the study are also discussed.

Exploring the Possible Influence of Women’s Entrepreneurial Orientation (EO) on Their Decision to Opt Out from Organizational Career to Self-Employment

The purpose of this study is to explore the possible influence of women’s entrepreneurial orientations (EO) on their decision to opt out from organizational careers to self-employment. It examines how women account for these transitions, reasons for opting for self-employment and experiences of self-employment. This research employs the qualitative methodology using semi-structured interviews as the main data collection tool. The study revealed that the entrepreneurial orientations of the women under study are commonly associated with the generally successful entrepreneurial behaviour of risk-taking, creative, proactive, competitive, aggressive and confidence. This suggests that enterprises and their women owners may benefit from efforts to increase their levels of entrepreneurial orientation in order to survive the dynamic, fast-paced and complex business environment characterized by shorter life cycles, globalization, and continuous improvements in technology. Hence for the women under study with higher entrepreneurial orientation levels, their transitions from their organizational career to self-employment or small business ownership are seen as attractive career moves.
 Keywords: Women’s careers, entrepreneurial orientation, opting out

Personal values and value congruence of public administration graduate students: An exploratory study in China

AbstractExplorations on the value profiles of current and prospective public organisation employees in China are scarce. The current study investigates this critical issue. Data were collected via a questionnaire from graduate students enrolled in a school of public administration in China. The sample consisted of both full‐time students who were prepared to pursue their careers in public organisations upon graduation, and part‐time students who were mostly public organisation employees. Multivariate analyses of covariance (MANCOVAs) and analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) were used for data analysis. The results show that there are consistent value preferences among all students, and some noteworthy patterns in the relationship between value profiles and demographic and work‐related features. The results also shed light on whether a unique value set could differentiate various types of organisations, and demonstrate that employees in the core public service perceive higher level of value congruence than those in parapublic sectors. These findings provide implications and insights for the management practices in public organisations.

Employee Proactive Personality in Learning Culture

AbstractThe paper attempts to investigate the influences of proactive personality and organizational learning culture on career satisfaction through Leader-Member Exchange quality as a mediating variable. Questionnaire was used as data collection method. The population of this study was Financial Cooperative employees based on health assessment in province level of Semarang City and Regency in 2015. Data was taken from 61 respondents using multi-stage sampling. From the result, it was found that (1) proactive personality influences career satisfaction, (2) organizational learning culture influences career satisfaction, (3) proactive personality influences Leader-Mem­ber Exchange quality, (4) organizational learning culture influences Leader-Member Exchange quality, (5) Leader-Member Exchange quality influences career satisfaction, (6) proactive per­sonality influences career satisfaction through Leader-Member Exchange quality as mediator variable, and (7) organizational learning culture influences career satisfaction with Leader-Mem­ber Exchange quality as mediator variable. Proactive personality and organizational learning culture influence career satisfaction through Leader-Member Exchange as a mediating variable.

Tingkah Laku Proaktif Meningkatkan Kejayaan Kerjaya Pekerja

Proactive behavior is an important dispositional element that may positively affect organization and employees. According to the recent literature pertaining to human resource development, proactive behavior consists of two salient elements: proactive personality and social networking. Interestingly, extant studies in this field highlight that the ability of individuals to appropriately use proactive behavior in performing daily job may help them to an enhanced career success in organizations. Although this relationship has been widely studied, the role of proactive behavior as an important determinant is little discussed in the organizational career model. Thus, this study was undertaken to measure the relationship between proactive behavior and career success. A survey method was employed to collect data from officers who serve at a state Islamic institution in south of Peninsular Malaysia. The outcomes of SmartPLS path analysis model confirmed that employees who are able to properly use proactive personality and implement good social networking may gain satisfaction in their career. Conversely, employees who often potrayed their social networking unable to get better promotion in the studied organization. Further, this study offers discussion, implications and conclusion.

