„Whose interest matter prevail?“: The lived experience of managers and specialists of the effect of published application lists on applicants in governmental hiring

Birting umsækjendalista í opinberum ráðningum er umræðuefni sem heitar umræður skapast oft um. Grein þessi byggist á niðurstöðum úr rannsókn þar sem skoðuð var reynsla og upplifun stjórnenda og sérfræðinga á áhrifum birtingar lista yfir umsækjendur í opinberum ráðningum. Samkvæmt niðurstöðum rannsóknarinnar er ákveðinn fælingarmáttur fólginn í birtingunni. Tekin voru viðtöl við stjórnendur og sérfræðinga sem hafa reynslu af ráðningum og þekkingu á áhrifum birtingar umsækjendalista á umsækjendur í opinberum ráðningum. Leitast var við að öðlast frekari skilning á ferli opinberra ráðninga og hvort þessir sérfræðingar teldu að birtingin hefði fælingarmátt. Rannsóknargögnin voru túlkuð og greind samkvæmt fyrirbærafræðilegri aðferðafræði. Niðurstöður sýna fram á að þeir stjórnendur og sérfræðingar sem leitað var til í þessari rannsókn telja að fælingarmáttur í birtingu á umsækjendalistum í opinberum ráðningum sé afar mikill. Talið er að um 10-35% umsækjenda dragi umsókn sína til baka. Þetta getur haft mjög neikvæð áhrif á ráðningarferlið í heild. Nafnbirting getur því leitt til þess að hæfasti umsækjandinn sækir ekki um starfið. Í lokin gefa niðurstöður rannsóknarinnar einnig til kynna að kerfisbundin birting á listum yfir umsækjendur þarfnist endurskoðunar. Þannig má auka líkur á því að sá hæfasti verði ráðinn og að fagmennska ráði för í umsóknar- og ráðningarferli í opinberum ráðningum.In this study the researchers set out to gain insight into the experience and attitude of managers and specialists concerning display of applicant lists in governmental hiring. The study focused on whether publication of application lists would have repellent effect on applicants and consequently if public employees had the appropriate qualifications. Information was gathered with semi-structured interviews with managers in organizations, ministries, municipals and experts in recruitment and their experience on publication of applicant lists probed. The data were analyzed and interpreted according to phenomenological methodology. Highlights of the study are that publication of applicants have repellent effects and it is estimated that about 10-35% of applicants withdraw their application when it is clear that a disclosure will occur. The results indicate that the managers and specialists in this study believe that published application list in governmental hiring is very repellent for prospective applicants and that the publications cause them to withdraw their application. As the names of the applicants will be published, the applicants withdraw and as a result of that, the most qualified candidate for the job will not be hired. Therefore the employer will not get the most qualified applicant for the job. Finally, the results of this study indicate that systematic publication of the application lists need to be re-examined in order to increase the possibility that the best and most qualified candidate will be hired and professionalism will prevail in the application and hiring process in governmental hiring.Peer Reviewe

The lived experience of women in middle management; the barriers and opportunities for career advancement

Hægt gengur að jafna stöðu kynjanna í efstu stjórnunarþrepum fyrirtækja á Íslandi. Í rannsókninni er sjónum beint að konum sem gegna stöðum millistjórnenda í stórum eða meðalstórum fyrirtækjum og eru því í hópi mögulegra yfirstjórnenda framtíðarinnar. Markmið rannsóknarinnar er að öðlast skilning á upplifun og reynslu kvennanna af stöðu sinni, hindrunum og möguleikum til starfsþróunar. Viðtöl við þær voru greind og túlkuð eftir aðferðum fyrirbærafræðinnar. Helstu niðurstöður benda til þess að flókinn vefur óáþreifanlegra hindrana sé til staðar í formi karllægrar menningar, viðhorfa, formgerða fyrirtækja sem og langlífra staðalímynda. Konurnar upplifa efsta stjórnunarlagið sem lokaða karlaklíku; yfirstjórnendastörfin sem sniðin að þörfum og aðstæðum karlmanna og að þær geti ekki bætt á sig frekari ábyrgð; vinnusemi og vandvirkni þeirra finnst þeim ekki metin að verðleikum og loks máta þær sig í hlutverk yfirstjórnandans og áfellast sjálfar sig fyrir að falla ekki að staðalímyndinni. Í sameiningu draga þessir þættir úr sjálfstrausti kvennanna og þrótti til að sækjast eftir hærri stöðum ásamt því að valda þeim álagi og um leið viðhalda raunverulegum vanda ójafnréttis kynjanna í æðstu stjórnendastöðum fyrirtækjanna.Despite Iceland’s excellent performance on many gender equality measures, its ratio of women in top-management positions is improving very slowly. This research focuses on women who hold middle management positions in some of the largest organizations in Iceland, women who could be in line for top-management positions. It aims to understand the lived experiences of these women, the barriers, and opportunities for career development. In-depth interviews with eleven women were analyzed and interpreted according to phenomenological methodology. Findings reveal that the women feel they face insurmountable barriers on their way up the corporate ladder. They experience top-management as a closed Old Boys’ Club; top management jobs as tailored for men, requiring them to take on unbearable responsibilities; their diligence as unappreciated; and finally, they compare and contrast themselves with the stereotypical male-executive and blame themselves for not fitting the stereotype. These combined factors undermine the women’s self-confidence and ambition even further and thus maintain and reinforce the gender-imbalance in top management.Peer Reviewe

