A flexitime feasibility analysis model for production oriented organizations
Abstract : The objective of this thesis was to develop a flexitime feasibility analysis model for production oriented organizations. Current literature on flexitime was reviewed to give insight into the background and growth of the flexitime concept. Laws and regulations restricting full utilization of the flexitime system are examined and discussed, as well as the common fears and misconceptions of management, supervisors, and organized labor. Further clarification on analyzing the feasibility of flexitime was gained from interviews with administrators, managers, and employees in organizations utilizing flexitime. In those organizations where genuine employer - employee trust and cooperation abound, the authors noted that few difficulties were encountered in applying or administering the concept of flexitime. Flexitime is not a cure for poor management - labor relations. However, given an organization where progressive management techniques are in practice, flexitime can result in greater employee motivation and higher productivity. (Author)
A Longitudinal Study of Flexi-Time Effects: Some Consequences of an OD Structural Intervention
This study describes the implementation of a flexible work-hours program and analyzes some of its major effects, using both attitudinal and "hard" data. It thus both reports an unusual kind of OD intervention, i.e., a structural one, and discusses specific outcomes of a particular version of a design that is currently being widely applied, though typically on the basis of only anecdotal evidence and without the support of (OI) values and methods. The study yields a substantial optimism, but one rooted in caution: Both the "hard" and the "soft" data indicate that the structural intervention "worked," but the data do not tell us how much its obvious and persistent impact was the result of the intervention as a technique and how much it was a function of the culture of the host organization, which had been exposed to a range of activities based on OD values. The researchers believe that much of that impact derived from client acceptance of OD values, which found expression not only in the work-hours design itself but also in the dynamics of the implementation of that design. It is clear at least that Flexi-Time installations are intimately affected by the culture and values of organizations in which they are located. Hence the emphasis here on caution as well as optimism, inasmuch as definitive comparative research is not yet available.
Toward Building New Work Relationships: An Action Design for a Critical Intervention
This study has two central themes, both relevant to application of the behavioral sciences in "real-life situations." First, considerable psychological trauma can be generated by events such as the demotions reported here. Second, substantial evidence suggests that a learning design based on the laboratory approach can significantly moderate such trauma. Methodological problems prevent our assigning all observed effects to the learning design, but there is strong presumptive evidence that this action design is one way to apply in organizations the forces often observed in the development of the miniature societies that are T Groups.