technology and managing people:

Technology and Managing People" Keeping the "Human" in Human Resources

JANICE S. MILLER

University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, W153201

ROBERT L. CARDY

Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ 85287

I. Introduction

Human resources management (HRM) has responded to several major evolutionary changes in organizational life during the past few decades. These changes include challenges of managing a more diverse work force, re-engineering and total quality management, globalized competition, and the expanded role of information systems and telecommunications technology. At times HRM has responded to organizational change in a reactive way, following rather than leading. Likewise, academic researchers occa- sionally label new fields of inquiry as "atheoretical," needlessly reinventing the wheel with studies that replicate earlier work, a phenomenon that may occur with HRM and information technology. Both of the above responses to the challenge of change are costly in terms of time wasted. Opportunities slip by for the HR field to be proactive in helping organizations achieve their strategic goals, as well as for researchers to do studies that move new fields forward. We explore the special challenges of the HRM/technology interface to suggest a research framework that builds on prior theory development and also acknowledges the strategic role HRM should play in organizations.

Importantly, we recognize the potential for impaired commitment or morale that may arise when an organization confronts difficult new challenges, and specifically when it reconfigures to accommodate technology. Therefore, a key premise of our model is the importance of acknowledging some constant, immutable, and enduring themes in organizational life. While we suggest research propositions that are theory based and promote a strategic view of HRM, we also recognize the importance of these fundamental beliefs about managing people. Specifically, people and organizations need stability and core values, even in a changing environment. They both benefit from fulfilling the terms of a psychological contract. And finally, we endorse a "human relations" view, such that regardless of the technological skills that individuals master, interpersonal skills will still be essential in work organizations.

We focus on information-technology workers, but the research propositions are applicable to a wide array of work situations. Characteristics of information-technology- intensive jobs should nonetheless heighten the impact of the proposed human resource

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448 JOURNAL OF LABOR RESEARCH

practices. For example, actions meant to socialize employees and increase their identification with the organization may be beneficial for all types of workers. However, the effect of these actions may have the greatest potential for information-technology workers since they are often physically remote from the organization (as in telecommuting or "skunk works" settings) and may perceive themselves to be at the organization's margin. Efforts to increase ties with the firm potentially have a much more salient effect for information-technology workers whose job characteristics create more distance from organizations. Likewise, our research propositions are not necessarily unique only to the information-technology domain, but the predicted effects should be particularly strong for workers in information-technology-intensive positions.

The unpopularity of the creation of distance worker positions with labor unions (Hamilton, 1987) is instructive for human resources management. A key concern of unions regarding distance work is that the workers are difficult to organize because the technology that gives workers the flexibility and freedom from being tethered to a cen- tralized location and fixed schedules makes workers more difficult to unionize. This organizing impediment illustrates the difficulty of implementing and maintaining effective HRM programs in an information-technology intensive environment. Workers who are not at a central location may be much more difficult to involve in various HR efforts, such as training workshops and even social functions. Developing a sense of community can be difficult when members of the community are remote. However, the task is not impossible and can be accomplished through dedication, innovation, and, perhaps, the use of technology itself. In our opinion, the rewards of developing a feeling of community in the face of difficulties posed by technology are well worth the efforts. Shar- ing a clear organizational identity and common values can improve performance, increase efficiency, and reduce turnover, among other things (Chatman, 1991; O'Reilly et al., 1991). Beyond the utility of these efforts, how an organization deals with its remote and potentially most marginal workers can reveal much about the values and character of the organization. The means of managing its distance workers could be considered an opportunity for the organization to demonstrate its character.

In sum, effective management of information-technology workers may pose extra difficulty. However, effective HR management of these workers is important from both the perspective of utility and ethics,

The remainder of this study develops research propositions in regard to HR and information technology. Our dependent variables in the research propositions come from the psychological contract literature. This research stream focuses on trust and met expectations between individuals and organizations. By effectively managing the psychological contract, firms may avoid the negative ramifications of contract breach. Specifically, psychological contract breach is negatively related to three forms of employee contributions: performance, citizenship behaviors,l and intentions to remain with the organization (Robinson, 1996). These and similar constructs are frequently included in HR strategy research (cf. Huselid, 1995), and there are well-established

JANICE S. MILLER and ROBERT L. CARDY 449

methods available to measure them. In Section II, we present three HRM inputs that must precede placing an employee in a work environment with high information- technology demands. Section III discusses four throughputs that should occur concur- rently with an employee's experience in this type of organization. Work-related and non-work-related outcomes of various technology systems are the focus of Section IV, and a summary and conclusions follow in Section V.