„Orðin laðast að henni / eins og skortur“: Um fyrsta hluta ljóðabókarinnar Við sem erum blind og nafnlaus

Ljóðabók Öldu Bjarkar Valdimarsdóttur, Við sem erum blind og nafnlaus, kom út árið 2015. Í fyrsta hluta hennar, sem ber heitið „Farvegir táknanna“, er hugmynda-grundvöllur verksins alls lagður í fimm ljóðum. Þau eru greind hér með nálestri en fræðiefni sótt í ýmsar áttir, til hugrænnar bókmenntafræði, heimspeki, sálfræði, félagsvísinda og rannsókna í taugafræði. Sjónum er beint að því hvernig ljóðin kynda undir ímyndunarafli lesenda og ýfa tilfinningar þeirra; rætt er um (hugtaks)líkingar, íróníu, þversögn, rúmfræðiform, upptalningu, húmor, íróníu og klifun en þó ekki síst þögnina sem er einatt yrkisefni Öldu jafnframt því sem hún markar formgerð ljóða hennar á ýmsan hátt. Með greiningunni er sýnt hvernig Alda fær lesendur til að hugsa um „farveg táknanna“ bæði í þröngu og víðu samhengi. Hún leiðir huga þeirra ekki aðeins að þversagnakenndu samspili þagnar og tákna – og þar með djúprættri þörf mannsins fyrir hvorttveggja að þegja og tala – heldur líka að stöðu konunnar í fjölskyldunni/mannkynssögunni og ágangi mannsins á umhverfi sitt. Með ísmeygilegum húmor eða íróníu sýnir Alda Björk hversu rænulausir menn eru oft andspænis táknunum; hvernig þeir gefa sig þeim á vald umhugsunarlaust, þó að þeir eigi kost á öðru; hvernig fólk leggur sitt til að táknin einangri í stað þess að þau tengi mann við mann – og hvernig það misbeitir þögninni eða kann ekki að nýta sér hana.Alda Björk Valdimarsdóttir’s book of poetry, We Who Are Blind and Nameless, was published in 2015. The first part of the book, titled „The course of signs“, lays the groundwork for the conceptual basis of the work through five poems. These five poems will be examined through close reading and scholarly materials from various sources, such as cognitive literary studies, philosophy, psychology, social studies and neurological research. There is particular focus on how the poems stimulate the imagination of readers and ruffle their feelings; there is a discussion on (conceptual) metaphors, irony, humor, paradox, geometrical shapes, enumeration, anaphora and, not least, silence which is a common theme in Alda’s poetry and also defines the structure of her poems in various ways. This analysis shows how Alda convinces readers to think about the „course of signs“ in both a narrow and wider context. She not only causes readers to think about the paradoxical interplay of silence and signs – and thus man’s ingrained need to both speak and be silent – but also woman’s position within her family/world history and the encroachment of man upon his own environment. Through clever humour and irony, Alda Björk shows how apathetic people often are when faced with signs; how without thinking they give themselves over to them, even though they have other options; how people contribute for the signs to be isolating instead of connecting us with each other – and how they misuse silence or are not able to make use of it.Peer Reviewe

„Veggurinn er alltaf til staðar“: Upplifun háskólamenntaðra innflytjenda af samskiptum og samningsstöðu gagnvart vinnuveitendum

