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Workplace innovation to achieve the

EU2020 Strategy

Frank Pot

PEROSH ‘Wellbeing at Work’ HSL Manchester 21 – 23 May 2012

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‘National’ ‘programmes’

• Finland: workplace development; ‘innovative, creative and

participatory workplace of the future’(2012 – 2018)

• Germany: Initiative neue Qualität der Arbeit; innovative

Arbeitsgestaltung; Arbeit und Lernen…Innovationsfähigkeit;

Potentialberatung NRW

• Belgium: sociale innovatie (Flanders Synergy)

• Netherlands: sociale innovatie

• Norway: value creation

• UK: workplace innovation

• Ireland: workplace innovation

• Sweden: management and work organisation renewal

• Governance roles of govt, soc partners and research differ

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Definitions

• Workplace innovations are strategically induced and

participatory adopted changes in an organisation’s practice

of managing, organising and deploying human and non-

human resources that lead to simultaneously improved

organisational performance and improved quality of working

life (EU OSHA, forthcoming).

• New World of Work refers in particular to mobile work,

independent of location and time, supported by advanced

ICT.

• Working smarter, not harder

• Enhancing the ‘innovation capability’ of organisations

• OSH management refers to health protection and health

promotion

Concepts used in documents EU(2020)

• Social innovation (of work): BEPA July 2010; Social

Innovation Europe 2011; Flagship Innovation Union 2010+

accompanying document 2010 and Flagship Skills and Jobs

2010; draft guidelines employment policies 2010;

Resolution EP Innovation Union 2011

• Workplace innovation/innovative workplaces: opinion EESC

2007, 2011; workshop launch event SIE 2011; OECD 2011;

EUROFOUND 2005, 2012

• Non technological innovation: Eurostat; FS Innov Union

• New/innovative forms/patterns of work organisation: FS

Innovation Union; FS Skills and Jobs; draft guidelines

employment policies 2010; ESF 2010; OSH 2007-2012

• High performance/involvement workplaces (Ireland etc.)

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5

Urgency workplace innovation

• Decreasing workforce – increasing labour productivity

• Global competition and knowledge based economy –

development of competences and skills

• Making new technology work through innovative work

organisation

• Workplace innovation explains a larger part of innovation

success than technological innovation

Urgency New World of Work

• Cost saving real estate (fewer buildings)

• Adjusting to the WEB-generation (ways of learning,

communicating, work-life-balance, work relations etc.)

• Reduction of CO2- emission (less travelling)

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Connection with EU2020 Smart, Sustainable and

Inclusive Growth

• Smart, by: ‘Flagship initiative Innovation Union’

• Sustainable, by: ‘Industrial policy for the globalisation era’

• Inclusive, by: ‘Flagship initiative for new skills and jobs’

• Wellbeing on societal and individual levels, by: ‘Social

Innovation Europe’

• Workplace innovation integrates these objectives on the

level of organisations: working smarter with less CO2-

emission, developing skills and competences and improving

organisational performance and job quality, creating

wellbeing.

• However, this opportunity is not yet fully recognized by the

Commission and co-ordination between DG’s is still difficult. 7

8

Best and poorest performers in Finland

(409 self assessments)

Poorest group

31 projects

top-down

interventions

Best group

152 projects

participation

internal collaboration

Pe

rfo

rma

nce

+

-

Source: Ramstad, 2009

Quality of working life + -

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Performance effects of better working conditions and

work organisation as assessed by management (DE)

33,7%

41,1%

43,2%

62,1%

37,9%

50,5%

48,4%

60,0%

51,6%

56,8%

27,4%

24,8%

29,9%

27,4%

50,4%

41,0%

53,0%

59,8%

66,7%

70,9%

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%

Better position on the labor market

Quality and innovation

Reduced failure rate

Increased customer satisfaction

Reduced absenteeism

Process optimisation

Productivity increase

Consultation relevant for practice

Less comopensation for sick people

Optimised health protection

Trade and services Production companies

Source: Bonitz et al., 2007:23, n = 212

10 Source: BISAM 2011/07, G.I.B.

5,7%

37,4%

65,7%

58,1%

12,1%

17,4%

17,8%

13,5%

20,9%

19,1%

31,5%

43,7%

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

Other

Higher product/service quality

Improved work organisation

Preserving employment

New technologies

Higher market share

New products/services

Higher profitability

Lower costs

Increased turnover

Increased productivity

Increased employability

Answers to the question about improvements as a result of the potential-consultations

(consultations in NRW, Germany, started in 2010, n = 1.197)

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Ireland

– High Performance Work Systems have positive effects on

performance outcomes, including labour productivity, and

innovation levels

– Diversity and equality systems have positive effects as well

– Reduced employee turnover (considered to be an indicator for

employee wellbeing)

– No ‘quality of work’ measurement

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Working Smarter and Performance (NL)

Performance criterion

SMEs without

working smarter

SMEs with

working smarter

Company results 2 18

Company turnover 7 15

Productivity 5 14

Employment 6 11

Economic Institute for SMEs. Source: Hauw et al., 2009; n = 650

% change in performance last 2 years

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Social innovation and performance (NL)

Performance criterion

Performance social innovative versus

not social innovative organisations

Increase in turnover 16% higher

Increase in profits 13% higher

Innovation 31% higher

Productivity 21% higher

New clients 17% higher

Reputation

Contented employees

12% higher

12% higher

Erasmus Competition and Innovation Monitor (n = 932). Source: Volberda et al., 2010

Characteristic Number

organisations

Not social

innovative

Social

innovative

Total Sign.

