This article was published on the Brandman University blog.
For some people work is something they simply have to do, for others it may be their motivations to wake up in the morning. Wherever on the spectrum an employee resides, at some point during the natural cycles of life, both personally and professionally, there will be times when their fire may fade. Fight to bring back the blaze with these tips on how to beat burnout at work.
This article was published on the Brandman University blog.
The popularity of offering flextime programs to employees is skyrocketing among modern companies in efforts to encourage a healthy balance between work and life commitments. Although it seems like an ideal concept for many busy professionals who have to drop their kids off at daycare or school before work, a new study reveals that it may present the biggest morning work mistake for the career conscious.
Traditionally research shows that in general, flexible work practices lead to increased productivity, higher job satisfaction and decreased turnover intentions. Despite this positive feedback for human resources to consider, there is still an air of uncertainty of whether employees who take advantage of these options incur career penalties for doing so. Lisa M. Leslie at the University of Minnesota along with fellow scholars reported in a recent paper featured in the Academy of Management Journal that the results are mixed and primarily rely on supervisors’ perceptions.
Taking the findings a step further, researchers at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business recently revealed that a type of morning bias can negatively impact employees. According to their findings bosses may be unconsciously judging their employees when they give themselves later start times, regardless of how much work they are getting done during work designated hours.
The hypothesis was based on the importance of in which direction an employee shifts hours based on the premise that people seem to have a tendency to celebrate early risers. The concept is written in historic phrases and everyday language such as:
The question that was posed was simply if in the eyes of managers with power over careers, are employees who choose later start times stereotyped as less conscientious, and given poorer performance evaluations on average? The researchers did confirm this stereotype on average after implementing a laboratory experiment that involved natural reactions to related words such as “sunrise” and “sunset.”
With the stereotype solidified the researchers went on to explore its impact in actual work settings and on ratings provided by actual supervisors. The hypothesis was supported by hard evidence. Across nearly 150 employee-supervisor relationships, they found that employees who started work earlier in the day had higher conscientious and performance ratings by their leadership.
Like many professors, the researchers had to conduct another laboratory experiment to test the hypothesis in a more tightly controlled setting which included the following details:
“We put participants in the role of being a supervisor, and asked them to rate the performance of a fictitious employee. We gave a performance profile to the supervisors, which was constant across everyone. However, in the “morning” condition we indicated that the fictional employee tended to work from 7am to 3pm, and in the “evening” condition we indicated that the fictional employee tended to work from 11am to 7pm. Everything else about the fictional employee and performance profile was identical across the conditions. Across 141 participants, we found that the research participants gave higher ratings of conscientiousness and performance to the 7am-3pm employees than to the 11am-7pm employees.”
The results clearly found evidence of the natural “early bird” stereotype in the workplace concluding that, “compared to people who choose to work earlier in the day, people who choose to work later in the day are implicitly assumed to be less conscientious and less effective in their jobs.” Interestingly enough an additional finding was also revealed. In both the field study and the lab experiment, the effects were strongest for employees who had supervisors that were early risers themselves, and disappeared for employees who had supervisors who were night owls.
Considering the popularity of flextime policies the fallout of this morning work mistake were considerable.
This vicious cycle can be avoided if organizational leaders and human resource managers work together, and if done correctly the original positive workplace findings of many previous studies will be achieved. Similar to other common unintentional but proven bias, the advice is to increase awareness of this tendency to stereotype and why it is invalid. Employees may also want to actively engage with their superiors to ensure they understand the reasons for their adjusted work schedule.
Researchers Chris Barnes, Kai Chi Yam and Ryan Fehr presented a preview of these findings in the Harvard Business Review.
This article was published on the Brandman University blog.
With all of the commitments that we have in our day-to-day schedules it is often easy to become stressed out. Of course no one likes to be hit with the anxiety and pressure that ensues, but what many people don’t realize is just how important stress management can be to living a long and healthy life. Continue reading
This article was published on the UMass Global blog.
The concept of balancing work and life has often been described as a myth itself, when in fact it has the potential to be the truth that will set you free. A few years ago when Entourage was all the rage, and pulled us into the life of talent agent Ari Gold in Hollywood we learned a valuable lesson – work can take over your life. I’m sure many of us didn’t need the entertainment industry to tell us that though, we understand that truth just fine. Continue reading
This article was published on the UMass Global blog.