II. Inputs

The level and sophistication of technology implementation is one dimension on which organizations differ. In some firms, technology denotes integrated manufacturing technology 2 and the components associated with it. In others, technology chiefly comprises the distance communication techniques that allow e-mail, virtual teams, and video conferencing to alter traditional ways of accomplishing work. In some organizations, technology refers to the telecommuting or distance worker who may rarely come to the workplace, if he or she comes at all. In its least sophisticated manifestation, technology's role in some organizations merely suggests a support function composed of individuals who perform highly routinized tasks at home, similar to the piecework that characterized earlier industrial eras. We have chosen not to draw fine distinctions among levels, degrees, and purposes of technology implementation. Unless otherwise noted, the research propositions we present are meant to apply across organizational technology settings. Regardless of the system or venue, there is evidence that more often the mismanagement of people, rather than failure of technologies, prevents firms from real- izing the full potential of technological innovation (Snell and Dean, 1992). Some studies have suggested there is a 50-75 percent failure rate when implementing integrated technologies in manufacturing firms (Guimares and Igbaria, 1997), mostly due to neglect of people factors. Furthermore, at least 20 percent of telecommuting arrangements fail either because of firms' fear of losing control over employees or because employees have unrealistic expectations (McCune, 1998).

Prior theory development has suggested an open-systems approach to the work of organizations (Katz and Kahn, 1978). In this system, environmental inputs are trans- formed into outputs via the social structures of human behavior. Wright and Snell (1991) adapted open systems theory to the field of human resources by incorporating the "competencies" of individual members. According to these researchers, individuals move into, through, and out of firms with the human resource system functioning as a link between the environment and the organization. This theory also provides a useful theoretical framework for combining human resources, technology, and the firm's strategic goals. Figure 1 presents the open system model of HR and technology which we propose as a framework for this research.

Values. Researchers are beginning to investigate the effects of information technology on the social experience of those who use it. For example, awareness exists that the nature of some computerized jobs may increase productivity, but at the same time


Figure 1

An Open System Model of Human Resources and Technology

ORGANIZATION

The Technology System

HR INPUTS Prior to

Technology Implementation

�9 Organization values �9 Training �9 Staffing

HR THROUGHPUTS Concurrent with

Technology �9 Implementation

l * Performance appraisal �9 Mentoring �9 Compensation �9 Social Support

i HR OUTPUTS Consequences of

Technology Implementation

"l Work-Related �9 Career outcomes

Non- Work-Related �9 Family adjustment

it can degrade the lives of employees (Kraut et al., 1989). This can happen via the com- parative isolation experienced by telecommuters who work at a distance from the organization, decreasing satisfaction and involvement with work colleagues and increasing the sense of rootlessness that arises in a more impersonal, automated environment. As evidence, some research suggests that development of relational links between individuals encourages positive outcomes such as increased morale, better decisions, and fewer process losses (Warkentin et al., 1997). Furthermore, data from a study by Kraut et al. (1989) showed that the negative effects of technology were reduced in better- managed offices where individuals enjoyed more flexible work arrangements. Related "high commitment" or "high performance" HRM practices, such as investment in build- ing worker skills and reducing status barriers between managers and workers, contribute to a psychological contract of reciprocal commitment between an organization and its members (MacDuffie and Krafcik, 1992). Workers in advanced information- technology environments should expend more initiative and mental effort on their jobs if they believe there is a genuine alignment between their values and the company's. They are in a position to benefit as much as individuals in traditional jobs from relationships based on consistency and good faith and the presence of widely shared and firmly held values. Accordingly, we offer the following proposition:

Proposition 1: Value congruence between employees and organizations will be positively associated with performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay among workers in information-technology-intensive jobs.


