Quality in Modern Nordic Working Life—Investigating Three Related Research Perspectives and Their Possible Cross-Fertilization

Nordic working life balance is important in the context of a highly developed welfare state, budget collaboration between the State and municipalities, and a unified labor movement. In working life studies, various research perspectives create meaning around and propose solutions for the many quality issues of modern working life. Welfare research, working environment research, and human resource management (HRM) research attack the multiple challenges of working life in different ways and share the overall objective of solving issues in modern working life. Research from the three perspectives, however, tends to compartmentalize life spheres. They conceptualize the modern working person as an individual, employee, or citizen, neglecting the complexity of lived life where all three spheres blur together, which possibly reflects the difficulty of making modern work life function well. This article is based on a structured literature review of the three main research perspectives (welfare, working environment, and HRM). We review existing international research, observing where the three perspectives show overlaps and identify 24 studies which cross-fertilize in the sense that two or more of the perspectives are applied at the same time in the same study. Our results show that while the perspectives share a common interest in solving the problems of the overlapping working life (OWL), they do so with different methods and criteria for success, and offer different solutions. We propose the concept “OWL” to analyze how working life studies create meaning around quality issues of modern working life. OWL’s main focus is the multiple challenges faced by working people who are simultaneously individuals, citizens, and employees. We arrive at two main cross-disciplinary themes: boundary and quality. The boundary theme reflects an approach to solving the issues of modern working life through improvements of the working life balance. The quality theme reflects an approach to solving issues in modern working life by addressing quality of work, preventing stress, burnout, etc. The review only finds three studies which try to encompass all three life spheres (employee, citizen, and employee), and even when the research perspectives are cross-fertilized, knowledge of possible effects of cross-fertilization is sparse. We propose further research in initiatives aiming at improving the complementing and supplementing of the three perspectives especially with regard to facilitation of families with small children, an intensified focus on inclusive workplaces, and a higher degree of correlation between HRM, working environment, and welfare policies

HRM: ledelse af virksomhedens menneskelige ressourcer – Aktuel status over forskning og praksis samt et kig ind i fremtiden

Denne artikel analyserer begrebet Human Resource Management (HRM), der kan betragtes som paraply for ledelse af menneskelige ressourcer i virksomheder. Indledningsvis defineres HRM-begrebet, og dets historiske rødder blotlægges. Derefter identificeres de vigtigste udfordringer, som HRM står over for, og der tegnes et billede af, hvordan ledelse af menneskelige ressourcer kan tænkes at udfolde sig i de kommende 5-10 år. Artiklen er som udgangspunkt forskningsbaseret, men den teoretiske analyse af HRM-begrebet suppleres af dels undersøgelsesresultater vedr. HRM-strategi og -praksis i Danmark, dels eksempler fra danske virksomheder.The concept is analysed of Human Resource Management (HRM), which can be viewed as an umbrella phrase for the management of human resources in enterprises. It defines the HRM concept and takes a retrospective look at its historical roots. The most serious challenges faced by HRM are identified, and it is outlined how the management of human resources will conceivably develop in the next ten to fifteen years. The article is mainly research-based; however, the theoretical analysis of the HRM concept is supplemented by both research findings on HRM strategy and practice in Denmark, including examples from Danish enterprises

31 værktøjer til den værdiskabende leder

Denne bog er en praktikerguide og værktøjskasse med 31 værk-tøjer, så der er ét værktøj til hver dag i måneden! Ingen værktøjer præsenteres imidlertid, uden at det bagvedliggende dilemma, som værktøjet skal tjene til at håndtere, er blevet foldet ud. Vi forsøger på den måde at undgå, at læseren med rette kan spørge: ”Svaret er åbenbart værktøj XX eller YY, men hvad var spørgsmålet?”. Værktøjerne suppleres af et antal ”tankevækkere”, der i ordets bedste forstand vækker tankerne, for det er citater, facts og mini-cases, som nogle gange stryger værktøjet med hårene og andre gange giver et kritisk smæk med halen! Det er i samspillet mellem med- og modvind, at værktøjerne og deres dilemmaforståelse kan raffineres og oversættes til praktisk brug.Bogen er et resultat af projektet ”Ledelses-GPS til en ny tid: Fra komfortzone til konkurrencekraft”, som gennemføres i et tæt sam-arbejde mellem Copenhagen Business School, Aalborg Univer-sitet, Syddansk Universitet og NOCA. Projektet, der har modtaget en bevilling på 2,1 mio. kroner i kølvandet på Industriens Fonds temaindkaldelse om nye ledelsesprincipper, indebærer, at der efter en kortlægning af faglitteraturen om ledelsesdilemmaer blev skrevet en hvidbog herom og efterfølgende iværksat udviklings-projekter i elleve virksomheder, der afprøvede og producerede ny viden om dilemmaledelse i praksis. På basis af disse innovative interventionsforløb i virksomhederne er produceret denne praktikerguide og værktøjskasse, der kan skærpe virksomheders kompetence med hensyn til at håndtere vigtige ledelsesdilemmaer – og ultimativt føre til styrket konkur-renceevne i erhvervslivet og den offentlige sektor. Bogen efterføl-ges af en tematiserende debatbog, der sammenfatter projektets forløb og resultater. Den centrale målgruppe for bogen er ledere i private og offent-lige virksomheder. Hensigten er, at bogen kan inspirere ledere, HR-funktioner, ledelseskonsulenter, uddannelsesinstitutioner og reflekterende praktikere i almindelighed – og munde ud i en mere reflekteret håndtering af ledelsesdilemmaer i virksomhederne.Konsortiet bag projektet (CBS, SDU, AAU og NOCA) består af: Signe Vikkelsø, Henrik Holt Larsen, Mette Mogensen, Frans Bévort, Rikke Kr. Nielsen, Thomas Duus Henriksen, Anne-Mette Hjalager, Per Geisler Hansen, Jørgen Andersen og Danielle Bjerre Lyndgaard (associeret, DI Dansk Industri)

European developments in public sector human resource management

This paper discusses national differences in HRM within the public sector in nine European countties. Drawing on data from the PW Cranfeld Survey of International Human Resource Management we examine the decentralisation of HR policy decisions and trends in the devolvement to line management of responsibility for human resource management. In particular we looked at trends in the compensation area, ie pay determination and merit/ performance related pay and its impact on performance appraisal.School of Managemen