Increasing the effectiveness of remote and cross-cultural collaborations in organisations. Minerals, oil and gas exports dominate the Australian economy, and the effective organisation and management of collaborative work spanning remote, dispersed, environmentally fragile and culturally sensitive locations in this industry is a key challenge. Findings will provide insight into the systems, processes, and skills that are required to collaborate in these domains, improving international competiti ....Increasing the effectiveness of remote and cross-cultural collaborations in organisations. Minerals, oil and gas exports dominate the Australian economy, and the effective organisation and management of collaborative work spanning remote, dispersed, environmentally fragile and culturally sensitive locations in this industry is a key challenge. Findings will provide insight into the systems, processes, and skills that are required to collaborate in these domains, improving international competitiveness and global impact. Extensive efforts to interpret, synthesize and disseminate findings for scholars and non-scientists will also help inform educational agendas within industry and higher education to better prepare future collaborators.Read moreRead less
The 'health' of Australia's professions: Teaching, nursing and policing as effective professions. If Australia is to have a place as a 21st century nation it must be supported by an effective public service. In Western Australia, teachers, nurses and police make up 70% of the public service. The effectiveness of these services is a direct function the 'health' of these occupations and the ?health? of the organisations employing teachers, nurses and police. Nonetheless, there has been little syst ....The 'health' of Australia's professions: Teaching, nursing and policing as effective professions. If Australia is to have a place as a 21st century nation it must be supported by an effective public service. In Western Australia, teachers, nurses and police make up 70% of the public service. The effectiveness of these services is a direct function the 'health' of these occupations and the ?health? of the organisations employing teachers, nurses and police. Nonetheless, there has been little systematic inquiry into this area. This research will develop the concept of the ?health? of a profession comprising both perspectives, and use this to develop and test a comprehensive instrument for the ongoing monitoring of the ?health? of the teaching, nursing and policing professions.Read moreRead less
Managing work systems to promote employee engagement and business unit outcomes. This project will lead to the identification of specific people management practices that can be implemented within business units in order to promote both positive business outcomes and improvements in employee psychological well-being through increased employee work engagement. Given that research has already demonstrated significant positive business and psychological benefits arising from work engagement, the r ....Managing work systems to promote employee engagement and business unit outcomes. This project will lead to the identification of specific people management practices that can be implemented within business units in order to promote both positive business outcomes and improvements in employee psychological well-being through increased employee work engagement. Given that research has already demonstrated significant positive business and psychological benefits arising from work engagement, the results of the study have the potential to identify practical pathways towards generating significant economic, social and psychological benefits for employers and employees, at the level of the organisation, the community and, by extrapolation, the nation. Read moreRead less
A multilevel approach to leadership and dynamic capabilities in organisations. The quality of leadership in Australian organisations has an impact on business productivity, international competitiveness, and employee health and well-being. This research will support the development of leadership skills at different organisational levels. For senior leaders, these skills include developing strategy, allocating resources, and supporting innovation. For team leaders, skills include team coordinatio ....A multilevel approach to leadership and dynamic capabilities in organisations. The quality of leadership in Australian organisations has an impact on business productivity, international competitiveness, and employee health and well-being. This research will support the development of leadership skills at different organisational levels. For senior leaders, these skills include developing strategy, allocating resources, and supporting innovation. For team leaders, skills include team coordination, employee support, and creating flexibility. By supporting interventions that build adaptivity and flexibility in organisations, the research will provide resources to support dynamic organisations to be better equipped to compete in demanding international markets.Read moreRead less
How attention and memory for past events interact in determining performance in an air traffic control conflict detection task. This project addresses the priority of safeguarding Australian transportation systems because it concerns failures of attention or memory as sources of human error in aviation. Outcomes will inform the development of training exercises aimed at improving attention management skills critical to safe performance. The research will strengthen Australia's reputation for cut ....How attention and memory for past events interact in determining performance in an air traffic control conflict detection task. This project addresses the priority of safeguarding Australian transportation systems because it concerns failures of attention or memory as sources of human error in aviation. Outcomes will inform the development of training exercises aimed at improving attention management skills critical to safe performance. The research will strengthen Australia's reputation for cutting edge research that extends basic science to applied domains, as this project is one of few world-wide investigating attention and memory processes in multi-item display tasks. More broadly, the project will provide insight into why individuals can make errors when basing decisions on past experience. Read moreRead less
