Business View Oceania | March 2020

13 14 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA MARCH 2020 BUSINESS VIEW OCEANIA MARCH 2020 outbreak (e.g., communication and implementation of policies) • Workplace engagement, perceived control over work schedule, and time-use during the outbreak • Changed in employees’ work practices and time management, and productivity • The benefits and pitfalls of shifting patterns of work and work norms on employee well- being, leisure time, work-life balance, family and community engagement The Coronavirus outbreak presents organizations and employees with a unique opportunity to learn how to build an agile culture in which employees at all levels of the organization feel empowered to respond and adapt more efficiently to any emerging changes. It is likely that organizations will face similar disruptions in the future. It is therefore crucial to develop a toolkit based on rigorous research that both employers and employees can use to effectively manage the demands of today’s unpredictable world, leading to positive outcomes for their personal well-being, their capacity to perform, and outcomes for the organization as a whole. About you: We are looking for partner organizations that are interested in collaborating with us on this research project. An ideal organization would: 1. Be willing to participate in interviews. Previous experience with research is not required 2. Be willing to conduct surveys and share existing data. Any data will be stored anonymously. 3. Be willing to publish the anonymous results of the study in academic journals, Harvard Business Review articles and Harvard Business School case studies. Timeline: We are hoping to launch studies with partner organizations ASAP. Contact: If interested, please email awhillans@ hbs.edu or lgiurge@london.edu stating your name, position, and email address of the main point person at your organization. Collaborators Laura M. Giurge is a Postdoctoral Research Associate at London Business School and a rising scholar in the field of time, engagement, and the future of work. She is also affiliated with the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford, and works together with various nonprofit and for-profit company collaborators around the world to improve workplace engagement, time management, employee well-being, and productivity. Laura is passionate about conducting experimental and behavioral field studies and has published her research in leading academic and popular press outlets including Nature Human Behaviour and Harvard Business Review. Ashley V. Whillans is an Assistant Professor at the Harvard Business School. She was named a Rising Star of Behavioral Science, co-founded the Department of Behavioral Science of the British Columbia Public Service Agency, and is currently part of the Global Happiness Council in the UAE. She has extensive experience conducting large-scale field experiments around the world with non-profit and public-sector partners, with a focus on the topics of time, money, and happiness. She has written about her research, which has appeared in numerous outlets, including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the LA Times, CNN, BBC, The Atlantic, The Economist, and the Wall Street Journal. Her first book – Happier Time – was published in 2020 by Harvard Business Press. OPENING L INES