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A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2022) | Viewed by 51662

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Won-Moo Hur

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Guest Editor

College of Business Administration, Inha University, Incheon 22212, Korea
Interests: CSR; sustainable employee management; emotional labor; job crafting; workplace incivility; ESM studies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Yuhyung Shin

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor

School of Business, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791, Korea
Interests: sustainable employee managemment; job crafting; team processes and performance; occupational health
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Today’s organizations are confronted with difficulties and complexities in maintaining a sustainable workforce. Volatile changes in the external environment, such as the 4th industrial revolution and the COVID-19 pandemic, prevent organizations from acquiring and managing human resources in a sustainable manner. Furthermore, because of the increasing importance of employee rights and growing demands for well-being and work–life balance, employees’ journeys for a better workplace make it challenging for organizations to retain a competent and engaged workforce. As such, sustainable employee management is a conundrum that contemporary organizations must solve to enhance their productivity and sustainability. We are pleased to invite you to submit to this Special Issue on sustainable employee management. This Special Issue aims to encourage a scholarly discourse on how to build a work environment that fosters sustainable employee management. In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:

Employee characteristics and sustainable employee management;
Work–life balance and sustainable employee management;
Occupational health, well-being, and sustainable employee management;
Corporate social responsibility and sustainable employee management;
Organizational culture/climate for sustainable employee management;
Human resource management for sustainable employee management;
Job design for sustainable employee management;
Leadership for sustainable employee management;
Novel outcomes of sustainable employee management;
Sustainable employee management in the service industry;
Emotional labor and sustainable employee management;
COVID-19 and sustainable employee management.

Prof. Dr. Won-Moo Hur
Prof. Dr. Yuhyung Shin
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

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Published Papers (6 papers)

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10 pages, 277 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Importance of Monitoring the Psychological Wellbeing and Mental Health of Nursing Staff for Sustainable Management

by Mateja Lorber and Mojca Dobnik

Sustainability 2022, 14(14), 8300; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14148300 - 7 Jul 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3790

Abstract

This study examines the psychological wellbeing and mental health of nursing staff and determines workplace factors that affect them. Wellbeing and sustainable workload are important for the quality of work life. A cross-sectional study of employees in nursing was conducted at Slovenian hospitals. The response was 35%. The main findings were that more than half of employees are satisfied or very satisfied with their job and with their leaders’ support, but they are often exposed to stress. Quality of work life, work–life balance, and managing stress at the workplace affect the psychological wellbeing and mental health of nursing staff. Management should identify the importance of monitoring and improving workplace factors that can affect the employees. At the same time, they should also be aware of the importance of sustainable development of nursing employees at the local and national levels to improve the working conditions and quality of work life for better psychological wellbeing and mental health for employees. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Employee Management)

18 pages, 620 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of Risk Perception Difference of Members of a Scientific Research Project Team on Information Adoption: The Moderating Effect of Knowledge Inertia

by Haoyang Song, Jianhua Hou, Xiucai Yang and Yang Zhang

Sustainability 2022, 14(13), 7749; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14137749 - 24 Jun 2022

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1935

Abstract

A scientific research project is always full of uncertainties and risks. In this condition, full exchange and complementarity of information resources among project team members are necessary and important to meet the information needs for project risk management and even affect the success of the project. The differentiated risk perception of members with various professional backgrounds can contribute to the communication and complementary of the necessary information within the team. However, too much difference in perceptions of project risks may cause members’ information conflicts, which may hinder the adoption of various information and do harm to the risk management. Considering the limited research on this “contradictory” relationship, especially for the scientific research project team, a special group, this study explores the impact of the risk perception differences of the scientific research project team members on information adoption behavior through the large sample empirical statistical method. The results show the hat risk perception difference of members positively affects the learning willingness and information adoption behavior but does not show a negative effect, and there is no inverted U-shaped relationship. Further, learning willingness plays a mediating role between both, while learning inertia and experience inertia positively and negatively moderate the positive effects of risk perception differences on learning willingness, respectively. From the cognitive perspective, this study further reveals the internal influence mechanism of risk perception difference of scientific research project team members on information behavior and provides a theoretical reference for improving the efficiency of information communication and optimizing collaborative team management. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Employee Management)