Staffing. Snell and Dean (1992) demonstrated empirically that selective staffing practices (i.e., more active recruiting, greater time and money spent on the selection process, input from more people) were positively related to integrated manufacturing. To date, no study has investigated selective staffing specifically involving individuals in other information management settings (e.g., virtual teams, teleworkers, home-based computer "piece workers"). Huselid (1995) found strong results for selective staffing practices at the finn level, but did not investigate job-level outcomes. Presently some reports suggest that as many as 77 percent of firms offer distance work options to employees (Greengard, 1994), yet it is reasonable to assume that people are differen- tially attracted to these careers as a function of their own interests and personality (Schneider, 1987). Indeed, some have suggested that individuals who hold these jobs are variously: self-motivated, task-oriented, risk-seeking, and possess high needs for autonomy and low needs for affiliation (Zeleny, 1998). Moreover, a person/organization fit approach implies that staffing procedures for jobs that involve virtual teamwork should include screening for patience, persistence, tolerance, and flexibility (Warkentin et al., 1997). Technological competence, while important, may not be the most critical selection criterion. Selective staffing and information workers' personality characteristics merit further study, and these considerations suggest the following propositions:

Proposition 2: Use of selective staffing procedures with information-technology workers will be positively associated with performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay.

Proposition 3: Degree of fit between personality characteristics and information-technology job type will be positively associated with performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay.

Training and Competencies. A critical issue in training efforts among technolog- ically focused organizations is the task of achieving a balance between a concern for mastery of mechanical facets of automation on one hand and for command of traditional "people issues" on the other. Firms that provide their members with high technology tools for performing their jobs (i.e., desktop video-conferencing systems, collaborative software systems, virtual teams) implement increasingly flat (or horizontal) organizational structures (Townsend et al., 1998), so teaching people to master technology is only one aspect of the training process. Individuals must also acquire the interpersonal and behavioral tools necessary to implement self-management. However, in 1991 only 12 percent of the work force received any formal on-the-job training of any kind (Perry, 1991), and likely an even smaller percentage received group process or self-management training. Thus, despite a growing literature on training and tactics to achieve user acceptance of information technology (Guimaraes and Igbaria, 1997; Walton and Sus- man, 1987), research is needed to measure the benefits of training that focuses on teamwork and interpersonal skills for the information-technology worker.

Technology can introduce such change in an organization that identification of job requirements is like chasing a moving target. Upgraded technology can bring with


it changes in work content and process. Furthermore, the changes are dynamic, not static. That is, changes due to the implementation of intensive technology often bring with them decentralization in decision making and greater worker independence. Moreover, technology makes it possible to easily and quickly share information among workers and to form teams, perhaps virtual ones, around projects. Technology can reduce the time needed for previously labor-intensive tasks, but can increase the need for effective communication and interpersonal skills.

Given the capabilities offered by technology the particular tasks performed by workers can change dramatically over time and across projects. This organizational reality poses serious problems for identifying the worker knowledge, skills, abilities, personality, and other characteristics needed for maximal performance in this environment. Traditional job analysis falters when confronted with a dynamic work environment (Carson and Stewart, 1996). Given the influence of technology, the tasks identified through job analysis could be out of date by the time the list of tasks is compiled. It fol- lows that the inferred worker characteristics given those tasks could also be in error and specify technical skills and knowledge that are no longer important.

Identifying competencies needed in a dynamic environment requires an approach to job analysis that identifies underlying stable characteristics even though tasks are changing (Cardy, 1993). One approach, for example, focuses directly on identifying skills, personality, values, and other worker characteristics important for performance in the dynamic work environment. Table 1 presents a set of important worker characteristics found in a study involving managers in dynamic work environments (Cardy, 1993). The managers rated hundreds of personality traits, skills, and values for importance of performance in their organizations. Table 1 presents only those characteristics that received an average importance rating of 6 or greater on a 1 (Not at all important) to 7 (Very Important) rating scale and had standard deviations less than 1.00. As the list demonstrates, the characteristics considered most critical by managers have to do with interpersonal relations and how the worker approaches the job. Furthermore, out of a wide number of skills, the only two that met the importance criterion have to do with effective expression and reception. Obviously, these managers considered the process of work more important than the content of work. In a dynamic environment, the emphasis on process is not a surprise since content, and the technical skills it entails, is in flux.