Goal orientations, self-regulation and performance: Implications for accelerating learning via goal-setting interventions. This project relates to the priority of strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric. The question of when and why various goals are adaptive versus maladaptive is of fundamental importance for understanding human behaviour. Society benefits from research into this question, because it provides a pathway for tapping into human potential. The results have implications ....Goal orientations, self-regulation and performance: Implications for accelerating learning via goal-setting interventions. This project relates to the priority of strengthening Australia's social and economic fabric. The question of when and why various goals are adaptive versus maladaptive is of fundamental importance for understanding human behaviour. Society benefits from research into this question, because it provides a pathway for tapping into human potential. The results have implications for the development of effective training programs and thus have the potential to influence personal growth and financial stability. The results will have wide application in a variety of industries. Examples include the development of interventions for more rapid training, and the development of performance-management plans for facilitating career advancement.Read moreRead less
Integrity, Leadership and Behaviour in Organisations. Recent high profile corporate scandals such as those involving Enron and HIH have demonstrated how important it is for leaders and managers to demonstrate integrity in their actions. However, organisational researchers have struggled to reach agreement on the qualities of character and behaviour that define integrity. This work draws on work in the philosophical tradition to propose a new multidimensional conceptualisation of leader integri ....Integrity, Leadership and Behaviour in Organisations. Recent high profile corporate scandals such as those involving Enron and HIH have demonstrated how important it is for leaders and managers to demonstrate integrity in their actions. However, organisational researchers have struggled to reach agreement on the qualities of character and behaviour that define integrity. This work draws on work in the philosophical tradition to propose a new multidimensional conceptualisation of leader integrity and to develop a measurement instrument for its assessment. The influence of leader integrity on the behaviour of leaders and subordinates is explored, and a program aimed at enhancing integrity in organisational leadership developed and trialled.Read moreRead less
Longitudinal, multilevel, and multi-study tests of an integrative theory of leader development. Leadership plays a critical role in the success of organizations and societies. The behaviours, decisions, and actions of leaders determine the overall quality of leadership. Having the most effective and efficient leader development interventions is important to strengthening the social and economic fabric of Australia. Preparing individuals to participate fully in leadership roles and processes will ....Longitudinal, multilevel, and multi-study tests of an integrative theory of leader development. Leadership plays a critical role in the success of organizations and societies. The behaviours, decisions, and actions of leaders determine the overall quality of leadership. Having the most effective and efficient leader development interventions is important to strengthening the social and economic fabric of Australia. Preparing individuals to participate fully in leadership roles and processes will enhance the effectiveness of organizations of all types. In addition, there is national benefit in developing leaders who are better prepared to tackle the myriad challenges facing Australia, such as building an environmentally sustainable society, creating the frontier industry technologies, and safeguarding Australia.Read moreRead less
Self-Leadership towards Innovation & Well-Being. Innovation and well-being in the workplace are of paramount importance in maintaining Australia's social and economic environment. Self-leadership training provides employees with strategies to build confidence and resilience, identify opportunities in the environment, deriving greater meaning and enjoyment from work. Self-leadership training has already been shown to improve performance; this project extends self-leadership research by testing th ....Self-Leadership towards Innovation & Well-Being. Innovation and well-being in the workplace are of paramount importance in maintaining Australia's social and economic environment. Self-leadership training provides employees with strategies to build confidence and resilience, identify opportunities in the environment, deriving greater meaning and enjoyment from work. Self-leadership training has already been shown to improve performance; this project extends self-leadership research by testing the effects of self-leadership training on employee innovation and well-being. It also elucidates the psychological processes underlying improvements in innovation and well-being. The project addresses ARC Research Priorities 2 and 3 and contributes to Australia's social and economic advancement.Read moreRead less
Improving knowledge transfer from training providers to organisations. This research will identify factors within the control of organizations, business units and individuals that affect their capacity to transfer knowledge and skill effectively back into the workplace. Given the scale of national expenditure on training and development, this represents a significant opportunity to generate both economic and human capital benefits.