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18 pages, 312 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Impact of Technological Developments on Remote Working: Insights from the Polish Managers’ Perspective

by Maria Urbaniec, Agnieszka Małkowska and Hanna Włodarkiewicz-Klimek

Sustainability 2022, 14(1), 552; https://doi.org/10.3390/su14010552 - 5 Jan 2022

Cited by 24 | Viewed by 22173

Abstract

“Stay at home” orders during the COVID-19 pandemic radically changed the day-to-day operations of many organizations and moved employees from offices to homes. The sudden crisis forced companies to reformulate their operations. Enabling employees to work from home has become a necessity for both business continuity and survival. The unexpected crisis has also proved to be beneficial for some aspects of economic activity. This research focuses on identifying and measuring the benefits of and barriers to remote work from an organizational perspective, as perceived by managerial staff in Poland. We investigate the factors that influence the assessment of the scale of benefits of and barriers to remote working. The study examines the impact of various factors on the benefits of and barriers to remote working, such as a company’s previous experience with remote working, the support provided to employees by the company, the monitoring of remote working effects, and the implementation of new IT tools. These results suggest that the way the company and employees are managed in a crisis, the approach of superiors to the evaluation and control of effects on work, and the adaptation of support to the real needs of employees, all play fundamental roles. The factors examined that influence the perceived benefits of or barriers to remote working from an organization’s perspective contribute to adoption theory. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Employee Management)

17 pages, 2613 KiB

Open AccessArticle

What Makes Employees Behave Innovatively? Empirical Evidence from South Korea

by Sora Lee and Jaewon Yoo

Sustainability 2021, 13(24), 13819; https://doi.org/10.3390/su132413819 - 14 Dec 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2181

Abstract

Although the value of a supportive organizational strategy has been recognized over time, there is a need to better understand its relationship with employees’ psychological and behavioral responses. This study focuses on employees’ innovative behavior as a result of their perceptions of internal market orientation in the organization. It proposes a sequential process model that examines the impact of internal market orientation on employees’ innovative behavior through the ethical climate, psychological ownership, and employee stewardship toward the organization. Using data collected from 310 employees of small and medium-sized enterprises in various industries in South Korea, a linear sequential relationship among the constructs is confirmed. The findings of this empirical study, therefore, suggest that the ethical climate, psychological ownership, and stewardship mediate the effects of internal market orientation on employees’ innovative behavior. The research thus offers a conceptual framework that shows the sequential process of the effect of internal market orientation on innovative behavior. Further, it shows that the perception of an ethical climate can be influenced by management and can develop an employee’s psychological ownership. Implications for managers and directions for future research are also discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Employee Management)

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19 pages, 2451 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Building Cohesive Teams—The Role of Leaders’ Bottom-Line Mentality and Behavior

by Katrin Riisla, Hein Wendt, Mayowa T. Babalola and Martin Euwema

Sustainability 2021, 13(14), 8047; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13148047 - 19 Jul 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 16316

Abstract

Team cohesiveness plays a crucial role in effective teamwork, innovation, and improved performance, and as such, its development among team members is an essential part of team management. However, it may be disregarded by leaders with a high bottom-line mentality (BLM; a single-minded focus on the bottom line at the expense of other values or priorities). These leaders may show little interest in other priorities, such as ethical, social, or environmental considerations, and may be tempted to push their followers to go above and beyond what is expected, even if it means bending the rules, cutting corners, or engaging in other ethically problematic behaviors. We argue that although a team leader’s BLM may motivate followers to come together around the pursuit of a common goal, it may come at the expense of nurturing healthy interpersonal relationships, trust, and other important social resources within the team. Specifically, we argue that the way leaders with a high BLM approach their goals may affect team cohesiveness, and that it is particularly negative for female leaders. Using a large multi-national study, we found that this happens through increased directive and lowered participative leader behaviors. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Employee Management)

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7 pages, 831 KiB

Open AccessEssay

A Sustainable Plan to Rescue HR from Itself

by James W. Westerman

Sustainability 2021, 13(14), 7587; https://doi.org/10.3390/su13147587 - 7 Jul 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3919

Abstract

The Human Resource (HR) function is often viewed by those in organizations as a process function and a cost-center, which results in an enhanced risk of outsourcing and automation. However, HR is also uniquely positioned to engage firms in cross-functional transformational change efforts, as its work is embedded in every business function within an organization. Sustainable HR and the triple bottom line (TBL) present opportunities for HR to build a strategic role within organizations. This essay provides strategic and tactical models, with specific steps for implementation, to assist HR in re-assert its role in driving the competitiveness of the firm through Sustainable HR. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Sustainable Employee Management)

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