CAREER DEVELOPMENT WRITTEN BY:PURITY OWINO.

 

CAREER DEVELOPMENT

 

 

Abstract

Work life balance is an important topic in human resource management, impacting employee management practices and organizational competitiveness. However, the relationship between Work Life Balance and career development is less researched, which has informed this essay. this essay reviews the two major ways in which work life balance impacts career development of employees.

How Work Life balance promotes career development  

Work-life balance (WLB) has gained significant attention because workplaces are now more diverse, and individuals place substantial value on multiple dimensions of life. Consequently, impressive performance across all these domains contributes to happier and more fulfilled employees, with considerable knock-on effects. Moreover, research has revealed that WLB impacts several aspects of business firms and the personal lives of employees, including career development. WLB has significant influences on the career development pathways of employees through two major processes. This essay discusses how WLB promotes career development of employees.

 

First, the perceptions of work-life balance lead to a signaling process of care and equity from the organization to the employee. Consequently, as governed by social contract thinking and equity theory, employees who perceive strong and favorable work-life practices from organizations are likely to reciprocate in ways designed to attain equity in this exchange (Susanto et al., 2022). The equity theory and social exchange theory base on a comparison of exchanges between the employee and the organization, in which imbalances trigger corrective actions to restore parity. Perceptions of positive WLB by the employee are likely to create higher motivation among the employees. This may lead to higher psychological attachment to the organization, increased motivation to learn, increased problem-solving and knowledge sharing, positive organizational citizenship behavior, willingness to take on additional responsibilities, and higher productivity, among others (Amin, 2012). These behaviors increase the chances of the employee exceeding performance expectations, receiving additional responsibilities, and combining the corporate ladder, which are crucial markers of career development.

Secondly, WLB links strongly to higher employee and organizational performance, which in turn impacts the career development of employees positively. The spillover theory suggests that individuals are likely to carry the attitudes, skills, behaviors, and other values from one domain of life into another, leading to cross-impacts among them (Tamunomiebi & Oyibo, 2020). These spillovers may be positive or negative. In the context of WLB, perceptions of WLB lead to increased productivity in both domains (spillovers), where positive performance in the non-work domain leads to positive spillovers in the work domain. Consequently, the absence of role conflict in this situation leads to higher concentration for employees, promotes goal attainment (Amin, 2012), reduces distractions, limits stress, reduces turnover intentions, lateness, and absenteeism, and makes employees more willing to take on additional responsibilities and more challenging tasks (Rao, & Indla, 2010; Essandoh et al., 2023). These advantages place them in a prime position for career development and additional and more impactful responsibilities, among other elements that enhance career development.

In summary, WLB connects positively to career development through two principal pathways. One, the perception of positive WLB increases career development intentions, and second, WLB promotes employee performance and makes them more amenable to career progression. Business organizations should, therefore, prioritize WLB for their employees.

 

References

Amin, S. (2012). Does Work Life Balance Predict to Career Success? International journal on social science, economics & Art, 2(1) 48-52.

Essandoh, E., Kwao, I., Arthur, B., Asandom, D., & Boateng, E. (2023). Career Progression of Women: Does Work Life Balance Matter? ESI Preprints. https://doi.org/10.19044/esipreprint.6.2023.p222

Rao, T. S., & Indla, V. (2010). Work, family or personal life: Why not all three? Indian journal of psychiatry, 52(4), 295–297. https://doi.org/10.4103/0019-5545.74301

Susanto, P., Hoque, M., Jannat, T., Emely, B., Zona, M., & Islam, A. (2022). Work-Life Balance, Job Satisfaction, and Job Performance of SMEs Employees: The Moderating Role of Family-Supportive Supervisor Behaviors. Frontiers in psychology, 13:906876. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.906876

Tamunomiebi, M., & Oyibo, C. (2020). Work-Life Balance and Employee Performance: A Literature Review. European Journal of Business and Management Research, 5(2),1-9. http://dx.doi.org/10.24018/ejbmr.2020.5.2.196

Labels: Written by :Purity owino