Sketching Work Competition Outcome We want to say how thrilled we were with the number and quality of the entries. We received 42 entries from 9 countries (Australia, Canada, UK, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Japan, Portugal and USA were all represented). We got to hear about a range of interesting jobs, including artists, dog walkers, mechanics, wedding planners, teachers, mine workers, community workers, textile factory workers, home workers, cattlemen, butchers, waitresses, bookbinders and upholsterers. It was a joy to open the entries as they arrived, and we thank all entrants for the care and attention they put into their beautiful sketches and stories. As you can imagine, it was hard to make a decision, but we are pleased to announce our winners are: First prize – Deb Mostert (Australia) for her sketch and story on a Collection Manager from the Queensland Museum. Professor Sharon Parker, the Director of the Centre for Transformative Work Design, commented: “Apart from the wonderfully detailed and beautiful drawings and the explicit efforts to capture aspects of work design in the story, I love how the artist used colour to draw attention to the 'person' as that resonates with our focus on people as critical in the work system". Lynne Chapman described the entry as: "Exceptional: detailed, communicative and beautiful. The different processes involved in the job are captured with understated and fascinating precision. The text is always relevant and is well integrated with the drawings, so that the work flows seamlessly along both sketchbooks. Read the Story Second prize – Rita Sabler (USA) for her sketch and story on a freight train operator for The Union Pacific Railroad. Sharon commented: “the story vividly portrays the joys and challenges in people's work, and I love how you captured his personality in your colourful and detailed sketches". Lynne described the entry as: "A beautifully captured portrait of an individual’s very personal relationship with his work. The sketchbook has excellent flow and impact with lovely, delicately detailed sketches which draw you in. The interesting text brings the job to life.” Read the Story As we were so pleased with the calibre of the entries, we are currently having all entries professionally scanned so that we can host an online exhibition of the sketches in the near future. This will take a little time to organise, so we will let the entrants know when it is launched and will post updates on Lynne Chapman’s and our social media platforms. For those who entered the competition and included a self-addressed envelope to have their entries returned, we thank you again for your entry and we will have to ask for your patience. The professional scanner has only one suitable flatbed scanner and has over 84 sketches to scan for us, so it will take a little time to get your sketches back to you. We thank you in advance for your patience. See our Sketches of Work Design View other entries Mark V.

The 2024 Work Design Conference PAST CONFERENCE Work Design for Success: Innovative Research and Leading-Edge Practice | The 2024 Centre for Transformative Work Design Conference We would like thank all attendees, speakers, volunteers and sponsors for the resounding success of the inaugural 2024 Centre for Transformative Work Design Conference. Perth, Western Australia | 13-14 February 2024 QUICK LINKS Conference recordings Event photos Sponsors Contact us CONFERENCE INFORMATION Conference booklet Attendee information Purchase conference recording $300 AUD 6-months access (1 October 2024 - 1 April 2025) Purchase access Access to conference recordings 2-days Post conference summary 1st work design conference in the world Spanning over 2-days with 1 additional day of pre-conference workshops Over 110+ presenters From expert academics and industry leaders 350 attendees 52% academics, 33% industry members and 15% government representatives From 15+ countries Connecting a global auidence 80+ presentations Shaping the future of work 100% of attendees are interested in attending a future CTWD conference Event photos River dinner cruise Want to see more photos from the event? Get behind the scenes to view and download all photos from the conference or the Swan River dinner cruise Main conference photos River dinner cruise Our conference speakers Speaker Prof Sharon Parker Curtin University Speaker Prof Evangelia Demerouti Eindhoven University of Technology Speaker Prof Arnold Bakker Erasmus University Rotterdam Speaker Prof Karina Jorritsma Curtin University Speaker Prof Maureen Dollard University of South Australia Speaker Dave Burroughs Chief Mental Health Officer Westpac Group Speaker Jim Kelly Director Health and Safe Design SafeWork NSW Speaker Prof Maria Tims Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam Guest speaker Prof Mo Wang University of Florida Guest speaker Rob Baker Tailored Thinking Guest speaker Prof Fred Zijlstra Maastricht University Key dates and conference materials 12 February 2024 Optional pre-conference workshops and networking sundowner 13 February 2024 Main conference and conference dinner cruise 14 February 2024 Main conference Some of the topics we covered The SMART Work Design model Job crafting Addressing psychosocial risks Self-managing teams Work redesign Work design for AI and other digital technologies Playful work design Work design in mining, health care, aged care and more Sponsors We would like to thank our sponsors for their valuable support. That's a wrap! To learn more about accessing conference recordings, visit the link below For further information see the terms and conditions . For enquires please email CTWD-conference@curtin.edu.au . Purchase access to session recordings View the conference booklet