The important point is that competencies necessary for performance in dynamic work environments can be identified. However, we emphasize that we are not promoting the direct use of traits and other characteristics, such as those identified in Table l, in HRM programs such as selection or performance appraisal. These characteristics need to be clearly and unambiguously defined so that reliable and valid measures can be developed. As HR professionals widely recommend (Gomez-Mejia et al., 1998), we suggest developing behavioral definitions of such characteristics. The critical incident technique (Cardy and Dobbins, 1994) could be used for this purpose. The behavioral descriptions could provide a behavioral basis for selection interviewing or testing and for training and appraisal. Consequently, we offer the following proposition:

J A N I C E S. M I L L E R an d R O B E R T L. C A R D Y 453

T a b l e 1

Dimensions, Associated Characteristics, and Skills

1. Innovation �9 Being Innovative

�9 Imaginative

�9 Creative

�9 Perceptive

2. Facilitation �9 Sharing Information Freely

�9 Being Supportive

�9 Praising Good Performance

3. Team Orientation �9 Flexibility

�9 Adaptability

�9 Working in Collaboration

�9 Honesty/Integrity

�9 Team Oriented

�9 Cooperative

�9 Trustworthy

4. Reliable �9 Reliable

�9 Conscientious

�9 Thorough

�9 Cooperative

5. Work Orientation �9 Enthusiasm

�9 Emphasis on Quality

�9 Recognition for Performance

�9 Taking Initiative

�9 High Performance

�9 Expectations

�9 Enthusiastic

�9 Active

Skills

Oral Comprehension

Oral Expression

Proposition 4: Firms that provide self-management and interpersonal skills training for information-technology users will realize positive outcomes in terms of performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay.

Proposition 5: Firms that base hiring and training programs on more stable job-relevant person characteristics rather than on changeable task characteristics will realize positive outcomes in terms of performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay.


III. Throughputs

Performance Appraisal. Organizations and work processes that undergo significant change - - as when implementing new information technologies - - confront the challenge of establishing an infrastructure to support the new system. Performance appraisal and other factors included in the "throughput" portion of the open-system model are components of this infrastructure. The appraisal function is unique because it serves both administrative and developmental purposes in organizations (Cardy and Dobbins, 1994). Appraisals that focus on determining pay, promotion, and other administrative outcomes are qualitatively different from those whose purpose is promoting employee development, learning, and continuous improvement. The sophistication of integrated manufacturing technology, virtual environments, and distance work raises the possi- bility of nearly fully automated performance monitoring. Monitoring may comprise counts of production, error rates, and time taken to process items. Some have even suggested that appraisal of work outcomes will become entirely numerical as computerized systems provide employees with instant feedback (Irving et al., 1986). While immedi- ate feedback may act as a motivator, overemphasis on quantitative performance measures at the expense of qualitative judgments diminishes the level of developmental feedback provided to an employee and may have negative consequences in terms of employee satisfaction.

Threats to an effective performance appraisal system in the technology-driven workplace are threefold: (1) distance workers may receive decreased feedback from supervisors (Shamir and Salomon, 1985); (2) process issues (which can be critical in customer-service settings) may be neglected in favor of emphasis on an outcome orientation, and (3) the developmental quality of supervisor-employee relationships may deteriorate if distance technologies de-emphasize face-to-face interaction. Although automated performance evaluation systems may add value in a virtual environment, we believe that organizations and individuals benefit greatly from increased emphasis on developmental appraisals and personal interactions between supervisor and employees. Thus, we offer the following research proposition for organizations employing high levels of information technology:

Proposition 6: Use of frequent and face-to-face developmental appraisal will be positively associated with performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay among information- technology workers.

