Understanding the influencers of work arrangement changes : A qualitative interview study on why young professionals are leaving for non-standard work

Abstract

The aim of the study is to explore the phenomenon of young professionals making significant changes to their work arrangements and identify what factors influenced their decision. The understanding of this phenomenon can give answers to organisations that have experienced the loss of such talents and serve as guidance for new strategies and processes which better meet the needs of generations Y & Z. The literature review was conducted using both academic and recently released business sources, to allow for both historical research and very current knowledge about the theories and current be combined in establishing a more complete understanding of the studied phenomenon. The two research questions were: 1. Why do young professionals commit large changes to their work arrangements and practices? and 2. Under what circumstances would these same professionals likely return to standard work arrangements? The research strategy was a qualitative study conducted through semi-structured interviews, and the data was analysed utilising thematic analysis. The scope included seven young professionals who had recently made the decision to leave their normal employment relationships in favor of non-standard work arrangements. From the data, initial statements were compressed to twenty-one (RQ1) and seven (RQ2) 2nd order. The 2nd order themes were further combined into aggregate dimensions. There was five aggregate dimensions related to research question 1: Desire for self-agency & empowerment, Desire for personal fulfilment, Assessment & tolerance of risk, Employment pessimism, Negative work environment, and Negative incidents. These dimensions were further organised into three additional groups: desire dimensions which are positive elements which those interviewed pursued through their decision making, aversion dimensions which influenced the participants’ choices through being elements which participants left work-arrangements to avoid , and neutral dimensions which offered support in decision making and related to a sense of safety. The aggregate dimensions related to research question 2 were: Financial needs, Social influence, and “Perfect opportunity” and offered the circumstances and influences which those interviewed stated would determine their willingness to return to standard work.