FOR INDIVIDUALS Stay connected with your hybrid team Flexible work can affect how much contact you have with colleagues. If you need social contact (high need for relatedness); this can be done by going into the office when needing social contact to achieve work or to get support, or using ICTs to connect with people. Find more resources for workers: Download Back to main page

FOR INDIVIDUALS Is flexible work for you? It is clear that flexible working has both benefits and challenges that may not be ideal for every employee, and this could be due to individual differences, such as in one’s personality as well as differences in one’s life situation (e.g., the space for a home office). Find more flexible work resources for workers: Download Back to main page

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FOR INDIVIDUALS Work-home segmentation preference Research shows that people vary in their preferences for segmenting or integrating aspects of work and home. Find more flexible work resources for workers: Download Back to main page

FOR INDIVIDUALS Home office setup A separate workspace in the house is important firstly due to potential greater work-home conflict associated with a lack of a physical boundary and secondly, for your recovery and ability to switch off from work during non-work time. Find more flexible work resources for workers: Download Back to main page

Job crafting: A new approach of work redesign by employees Top of Page Job crafting: A new approach of work redesign by employees Project Brief This project has three main aims. Firstly, to clarify the theoretical construct of job crafting and to bring together two different job crafting perspectives; secondly, to investigate when and why employees engage in different types of job crafting, especially demands crafting; thirdly, to investigate the effects of different types of job crafting. Contact for more information: Fangfang Zhang Faculty : Fangfang Zhang Sharon Parker Other Transforming Individuals Projects

Top of Page Proactive behaviours and job crafting in teams Project Brief This project seeks to further our understanding of proactive work behaviour in teams (in the form of job crafting). Job crafting involves people altering their tasks and interactions at work to better align them with their needs, abilities, and preferences. There are four different types of job crafting, which involve increasing or decreasing certain job demands or job resources. So far, the research on job crafting has mainly focused on exploring its individual benefits. It suggests that people who job craft are more fulfilled and happier within their job roles, and that they are therefore more likely to thrive at work. To the best of our knowledge however, there is a gap in the research on the ways in which job crafting may affect others. We aim to address this gap in research by studying the role of job crafting in team contexts. In doing so, we shed light on the team dynamics affected by these behaviours, informing our understanding of pro-activity in organisations and contributing to the growing body of research on this topic. We seek to sample a minimum of about 200 adult participants who are either full-time or part-time working to take part in this study. How to participate? You can participate in this research through an online experiment. Your participation involves working on an interdependent task that can be carried out online. First, you will receive some background information about the task. You will then interact with another team member via online messaging about this task. This team member will send you email messages and you may select how you wish to respond to them. Afterwards, you will be asked about your perceptions of this co-worker (i.e. his/her behaviours, e.g. “This co-worker tries to develop him/herself professionally”), as well as some questions about yourself (your gender, age, work experience, etc.). You will only have to participate once in this study and your data will be saved electronically. The entire study should take about 30 minutes to complete. Apart from your time, there will be no extra cost to you for taking part in this research. We will use an experimental approach in this study, and each participant will be randomly assigned to their co-worker for this task. That is, your co-worker will be assigned to you by chance, like tossing a coin. Interested to participate in our simulation? If you would like to help us with this, please click the following link. Link for Online Experiment Curtin University Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) has approved this study (HREC number HRE2019-0296 Faculty Dr Florian Klonek florian.klonek@curtin.edu.au External Dr Maria Tims m.tims@vu.nl Professor Sharon Parker s.parker@curtin.edu.au Student Investigator Jasmine Labriola jasmine.labriola@outlook.com Other Projects on Team and Organisations