Labour productivity average or lower 2936 62% 33% 59%

(much) above average 2045 38% 67% 41% **

No, little autonomy 3632 79% 49% 76%

Much autonomy 1167 21% 51% 24% **

Talents not used 1212 27% 4% 24%

Optimal use of talents 3777 73% 96% 76% **

Time pressure 2756 56% 53% 55%

No time pressure 2230 44% 47% 45%

Source: Netherlands Employers Work Survey 2010 in Oeij et al. 2012; ** = p≤0,01; n = 4989

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Conclusions evidence

• Urgency to increase labour productivity by working smarter

• Difficult to draw general conclusions

• Simultaneous improvement of performance and quality of

working life is possible but not always achieved

• National programmes are supportive

• Involvement of government differs between countries

• Key role social partners

• Conditions:

– Commitment of management

– Participation of employees and their supervisors

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Overlap of OSH and workplace innovation

Workplace

innovation

Health Wellbeing Performance

Work

organisation

HRM

Employment

relationship

Ergonomics

Working

times

Job autonomy

Employability

Involvement

Comfort

Work-life-

balance

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Workplace innovation and OSH: goals and theories

• Workplace innovation and OSH are different policies with

different objectives and instruments. Do not mix up.

• Workplace innovation is not directed at fewer occupational

diseases or accidents or less absenteeism but it might help

• OSH policies refer to healthy and productive jobs (EC

current policy, Agency project, PEROSH priority). Health is

a value in itself. Additionally healthy people are expected to

contribute more to productivity and innovation. Absenteeism

causes productivity loss

Ergonomics

• Workplace ergonomics serves not only as the objective of

reduction of physical workload (allowing better postures and

movements; reducing lifting) and health promotion (physical

exercise) but also that of productivity (easier and faster

handling and processing; better lay-out)

• Ergonomics is an important field of interventions both for

OSH and for workplace innovation

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Stress risks: discrepancies in the work organisation

Job demands

Decision

latitude

Support

supervisor

colleagues

Time

staff

Skills

competences

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Psychological demands/decision latitude model

High-strain

Active Low-strain

Passive

1

2 3

4

A

B

Learning

motivation to develop

new behavior

patterns

Risks of

psychological strain

and physical illness

HIGH

LOW

Decision

latitude

(control)

LOW HIGH

Psychological demands

Source: Karasek, 1979; 1990

Modern Sociotechnology

• From complex organisations with simple jobs to simple

organisations with complex jobs

• Internal (job autonomy) and external control capacity (direct

worker involvement/influence/consultation and formal co-

determination)

• Simultaneous improvement of organisational performance,

QWL/wellbeing and quality of work relations

• Sources: Ulbo de Sitter et al. 1981, 1994, 1997; Pot et al.,

1994; Van Hootegem et al., 2008

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Work organisation and learning

• Concept ‘active jobs’ in job demands/control-model implies

job autonomy (internal control capacity) related to single

loop learning: are we doing things rightly

• Even more important is external control capacity (decisions

about work organisation and targets) related to double loop

learning: are we doing the right things. External control

capacity has been measured in the latest (5th) EWCS,

additionally to internal control capacity that was always part

of the EWCS.

• Sources: modern sociotechnology, JDC-model, Argyris &

Schön, 1978

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European policy 1

• Workplace innovation missing dimension in Lisbon Strategy

and in EU2020 Strategy

• Because:

– Regarded as the prerogative of employers

– Focus on individual workplaces

– Focus on technological innovation

– Focus on formal education

– Confusion about concepts

– Little co-ordination between DG’s

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European policy 2 Opportunities

• Draft new integrated guidelines for the employment policies

• EESC on these guidelines: job quality, internal/external flex

• EESC own initiative opinion ‘innovative workplaces’

• Flagship on innovation and Flagship on new skills and jobs

• Forthcoming ESF policy next period

• Resolution EP on Innovation Union

• Social Innovation Europe (European Commission)

• ‘Healthy and productive job’ policies

• Project workplace innovation and OSH, EU OSHA

• Workplace innovation projects EUROFOUND

• Emphasis on participation (EU OSHA, EUROFOUND)

• Research: FP7/SSH/NMP; HORIZON 2020?

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Conclusions

• Workplace innovation important to achieve the EU2020

Strategy

• Integrated policy not yet adopted

• Definition with high policy profile would help

• National programmes can be supportive and should start in

more member states

• Do not mix up workplace innovation with ‘OSH policy’

(health protection/promotion) and/or the ‘decent work’

agenda (minimum requirements)

• Because of the interesting overlap of OSH management

and workplace innovation these policies can reinforce each

other if they are purposefully combined

• PEROSH has the position to spread the idea