Why Coffee Machine Chats and Laundry Time Matter: Investigating Opportunities and Challenges of Different Work Arrangements

• Main Authors: Olender, Natalia, Römer, Larissa Sophie
• Format: Other/Unknown Material
• Language: English
• Published: Lunds universitet/Företagsekonomiska institutionen 2023
• Subjects: Opportunities; Challenges; Work-life Interdependency; Work Arrangements; Physical In-office Work; Hybrid Work; Remote Work; Employees; Employers; Business and Economics; Iceland
• Online Access: http://lup.lub.lu.se/student-papers/record/9129127

The subject of this thesis is based on a qualitative research study to examine the opportunities and challenges of the three work arrangements, physical in-office work, hybrid work, and remote work, as perceived by employees. Additionally, the perceived impact of those work arrangements on work-life interdependency is explored. As researchers, we have little prior knowledge about how employees perceive different work arrangements and aim for an improved understanding. Studies have shown that different work arrangements pose opportunities and challenges, as discussed in Chapter 2. However, the way employees perceive different work arrangements and the effects on their work-life interdependency remain less understood. We identified a gap in research that we aim to fill. Our findings will be valuable to employees and employers, delivering a connecting point for further research and potentially uncovering practical solutions. The literature reviews deals with the different work arrangements and provides a theoretical base for our empirical part. It further points out the controversial nature of the topic. The data was collected by conducting seven focus group interviews involving five employees from distinct companies based in Denmark, Germany, Iceland, and Sweden. The study’s findings suggest that employees perceive different opportunities and challenges when experiencing different work arrangements. Additionally, the findings emphasise that the employees’ perception depends on the employees’ situation. What is perceived as an opportunity for one employee can be perceived as a challenge by another. Further, we are aware of differences specific to the industry, company size, and culture. Still, we identified some common themes and patterns among the employees across the different companies and further gained additional insights into the managerial perspective. With this study, we believe we can provide insights into employees’ opportunities and challenges with different work arrangements and their preferences, ...