SMART Work enables Agency About the model The third letter in the SMART work framework stands for 'Agency'. This aspects delves into to the extent to which you are able to organise your own schedule, while work methods refers to the extent to which you can choose the methods in which to achieve your work goals. Agency or ones degree for decision making refers to the extent to which you are able to make judgements and decisions individually. Whilst some jobs will inherently involve a higher degree of agency than others, there is always ways in which to improve this aspect of work design. JUMP TO Stimulating Mastery Relational Tolerable demands RELATED RESEARCH SMART Design for Care Watch this animated explainer video on Agency Qualities of high Agency Jobs For example, jobs with a high degree of agency allow individuals to: control the timing and scheduling of their tasks decide upon the best methods of completing a task, including the chance to show initiative make decisions independently and feel empowered in doing so “We are allowed so much freedom to use our creativity here.” - Childcare Worker “It was hard not to have any control over my job – you don’t have input, everything is set out for you.” - Call Centre Operator Qualities of low Agency jobs In contrast, jobs with a low degree of agency can involve: a lack of flexibility or limited chances in which to provide input towards the scheduling and timing of tasks excessive bureaucracy and red tape limiting the availability of different work methods retribution and criticism for mistakes and micromanagement from supervisors What are the risks of low Agency Jobs? Work that is overly restrictive, with little room for input or independent decision making poses a number of risks for individuals and organisations: One of the key risks for employees who experience a low degree of agency in their work relates to mental health. A recent study showed that employees who had jobs with minimal agency had a 20-25% increased risk of experiencing mental health issues [1]. For organisations, the risks of overly controlling work, with little room for input are extensive. Research has demonstrated that enhancing agency can lead to improved safety outcomes, employee engagement, skill development/learning, productivity and proactivity [2] [3]. Research spotlight Research shows that job autonomy (alongside communication quality) was a significant predictor for increased safety compliance. Further analysis demonstrated that this effect occurred due to individuals with a high degree of job agency feeling more committed to the organisation and therefore more likely to follow safety rules [4]. A longitudinal study over 18 months demonstrated that work design features such as high degrees of agency and social support were positively related to increased personal resources such as perceived self-efficacy, organisational based self-esteem and optimism. These were linked together in a reciprocal relationship with employee engagement [5]. Strategies to increase Agency Micromanager from hell? No way to have a say in the direction of your organisation? Fear not, there are a number of practical strategies you can implement to try and improve the overall agency of your role. Here are some practical tips for you to try out: Strategies for Employees Strategies for Managers Strategies for Organisations Here are some practical tips to try and help increase the agency of your work: Speak to your manager about any projects that in which you could take ownership. Often smaller scale projects can be a great opportunity to demonstrate value whilst still building valuable skills. If you are able to identify a more effective or efficient method of carrying out your work, develop a business case for it that you can take to your manager. Often, work is carried out in the same manner because ‘that’s how it’s always been done’. Creating a business case will help to make the switch less risky for your manager. To learn more strategies, check out our training opportunities. Explore opportunities Improving the sense of agency within your team can lead to a myriad of benefits. A few strategies you can try out are listed below: Take an active interest in developments and advancements of your field through reading articles, listening to podcasts and attending conferences. You can then use this information to help inspire your team towards using different methods in which to achieve their goals. At times when you have had to make difficult decisions or implement new organisational changes, use this as a learning opportunity. Distil key learnings and your thought processes in to short case studies to share with your team. To learn more strategies, check out our training opportunities. Explore opportunities To learn more strategies, check out our training opportunities. Explore opportunities Further resources References [1] SafeWork NSW. (2017). Review of evidence of psychosocial risks for mental ill-health in the workplace. [2] Parker, S. K., (2015). Does the evidence and theory support the ‘Good Work Design Principles’: An educational resource. Safe Work Australia. [3] Parker, S. K. (2014). Beyond motivation: Job and work design for development, health, ambidexterity, and more. Annual Review of Psychology, 65, 661-691. [4] Parker, S. K., Wall, T. D., & Cordery, J. L. (2001). Future work design research and practice: Towards an elaborated model of work design. Journal of occupational and organizational psychology, 74(4), 413-440. [5] Xanthopoulou, D., Bakker, A. B., Demerouti, E., & Schaufeli, W. B. (2009). Reciprocal relationships between job resources, personal resources, and work engagement. Journal of Vocational behavior, 74(3), 235-244.