Mentoring. Mentoring relationships have proven to be one key to a number of desirable outcomes in organizational life. For example, mentored individuals report more satisfaction (Fagenson, 1989), greater career mobility and opportunity (Scandura, 1992; Stumpf and London, 1981), and a higher promotion rate than those who were not mentored (Dreher and Cox, 1996). Nonetheless, a telecommuting worker faces greater obstacles to formation of mentoring relationships than individuals in traditional work settings. Telecommuters miss out on spending social time with others in an organiza-


tion, impeding their opportunity to establish mentor contacts. Being off-site and hav- ing less face-to-face contact with potential mentors compounds the fact that some people are less likely to be comfortable with the relatively assertive role behavior required in approaching a co-worker and requesting establishment of a mentoring relationship. Furthermore, mentoring may be more critical in some kinds of organizations than others. In a pioneering qualitative study of mentoring and telecommuters, Cooper et al. (1999) speculated that mentoring may not be as necessary in municipal government where promotion may reflect time in grade as much as benefits of mentoring from colleagues and supervisors. Thus, contingency factors including organization type may be fruitful areas for further mentoring and telecommuting research. However, we suggest that the interpersonal network and psychosocial support that mentoring provides will remain important factors in organizational outcomes such as pay and promotion for telecommuting employees. The following proposition reflects this reasoning:

Proposition 7: Mentoring relationships will be positively associated with performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay among information-technology workers.

Compensation. Advances in telecommunications and computer technology and delayered organization structures have contributed to the proliferation of team-based work systems and virtual teams. However, unless organizations support such teams with reward structures that are consistent with team processes and objectives, they risk the folly of "rewarding A while hoping for B" (Kerr, 1975). As noted above, information systems permit close monitoring and instant performance feedback, allowing managers to tie rewards more closely to performance (Robey, 1989). In this respect, there are some obvious ways to fit organizational reward structures to features of technology systems. For example, it is a simple matter to pay people for achieving measurable and easily monitored goals in an information systems environment. Meanwhile, organizations frequently do little to match an emphasis on teamwork and collaboration with team-based pay strategies. In the case of virtual teams, individuals may have either full- or part-time commitment to a project. Membership may be static or rotating, with individuals coming on and going off the project as needed. Whatever the configuration, it is a challenge to devise pay systems that reward flexibility, self-management, and mutual accountability for results along with the process skills that are essential in a team setting. Consequently, we suggest that supplementing pay strategies with rewards based on collective results will promote an organizational culture that reinforces desired collaborative behaviors (Anfuso, 1995). Examples of pay components that support teamwork could include phantom stock, profit sharing, royalties, or other rewards based on the success of joint efforts (Flannery et al., 1996). Therefore, we propose:

Proposition 8: Team-based compensation strategies will be positively associated with performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay among information-technology workers.

Social Support. Literature on international adjustment emphasizes the importance of role clarity and social support from supervisors and co-workers in facilitating adjust-


ment to a new situation (Black et al., 1991). Theory and findings from this research stream may contribute to research with information systems workers, particularly those in distance or telework environments, who may have to adjust to unfamiliar role requirements and expectations, and who must do so while isolated from the physical center of operations. Providing social support in the form of employee involvement practices, inclusion in office meetings, social events, and distribution lists, as well as sponsoring membership in professional organizations may all minimize the potential loss of social- professional networks that can be incurred by distance workers (Hamilton, 1987). In addition, attention to organizational social-support mechanisms should not only strengthen the psychological contract between distance workers and firms, but also result in increased morale and fewer process losses. Thus,

Proposition 9: There will be a positive relationship between implementation of social-support systems and performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay among distance and telecommuting employees.

IV. Outputs

Human resource outputs comprise the consequences of technology implementation in the changing workplace. The process model in Figure 1 suggests that consequences may be work-related as well as non-work-related. In the former case, there can be measurable effects on organizational outcomes. In the latter, outcomes spill over from the workplace to become integrated with other areas of an information-technology worker's life experience. Presently there is consensus that a positive relationship exists between workplace technology and efficiency, productivity, and customer service outcomes (cf. Greengard, 1994; Hamilton, 1987; Hill et al., 1998). Thus, we discuss a work-related consequence that may be less clear-cut and one with substantial potential as a focus of research.