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Markmið þessarar rannsóknar var að veita innsýn í og skilja hvernig háskólamenntaðir innflytjendur á íslenskum vinnumarkaði upplifa samningsstöðu sína og samskipti við vinnuveitanda sinn. Tekin voru tólf viðtöl við háskólamenntaða innflytjendur, níu konur og þrjá karla á aldrinum 32-48 ára, sem hafa búið á Íslandi í 2 til 14 ár. Meirihluti þátttakenda hafði töluverða starfsreynslu í heimalandi sínu og nokkrir höfðu unnið og búið í löndum utan heimalands síns áður en þeir fluttu til Íslands. Helstu niðurstöður voru þær að viðmælendurnir upplifðu að samingsstaða þeirra væri veik því skortur á færni í íslensku takmarkaði starfsmöguleika þeirra og aðgengi að tengslaneti og félagsauði. Einnig upplifðu þeir að þeir væru sífellt að rekast á vegg þegar þeir leituðu réttar síns og að það að vera útlendingur væri um margt smánarblettur sem kæmi í veg fyrir að þeir yrðu fullgildir meðlimir í tengslanetinu og að framlag þeirra og menntun yrði metin að verðleikum. Þar að auki upplifðu innflytjendurnir að þeir þyrftu sífellt að vera að sanna sig í starfi þar sem vinnuveitandinn vantreysti þeim og gerði lítið úr hæfni þeirra. Að lokum fannst þeim að þeir þyrftu að sýna þakklæti fyrir að vera starfsmenn á íslenskum vinnumarkaði, sem enn fremur gerir lítið úr framlagi, þekkingu, reynslu og menntun innflytjendanna.The objective of this research was to provide an insight into and understanding of the lived experience of immigrants with a university degree working in the Icelandic labor market, focusing on their communication and negotiation position vis-à-vis their employer. Twelve interviews were conducted with immigrants with university degree, nine female and three male from 32-48 years old, who have lived in Iceland from 2-14 years. The majority of the interviewees had considerable work experience in their native country and a few had lived and worked in other countries as well before they moved to Iceland. The main results indicate that the interviewees experience a weak negotiating position because their lack of Icelandic language skills limits their job opportunities and access to a network and social capital. They experienced exclusion from their coworkers and that being a foreigner carried a stigma that prevented them from being accepted members in the network and also prevented that their contribution and education would be accepted. In addition, the immigrants felt that they constantly needed to prove themselves because their employer distrusted them and devalued their skills. Finally, they felt that they were required to be thankful for being employed in the Icelandic labor market, belittling their contribution, knowledge, experience and education.Peer Reviewe

„Stundum finnst mér þeir horfa á mig eins og ég sé geimvera“: Upplifun flóttakvenna í litlu bæjarfélagi á Íslandi

Rannsóknin sem þessi grein byggir á fjallar um reynslu og upplifun flóttakvenna sem voru nauðbeygðar til að yfirgefa heimili sín, búa í flóttamannabúðum og flytja í lítið bæjarfélag á Íslandi. Rannsóknin varpar ljósi á hvernig konurnar upplifðu sig eftir miklar hremmingar í eigin landi, velgengni þeirra og erfiðleika við að hefja nýtt líf á Íslandi. Tekin voru hálfopin viðtöl til að skoða reynslu þessara flóttakvenna og upplifun þeirra af því að aðlagast nýju landi. Fjögur þemu spruttu upp úr gögnunum: Móttækileiki nærsamfélagsins, að læra íslensku, kynjahlutverk hér og þar og félagsleg tengsl. Helstu niðurstöður eru að aðlögun kvennanna að samfélaginu var erfið þar sem samskiptin milli þeirra og innfæddra voru takmörkuð og konunum fannst lítill áhugi meðal innfæddra á að kynnast þeim. Nánari greining á þessum þemum leiddi í ljós að þrátt fyrir að hafa fundið öryggi í bæjarfélaginu og myndað þar tengsl við aðrar flóttakonur auk nokkurra annarra einstaklinga, sem gerði þeim kleift að líða eins og þær tilheyri staðnum, var þátttaka þeirra minni en þær óskuðu sér og þeim fannst þær vera einangraðar frá íslensku samfélagi.The study discussed in this article examines the experiences of a small group of women who came to Iceland as quota refugees. They had been forced to leave their homes and had lived in refugee camps, before they were resettled in a small town in Iceland. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to explore their lived experiences of adaptation of integration in their new home, after experiencing years of hardship in country of origin. Four main themes emerged from this study: Receptivity of receiving society, learning Icelandic, gender roles here and there and social ties. The main results indicate that the integration process was difficult; that communication between the women and natives was limited and that the natives did not show much interest in getting to know the women. A more detailed analysis revealed that although the women had found security in the town and had become friends with other refugees and a few other individuals, which made them feel a sense of belonging, they felt isolated from Icelandic society.Peer Reviewe