Entrepreneurs exist in every arena, from corporate america to political circles, consumer electronics and beyond, there are lessons out there that can help you build your own business. We take a look at those that came straight from the lips of some of the greatest influencers of our time to inspire new college grads to go forth and change the world.
This article was published on the UMass Global blog.
After the handshake snapshots and cheers have commenced the next few steps you take off the stage are filled with feelings of accomplishment and hope for the future. Continue reading
This article was published on the UMass Global blog.
Now that the caps have flown and tassels have been hung beside the diploma with care, it’s time to enjoy the reward of achieving your dreams. Take that well deserved break and relax with a quick trip, or relive the triumph with a great adventure. Continue reading
This article was published on the Brandman University blog.
Every great accomplishment deserves a great celebration. Graduation season creates some of the most memorable moments for us, our friends, family and supporters, so get them all together this season to relish in the feeling of achievement. To help you throw a stellar party without the stress of doing so, here are a few planning tips for new grads. Continue reading
This article was published on the Brandman University blog.
The world of health care would not be able to survive without the critical contributions of hard working nurses. Their purpose is to provide quality care to those in need by promoting health, preventing disease and helping patients cope with illness. As educators of future leaders in the field, we celebrate new graduates of nursing programs by highlighting the top career paths for their futures.
This article was published on the Brandman University blog.
Many organizations that practice corporate wellness strategies encourage their employees to pursue certificate courses, workshops or seminars with the goal of fostering individual and overall success. This past week we’ve kicked off graduation season by highlighting the top career paths in a variety of fields including business, psychology and liberal arts, nursing and education. To help our students and long-time professionals plan ahead, we’ve put together a list of continuing education opportunities to help them keep up with evolving workforce demands.
As we move forward into the future, let’s take some time to reflect upon our successes and set new goals to achieve. Whatever position or industry you are in there are professional development options are out there to help you always perform your best. Here are a few to consider:
All organizations have leadership and management structures naturally built into their systems that are designed to drive individual and overall prosperity. Many schools provide extended studies programs that help people develop the skills needed to become visionaries in their fields. Project managers for example may consider taking courses to refine the facilitation of different processes that are vital to deliver final results. Most programs are available year around online to allow professionals to study at their own pace and apply principles to their current job.
The top educational institutions that provide such programs have developed extensive networks and relationships with associations in the industry to ensure curriculum aligns with workforce needs. Brandman University is one that provides exam preparation courses and certificates to human resources professionals by working directly with the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and Professionals In Human Resources Association (PIHRA). This seamless connection makes sure that students’ professional careers are enriched with cutting edge concepts for application.
The field of education is one that often requires specific credentials in order to move up in a school, district or related environment. Continuing education programs in this case are generally standard, and educators have an added benefit of often attaining academic credit for their development classes. A single course on Preventing Bullying in the Classroom for instance may help seasoned professionals analyze the issues involved with school bullying and teach them how to create a prevention plan for their learning environments. And the best part is that students generally don’t need to go through the process of formally applying to a university in order to take the single class, which makes it simple.
There are also more broad options that teachers and education leaders can pursue such as Advanced Strategies for Professional Development, which helps develop and deliver standard and custom courses to support professionals, schools, districts and organizations. Common core is one of the hottest topics in the industry right now and some colleges and universities offer chances to study the concepts to help prepare teachers for the future. Other opportunities in this area include courses for administrators and instructional designers that are intended to enhance local public and private school communities.
We’ve explored just how interconnected liberal arts and sciences degrees can be to various career opportunities and industries, which is why we have placed these two categories together in this post. For psychology grads who help counsel children and families in emotional challenges, programs that teach them to utilize artistic strategies with patients for emotional outlets may be extremely valuable. There are learning options for these amazing professionals through continuing education programs.
There are also programs for the dedicated registered nurses and physicians assistants out there who want to enrich their careers by contracting out their services in the legal realm. In a single online class health care professionals can learn the fundamental skills needed to advise law firms, industry providers, insurance companies and governmental agencies regarding medically related issues. They may even appear in court settings and serve as expert witnesses to specialized topics. It is important to note, that individuals looking for a legal nurse consultant training course should do their research to make sure their selection is approved for professional development by the state boards.
Continuing education divisions are some of the most flexible and innovative segments within formal academic institutions. Brandman University’s School of Extended Education actually offers custom programming on site at organizations headquarters and offices to provide solutions that are specific to their strategic goals and workforce needs. Check with your preferred education provider to find out if they make similar options available to you and your company then dig deeper by researching courses and programs that can help you move forward along your career path.