FIFO Worker Mental Health and Wellbeing: The impact of COVID-19 Summary of Findings 'No end in sight': Border closures take mental toll on Mandurah FIFO workers Mandurah Mail Article WA's tough border policy has been credited with keeping virus numbers low in the state, but for those separated from their loved ones it is coming at a cost. For FIFO worker Kyle, who has not been able to return to WA for seven weeks, the isolation has left him struggling with a sense of perpetual uncertainty. More media articles: Study Tackles Mental Health Impacts of FIFO Work During COVID-19 (myosh ) Fly in, fly out mine workers: adapting for a post-Covid-19 world (MiningTechnology ) FIFO rosters taking toll on miners (Australian Mine Safety Journal ) Coronavirus pandemic sees psychological distress soar to 40 per cent among WA FIFO workers (The West , Albany Advertiser , Narrogin Observer ) COVID-19 lessons to inform workplace safety strategies (OHS Alert ) Key messages from the research Results show mental health is worse in 2020 Support is still a key protective factor for mental health and wellbeing Flexibility with workload models (work from home, time off, flexible rosters) is appreciated by workers Communication with home is really important to workers, and having flexibility to contact home when needed Workers recognise and appreciate social connections on-site COVID-19 rules limit people’s freedoms, but also make workers feel safe. Balancing these rules is important to maintain social connection. What is important to consider right now? Regularly checking in on workers’ mental health Providing support Flexibility with workload, and work models Make accommodations for work-life balance as needed Facilitate social connections: with home and on-site Survey: FIFO work during COVID-19 In 2018 more than 3000 FIFO workers participated in a project on FIFO workers' experiences and wellbeing . Many important recommendations emerged from the report which were disseminated widely with health professionals, consultants and representatives from the resources industry . Thank you if you participated in that research. Since then, much has changed for many FIFO workers, and we are seeking to understand those changes and the impact on your lives. COVID-19 has changed many aspects of our lives and how FIFO work operates is no exception. It is important that we understand the impacts of the current COVID-19 situations on workers. You are invited to complete this survey on FIFO (fly-in-fly-out) work and wellbeing. The research is being conducted by a team of experts from Curtin University and University of Western Australia led by Professor Sharon Parker and Dr Jess Gilbert at the Centre for Transformative Work Design. Curtin University Human Research Ethics Committee (HREC) has approved this study (HRE2018-0449) Click here to read summary As part of this study, we offered all participants to enter in a prize draw for a chance to win one of 10 x $150 vouchers. All winners have been contacted. Frequently Asked Questions What is the aim of the research? The research investigates mental health and wellbeing in FIFO workers during COVID-19 and aims to identify the attributes of FIFO workplaces that contribute to mental health. Who is funding the study? This research is being funded by the Australian Research Council; which is the major funding body for research in Australia. This research is independent from any specific interests of unions, companies, industry bodies, or other stakeholders. The research has been granted approval from Curtin University’s Human Research Ethics Committee. Who can participate? Employees working in a FIFO role in the resources industry in Australia. What happens to the data collected? The data you provide will be used for research purposes only and results will be made publicly available here as the study progresses. What would I be asked to do if I took part? Taking part will involve completing a survey. In the survey, you will be asked to consider a number of statements about your workplace and your well-being and mental health in the context of changes that have occurred due to COVID-19. We will also ask you for some basic demographic information. If you are happy to be involved in continuing to contribute to this study, we would like to invite you to also complete two shorter surveys about your wellbeing over the next 2 months. We would also invite you to chat with us about your experience during COVID-19 in an interview. How is confidentiality maintained? All information you provide will be kept confidential. None of your individual responses will be passed on to any person outside the research team. De-identified individual level data may be shared with other researchers. All data will be stored within the university. What happens if I do not want to take part or if I change my mind? It is up to you to decide whether or not to take part. If you decide to take part you are still free to withdraw at any time without giving a reason and without detriment to yourself. Will I be paid for participating in the research? There is no payment for taking part. However, you can enter your details into a prize draw for one of ten $150 vouchers. What is the duration of the research? Completing the questionnaire should take approximately 30 minutes. What if something goes wrong? If there are any issues regarding this research, or you need help or advice after completing the questionnaire, please contact: Dr Jess Gilbert Jess.Gilbert@curtin.edu.au Will the outcomes of the research be published? We expect that the results of this study will be published in academic journals and communicated to stake holders and government bodies. This will only include summary data and no information from individual surveys will be passed on. We will provide updates on the findings here on the website, with special attention to organisational strategies that have been helpful in supporting workers during COVID-19. Dr Laura Fruhen Laura.Fruhen@uwa.edu.au Professor Sharon Parker S.Parker@curtin.edu.au Check out the findings from our previous research on FIFO workers' mental health and wellbeing (conducted in 2018) Full report Executive Summary Highlights

FOR TEAMS Teams are ideal for problem solving Tips to foster problem solving in virtual teams: - Review what kind of tasks your team/s are working on to ensure that sufficient levels of problem-solving are involved. - Maximise the advantages of the virtual setting and encourage team brainstorming to be carried out using email or text-based chat. - If you manage a hybrid team, identify which tasks are better suited to be carried out virtually vs face-to-face, keeping in mind that face-to-face communication is superior for tasks that involve negotiation and/or require high interdependence among team members. Find more flexible work resources for managers: Download Back to main page