Overload [electronic book] : how good jobs went bad and what we can do about it / Erin L. Kelly and Phyllis Moen.
By: Kelly, Erin L. (Erin Lee) [author]
.
Contributor(s): Moen, Phyllis [author].
Material type: 
BookPublisher: Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton University Press, [2020]Copyright date: ©2020Description: online resource (vii, 325 pages).Content type: text Media type: computer Carrier type: online resourceISBN: 9780691179179 (hardback); 9780691200033 (e-book).Subject(s): Quality of work life -- United States -- Case studies | Employees -- Workload -- United States -- Case studies | Work-life balance -- United States -- Case studies | Organizational change -- United States -- Case studiesDDC classification: 331.20973 Online resources: Access eBook Summary: "Contemporary ways of working are not working, even for professionals and managers in what used to be considered "good" jobs. Companies are responding to global competition and pressure from financial markets by adopting management practices and staffing strategies that push workers to do more and more with less and less. New technologies facilitate always-on availability, normalizing 24/7 job expectations. This new intensity spawns chronic stress in the form of overload - feelings of too much to do and too little time to do it. Kelly and Moen argue this way of working is both unhealthy and unsustainable. Employees burn out, quit, or lack the time or energy to bring their best contributions to their jobs. Organizations lose out along with individuals, families, and communities. This book moves beyond familiar tropes about 'work-life balance' to argue that the problem lies not in the effort to 'balance' but in the very nature of contemporary work. Overload harms workers of all genders, ages, and life stages as well as the bottom lines of corporations. What can be done? Kelly and Moen draw on five years of research, including a major field experiment, in a Fortune 500 firm to describe a new approach to making work more sane and sustainable. The initiative, called STAR, prompts imaginative yet feasible changes (or work redesigns) that improve employees' health, wellbeing, and ability to manage both their personal and their work lives. They find the firm also benefits through increased job satisfaction and reduced turnover"-- Provided by publisher.
| Item type | Current library | Call number | Status | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| eBook | MTU Online eBook | 331.20973 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) | Available |
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Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:
Why too much work and too little time is hurting workers and companies--and how a proven workplace redesign can benefit employees and the bottom line
Today's ways of working are not working--even for professionals in "good" jobs. Responding to global competition and pressure from financial markets, companies are asking employees to do more with less, even as new technologies normalize 24/7 job expectations. In Overload , Erin Kelly and Phyllis Moen document how this new intensification of work creates chronic stress, leading to burnout, attrition, and underperformance. "Flexible" work policies and corporate lip service about "work-life balance" don't come close to fixing the problem. But this unhealthy and unsustainable situation can be changed--and Overload shows how.
Drawing on five years of research, including hundreds of interviews with employees and managers, Kelly and Moen tell the story of a major experiment that they helped design and implement at a Fortune 500 firm. The company adopted creative and practical work redesigns that gave workers more control over how and where they worked and encouraged managers to evaluate performance in new ways. The result? Employees' health, well-being, and ability to manage their personal and work lives improved, while the company benefited from higher job satisfaction and lower turnover. And, as Kelly and Moen show, such changes can--and should--be made on a wide scale.
Complete with advice about ways that employees, managers, and corporate leaders can begin to question and fix one of today's most serious workplace problems, Overload is an inspiring account about how rethinking and redesigning work could transform our lives and companies.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
"Contemporary ways of working are not working, even for professionals and managers in what used to be considered "good" jobs. Companies are responding to global competition and pressure from financial markets by adopting management practices and staffing strategies that push workers to do more and more with less and less. New technologies facilitate always-on availability, normalizing 24/7 job expectations. This new intensity spawns chronic stress in the form of overload - feelings of too much to do and too little time to do it. Kelly and Moen argue this way of working is both unhealthy and unsustainable. Employees burn out, quit, or lack the time or energy to bring their best contributions to their jobs. Organizations lose out along with individuals, families, and communities. This book moves beyond familiar tropes about 'work-life balance' to argue that the problem lies not in the effort to 'balance' but in the very nature of contemporary work. Overload harms workers of all genders, ages, and life stages as well as the bottom lines of corporations. What can be done? Kelly and Moen draw on five years of research, including a major field experiment, in a Fortune 500 firm to describe a new approach to making work more sane and sustainable. The initiative, called STAR, prompts imaginative yet feasible changes (or work redesigns) that improve employees' health, wellbeing, and ability to manage both their personal and their work lives. They find the firm also benefits through increased job satisfaction and reduced turnover"-- Provided by publisher.
Electronic reproduction.: ProQuest LibCentral. Mode of access: World Wide Web.
Table of contents provided by Syndetics
- Part I The Problem
- Chapter 1 Old Rules, New Realities (p. 3)
- Chapter 2 Overload (p. 13)
- Chapter 3 How We Got Here and Why It Matters (p. 44)
- Part II A Potential Solution
- Chapter 4 Dual-Agenda Work Redesign: Understanding STAR, at TOMO (p. 77)
- Chapter 5 The Business Impacts of Work Redesign (p. 113)
- Chapter 6 Work Redesign Benefits for Health, Well-Being, and Personal Life (p. 146)
- Part III Looking Ahead
- Chapter 7 Two Steps Forward, One Step Back (p. 169)
- Chapter 8 Creating Sane and Sustainable Jobs (p. 193)
- Acknowledgments (p. 219)
- Appendix 1 Overview of Software Development Process and Jobs (p. 225)
- Appendix 2 Methodology and Reflections on Corporate Fieldwork (p. 227)
- Appendix 3 Ideas for Action (p. 247)
- Notes (p. 255)
- References (p. 295)
- Index (p. 315)