Drivers and consequences in transforming work practices

Abstract

As information revolution progresses at unprecedented pace, it has been predicted that the current paradigm of work established by industrial technology will be changing taking advantage of capabilities provided by information and communication technologies (ICT). Telecommuting is one of the most cited examples and fl exible time another one, brought up to our attention more than decades ago. With the rapid insurgence of smart devices connected to the Internet, the world imagined is now becoming reality. The working paradigm is undergoing tremendous changes as evidenced by proliferating new theories in different areas of business management. Though the work transformation has been expected and envisioned for a while, the world is facing serious challenges in identifying and adapting to the novel characteristics of new ways of working, along with unanticipated side effects.In this study, a systematic literature review of academic studies was conducted in order to identify constructs involved in realizing this new way of working incurred by ICT. Using keyword search related to work transformation such as telecommuting and fl extime, total 913 research articles were selected from academic databases. Initial content analysis of these 913 articles revealed 372 variables related to work transformation; 13 sessions of focus group by different panels of experts were conducted reviewing real meanings and context of these constructs, removing duplicates and grouping similar variables. As a result, total of 37 variables were fi nalized as critically related to the work transformation; 16 were found to be at the individual level, 15 at the organizational level, and 6 at the society level. These variables are framed into a series of relational diagrams depicting possible drivers and consequences of transforming work practices. Suggestions are made for the use of these frameworks, and implications are discussed with limitations.