Filed under: Employee Communication, Employee Development, Employee Engagement, Employee Retention
According to recent research from Gallup, 70% of US workers say that their jobs are ideal. As you might expect, this percentage is higher for those with more education, those making more money, and for professionals (as opposed to service workers). The likelihood of having an ideal job also increases with age.
Gallup does not provide a historical comparison in the article posted on their website. But I have to believe this has increased – if not in the past few years, certainly when taking a longer term perspective. And on the eve of SIOP’s 25th anniversary, I like to believe that the contributions of Industrial and Organizational Psychologists have played a key part in this improvement in person-job fit.
- Accessibility of career decision tools and processes increase the chances that individuals have carefully chosen the their career path based on values, interests and abilities.
- Effective employee selection processes that include job analysis, valid testing and structured interviews increase the likelihood an employee will have the skills needed to be successful.
- Widespread implementation of employee engagement programs have helped employers remove common barriers to success on the job.
- Recognition of the negative impact of stress, incivility, and discrimination on organizational performance has led to a focus on eliminating these from the workforce.
- Research on the importance of performance feedback has improved the ways in which managers provide feedback to their employees.
- Better processes for talent identification and leadership development have helped organizations better recognize individual potential and support employee growth in the workplace.
There’s still work to be done. The differences that Gallup found between ethnic groups, income, and education levels make it clear that not all employees are benefiting equally from advances in the workplace. Yet we’ve come a long way since the days of Taylorism and Scientific Management. What will we accomplish in the next 25 years?
Anna Erickson Ph. D. | Director, Consulting Services
2 Comments so far
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Nice piece! I agree, I/O Psychology has made some substantive contributions (but I’m not biased). I hope to see more emphasis in the next 25 years on the importance of fit. It seems that recently, and perhaps even more so during the recession, that fit has seemed to go out the window in favor of blanket policies and practices. We need to get back to the notion of fit, tailoring, customization, and the like to ensure that we maximize the effectiveness of workplace initiatives and business strategies.
Comment by Matt Grawitch March 8, 2010 @ 8:00 pmThanks Matt. I think you’re right. I also think that I/O psychology missed an opportunity when – during the years of low unemployment – many corporations shifted focus from selection to recruiting. That is, we missed opportunities to make a bigger impact on the recruiting process. I guess time will tell what the next 25 years will bring.
Comment by Questar March 20, 2010 @ 12:20 am