Bæredygtig ledelse. Et kvalitativt studie med fokus på at skabe bæredygtige tilbagevendingsprocesser på arbejdspladsen

Jensen, Karoline ; Poulsen, Maja Ki Schou

4. semester

Læring og Forandringsprocesser, Kandidat

2024

2024-05-29

79 pages

This thesis examines the experiences and perspectives of social pedagogues when a colleague returns to work after sick leave. Research indicates that the return-to-work process is socially complex for all colleagues in the workplace, and there is a lack of knowledge on how this transition can be managed to avoid creating imbalances within organizations. The purpose of this thesis is therefore to shed light on how sustainable leadership could create the potential for a sustainable return-to-work process in the workplace. This qualitative case study is informed by a social constructivist theory of knowledge. Data were generated through semi-structured interviews with employees in two organizations. Using Fredrick Herzberg's (1959) two-factor theory, the data were analyzed to explore the factors that the social pedagogues perceived as most significant to job satisfaction and motivation. The results were then discussed in light of Steen Hildebrandt and Michael Stubberup's (2010) approach to sustainable leadership, in which the ‘Leadership with Heart Triangle’ is used as a change management tool. The findings of this thesis indicate that communication and interpersonal relations are perceived to be particularly significant to these social pedagogues’ experiences of a good working environment. However, when the transition process occurs, and the employee on sick leave returns to work, their need for predictability and communication with management increases. Despite a generally positive collegial environment, interpersonal relations can be challenged for colleagues of the returning employee during the process of change. This is due to their neglect of self-care in favor of completing core tasks alongside the additional responsibilities they are assigned to support the returning employee. Moreover, the social pedagogues feel an increased need to care for and give greater attention to the returning employee. Overall, this can pose a challenge for the workplaces. To address these issues, the organizations should put in place procedures for managing the return-to-work process. The findings suggests that it is important to create more predictability through the alignment of expectations between leadership and members of the organization when a sick employee returns to work. By working towards a sustainable return-to-work process, such a procedure could ensure continued well-being in the workplace for all employees. Future research could investigate what type of training and education employees need to avoid neglect of self-care and furthermore how a procedure for handling return-to-work can be designed.

Bæredygtig ledelse, medinddragelse, Ledelse med hjertet-trekanten, to-faktor-teorien, tilbagevendingsproces, bæredygtig tilbagevendingsproces, sygemeldte, kollegaer

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