New PhD scholarship on future work design in rare and undiagnosed diseases

Are you interested in researching transformative work design as a way to address challenges facing the child health care system?

We are seeking a PhD candidate with a background in organisational behaviour to join our highly collaborative research program on designing future work through an in-depth evaluation of staff's work practices, well-being and productivity.

Your role will make an impact in delivering the best outcomes for both staff and patients within the Clinical Centre of Expertise for Rare and Undiagnosed Diseases at Perth Children’s Hospital (the Rare Care Centre).

The full-time scholarship provides a salary stipend of $30,000 per annum (tax-exempt), up to a maximum of 3 years, with the possibility of a $10,000 stipend for PhD completion.

Preference will be given to those with a background in organisational psychology/organisational behaviour (or a closely related discipline), and with an interest in paediatric and/or child health care, transformative work design, and health systems research.

The successful candidate will be supervised by ARC Laureate Fellow Sharon K Parker, Director at Curtin University's Centre for Transformative Work Design and Professor Gareth Baynam, Director at the Rare Care Centre.

Domestic and international applicants are welcome.

For more information on eligibility criteria and how to apply, click here.

Learn more about the top 10 reasons why you should study your PhD at the Centre for Transformative Work Design (part of Future of Work Institute) by clicking here.

Q&A with Visiting Scholarship recipient Lioba Gierke

Meet Lioba, our most recent international visitor at the centre.

Lioba is a PhD student at WHU – Otto Beisheim School of Management (Chair of Leadership) under the supervision of Professor Dr Fabiola. H. Gerpott. In her research, she focuses on the interaction dynamics of leaders and followers in meetings.

She visited the centre for seven weeks as part of the CTWD Visiting Scholarship program to encourage collaboration with CTWD researchers and help advance work design research.

It was always fun to talk about research with her, according to our Research Fellow Dr Florian Klonek who closely collaborated with Lioba during her visit.

Her presence, and her enthusiasm to explore the Australian culture will be greatly missed.

Lioba generously answered some of our questions to learn more about her, her research and her experience in Perth:

⭐ Who did you work with? What did you work on?

I worked together with Dr. Florian Klonek on a paper in which we research entrainment processes in one-on-one meetings between leaders and followers in the workplace. ⭐ What are some of the highlights of your visit? What did you learn and what did you enjoy?

What I enjoyed most during my stay at FOWI was the passion with which the team supports each other’s research projects and the value that is seen in collaborating and exchanging expertise.

For instance, I had the opportunity to present my research on leader-follower interactions at the institute’s weekly seminar, from where I received valuable insights and additional ideas. Overall, I experienced my time at FOWI as a very enriching phase during my PhD, during which I was able to continue collaboration and expand my international network. ⭐Are there any particular achievements/developments that were a result of your visit?

Next to substantially moving my research projects forward, I also had the chance to present my research findings on organizational context factors that are beneficial for female leaders to the Athena Swan project group. One particular observation that I made was that at FOWI, everyone is not only aiming for high quality publications but also at translating research insights into practice. ⭐ Where did you stay?

Coming to Perth by myself, I wanted to live in a shared apartment to meet other people. I looked for shared apartments on FlatmateFinders, flatemate.com.au and in various Facebook groups. In the end, I found the home for my stay through a Facebook group.

I lived in East Perth and I can definitely recommend it; public transportation is good, it’s walking distance to the office and close to the river – ideal for morning runs. :) Although I have to say I did miss the beach a bit… ⭐What did you think about Perth and Western Australia? Do you have any special memory, highlights and recommendations you would like to share?

I loved my time in Perth and at FOWI in particular. The friendly character of the people combined with the sunny weather is a perfect match and makes Perth a fantastic city to live in. I can just echo previous visiting researchers in saying that Rottnest Island and Margaret River are great places to visit! Something I’d like to add are the great opportunities to become active outdoors. As a runner, I enjoyed the great running path in Kings Park as well as along Swan River and the coast.

New landmark study for stronger action to improve work in WA mining

The Centre for Transformative Work Design has been awarded funding for a landmark study into mental health and workplace culture across Western Australia's mining sector.

Funded through the WA Government's Mental Awareness, Respect and Safety program, which was initially launched in December 2021, the funding enables the centre (part of Curtin University’s Future of Work Institute) to undertake a four-year research project to gather and evaluate data on sexual assault, harassment, mental health, drug and alcohol use, and emerging mine safety issues.

This funding aims to further develop mental health and workplace culture initiatives and improve safety outcomes, with preliminary findings expected to be available by September this year.

“Workers and their families are the backbone of WA’s mining sector and we remain committed to ensuring they work in a safe environment,” Mines and Petroleum and Industrial Relations Minister Bill Johnston said in the media release.

“Important steps have already commenced to create safe, gender-equitable and inclusive workplaces through the implementation of the Stronger Together: WA’s Plan for Gender Equality plan and the WA Sexual Violence Prevention and Response Strategy.

“Health and safety champions such as the Centre for Transformative Work Design will play an important role in shaping our future workforce.”

Director of Curtin University’s Centre for Transformative Work Design, ARC Laureate Fellow Sharon Parker said the study will assess the impact of what mining organisations have already been doing to create healthy workplaces, as well as identify what they can do in the future.

“Mining plays a key role in our economy, so it is crucial that people who work in this sector have jobs that are not only physically safe, but also safe from a mental health perspective,” Professor Parker said.

“With this funding, a team of experts will work closely with companies, industry bodies, unions and others to deliver evidence-based guidance on how to ensure quality work for all mining employees.”

The full media statement can be found here .