Impact of Organizational Justice on Turnover Intentions: Moderating Role of Job Embeddedness

It is evident from the past research that employees who perceive the organizational policies as not just, the employees tend to leave the organizations and start their professional career in other organizations where they feel comfortable and organization policies as fair and just. Literature accords the moderate relationship of job embeddedness on turnover intentions. This study analyzed the moderate relationship of job embeddedness on turnover intentions and organizational justice in banking sector of Pakistan. Sample of study consists of 313 banking employees from different cadre. Regression Analysis was used to analyze the data. Results clearly indicate that job embeddedness do not moderate the relationship of turnover intentions and organizational justice. There is further need to explore the role of job embeddedness in other professional organizations. Implications for management and future directions are discussed.

Organizational Career Growth and Proactivity: A Typology for Individual Career Development

The current article integrates research on proactive personality, career theory, and perceived organizational career growth opportunities to propose a typology describing four career scenarios that may occur for individuals based on their level of proactivity (high or low) and perceived organizational career growth (high or low). We present turnover intention and performance as career-related outcomes that characterize these scenarios, ultimately arguing that proactive personality likely moderates the positive effects of organizational career growth opportunities on individual career outcomes, such that the benefits of organizational career growth are likely to be most beneficial for highly proactive individuals. Using an interactionist perspective and social cognitive career theory as foundations, this conceptual article illustrates how the benefit of organizational career growth opportunities for individual career development may depend on the individual characteristics of employees.

The influence of social network and self-monitoring on career

This study aims to explore individual differences (gender and self-monitoring) and social network patterns of professionals, in order to explain barriers on women striving to ascend to the top of organizations, since a self-monitoring personality and social networks have both been found to affect performance evaluation, promotions and career in organizations. The results showed that males in management positions displayed the same network pattern, whereas females had different networks patterns, depending on their self-monitoring. Furthermore, social network differences were enhanced regarding low self-monitor males and females. High self-monitors males in gender homophilic networks were the ones more related to higher positions in the organization’s hierarchy. The contribution of these findings are discussed, with suggestions for future research

The Formation of Employee Retention Basing on Computer Communication Networks

Thanks to the big data, the information storm is changing our life, including not only the job environment but also the thinking paths. We cannot live without computer communication networks. It has opened major generational transformations, innovations on the thinking mode, as well as great business and management reforms. In view of the new generation staff, embraced in the computer communication networks, paying more attention to their career management, this study discusses their employee retention basing on the organizational effectiveness, which includes organizational career management and organizational support. It demonstrates that the new generation staff’s perception of organization career management reaches the middle level. Moreover, considering the impact of the organizational support, the organizational career management strengthens the positive effect on the employee retention. In addition, this study puts forward some suggestions, such as establishing a fair promotion system, improving vocational awareness, creating supportive work environment, building learning organizations and so on.

The gap between career management expectations and reality – empirical insights from the IT industry

The Information Technology (IT) industry has become an important economic factor in many Western countries, but it is well known for suffering from skills shortages and high turnover rates. Organizational career management (OCM) may help to attract new talent and reduce IT turnover by satisfying individuals’ career needs. However, to date, little is known about what, exactly, IT professionals expect in terms of career-related support, and whether their expectations match with what IT organizations provide. This paper reports on a quantitative study that investigated what 1686 IT professionals in Switzerland, Germany and the UK expected and what their employers provided in terms of OCM. Findings indicate that there are substantial mismatches between OCM ‘supply’ and ‘demand’. The paper makes an important contribution by providing a more in-depth understanding of IT professionals’ OCM preferences, leading to various practical implications for IT organizations and beyond.

Managing Careers in Organizations

Firms’ organizational structures impose constraints on their ability to use promotion-based incentives. We develop a framework for identifying these constraints and exploring their consequences. We show that firms manage workers’ careers by choosing personnel policies that resemble an internal labor market. Firms may adopt forced turnover policies to keep lines of advancement open, and they may alter their organizational structures to relax these constraints. This gives rise to a trade-off between incentive provision at the worker level and productive efficiency at the firm level. Our framework generates novel testable implications that connect firm-level characteristics with workers’ careers.