Lithuanian Temporary Workers in Iceland in Another Economic Boom: Expectations and Experiences

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Economic changes and a booming tourism industry in Iceland have triggered a rise in temporary workforce, where employees are brought to Iceland from Eastern Europe and other less economically developed countries. Major societal and economic shifts are evidenced by a doubled number of temporary staffing agencies and a ten-fold increase in foreign temporary agency workers. However, limited research exists regarding the phenomenon. Furthermore, the expectations of temporary work force in Iceland have not been researched. The study employed field survey methods to investigate pre-Arrival expectations and post-Arrival experiences of temporary agency workers regarding temporary agencies and Icelandic society. The findings indicate that the employees had relatively high expectations towards the temporary staffing agency and Icelandic society before arriving in Iceland. However, the findings also indicated unmet expectations in these respects. The study provides empirical data that serves as catalyst for both expectation management and better integration of foreign temporary workforce.Peer Reviewe

To Be Accountable While Showing Care: The Lived Experience of People in a Servant Leadership Organization

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)Many organizations attribute their success to the use of servant leadership. However, very few studies have been conducted with the emphasis of understanding what it is like for people to work in servant leadership organizations and how it is practiced. Thus, in-depth interviews were conducted and an observation was performed to explore the lived experience of people, both employees and managers, who work within the business sector where servant leadership has been practiced for decades. Two main themes (and a set of subthemes) emerged from the study: “Accountability as an integral part of the practice of servant leadership” and “People show care and help each other out at work.” During a period with new challenges, the balance between the dimensions of “serving” and “leading” became prominent. The findings indicate that both dimensions are important for the prosperity of the organization, although participants experience the “lead” dimension of servant leadership being practiced more than the “serve” dimension. This is important, as much of current thought considers servant leadership to focus more on the “serve” dimension, and thereby to be soft.Peer Reviewe

„eins og að reyna að æpa í draumi“: Inngangur að þema

Publisher's version (útgefin grein

“It’s a Man Who Runs the Show”: How Women Middle-Managers Experience Their Professional Position, Opportunities, and Barriers

The ratio of women in top-management positions is improving very slowly, even in countries scoring high on gender equality like Iceland. Despite over three decades of research having documented the barriers faced by women seeking top-management positions, understanding is still lacking as to why women are not overcoming these barriers at a greater rate. This study presents the lived experiences of women in middle-management positions in some of the largest organizations in Iceland, aiming to understand how the women experience the barriers and opportunities they face. It is important to give voice to these women as they are the ones who could be in line for top-management positions. Interviews with 11 women were analyzed and interpreted according to phenomenological methodology, revealing four themes. Findings show that the women experience top management as a network that is closed to them. Top-management jobs appear tailored for men and would require the women to take on unbearable responsibilities. They experience their hard work and diligence as unappreciated. Finally, they compare and contrast themselves with the stereotype of the male executive and blame themselves for not fitting the role. Thus, they feel pressured to adapt to the masculine gender role if they are to stand a chance of a top-management position. Not fitting this role further undermines their self-confidence and ambition, rendering them less likely to seek advancement.Peer Reviewe

Here to stay? The rapid evolution of the temporary staffing market in Iceland

In recent years there has been a significant shortage of workers in Iceland. The traditional method of arranging temporary work, through direct contracts between employees and employers, has not sufficed. Moreover, there is a skills mismatch that compounds the shortage of workers as the sectors that have grown most rapidly in recent years mainly employ unskilled labor. This study examined the historical background of temporary work in Iceland, recent developments and in particular the growing importance of temporary staffing agencies, as well as the economic rationale for temporary staffing agencies, and the segmented labor market in Iceland. The study employs expert opinion approach, together with content and statistical analysis. Experts placed strongest emphasis on temporary workforce dependency on economic conditions, closely followed by sector triggered temporary workforce fluctuation. Socio-legal infrastructure for temporary workforce had the third strongest emphasis with other themes being less emphasized. These dramatic changes to the Icelandic labor market have undoubtedly had a significant impact on Icelandic society but there is surprisingly little research available into this. The efforts of unions and the Federation of Employees have helped to push through legislation on temporary staffing agencies and the rights of foreign workers, however, as long as there is economic rationale for their operation and a legal and regulatory framework that accommodates them the agencies can be expected to continue bringing temporary staff to Iceland. The impact on the labor market and society thus seems likely to be permanent.Peer Reviewe