Career Outcomes. Telecommuting may have significant career implications for workers and their organizations. Tomaskovic-Devey and Risman (1993) reported that professionals who are likely to be allowed to telecommute are overwhelmingly - - although not entirely - - males, and that clerical telecommuting work by contrast is almost totally confounded with female gender. They viewed this phenomenon as orga- nized specifically to take advantage of the labor market restrictions associated with the female family role. Other scholars report that teleworking male professionals view working from a home office as a status symbol, while women - - who are more likely to fulfill clerical roles - - see commuting to a workplace as a higher status role than working from home (Zeleny, 1998). Hamilton (1987) suggested that employees who grow accustomed to working from home may even be unwilling to return to the office when a promotion opportunity arises. This carries implications for EEO/Affirmative Action programs and personnel planning in general. Thus, it may be necessary to mon- itor the career path of telecommuting women, minorities, and older employees for evidence of adverse impact in the event a discrimination claim were to be filed.


Moreover the relative isolation of telecommuting poses another threat to career development. For example, to the degree that promotion is associated with active poli- ticking, impression management, and physical presence, telecommuters may be at a dis- advantage compared to their co-workers in traditional settings. Cooper et al. (1999) believe that the grapevine and interpersonal networking are more critical in private - - as opposed to public sector - - firms and that telecommuting more seriously affects the professional development of employees in the former organizations. This is another aspect of the technology/HR interface where the organizational expatriate literature sup- plies some guidance. Similar to telecommuters, expatriates often experience a sense of isolation, greater turnover, and reduced career opportunities than their colleagues who remain in the home office (Black et al., 1991; Gregerson and Black, 1992). Expatriate researchers suggest highly selective staffing practices, adequate training and orientation, and attention to career planning as means to diminish the effects of isolation. These issues present opportunities for additional research into HRM aspects of technology:

Proposition 10: In the absence of formal career development efforts, telework and telecommuting will lead to adverse effects on women, minorities, and older employees.

Proposition 11: There will be a negative relationship between workplace emphasis on impression management, politics, and interpersonal contact and career advancement among teleworkers and telecommuters.

Proposition 12: Investments in selective staffing, training, and orientation will be negatively related to feelings of isolation and career derailment among teleworkers and telecommuters.

Family Adjustment. One of the attractions of using technology to facilitate remote work is the potential to smoothly integrate job duties into one's family life. In other words, positive aspects of doing telework may include the ability to simultaneously care for children or elders, to be available to them in case of illness or emergency, to work during one's own personal peak hours whether they be early morning or late night, and to balance work and home responsibilities. While all these aspects of telework have great appeal, little research has investigated the topic of work/life balance in a telecommuting environment. There is considerable disagreement whether all the potential benefits of telework are actually realized. For example, it may be common to overestimate how easy it is to supervise children while working at a computer. Furthermore, providing the opportunity to be connected to a job 24 hours a day may only fuel the addic- tion of people who tend to be "workaholics," leading to an inability to separate work from home life that culminates in burnout (Hill et al., 1998). Hill et al. (1998) offer both qualitative and quantitative data to support the assertion that the virtual office has the potential to blur boundaries between work and home life. This is a meaningful focus for research since empirical evidence confirms that intrusion of one role into another leads to feelings of distress (Williams and Alliger, 1994). Indeed, Shamir and Salomon (1985) theorize that commute time between home and office may actually serve as a


buffer of time and space that provides an opportunity to decompress and prevent the transfer of stress from one life sphere to another.

It is likely that an array of contingency factors play a critical role in whether or not an employee can achieve work/family balance. Hill et al. (1998) found that individuals with preschool children made more successful adjustments to the virtual office. Pos- sibly demands of small children that cannot be ignored make it easier to put a stop to work and turn to other activities. Meanwhile, individuals with older (or no) children in the home may experience fewer quitting cues, and consequently toil in an ever-expand- ing work day.

Furthermore, characteristics of the work itself may contribute to the ability to balance demands. Individuals engaged in clerical or rote tasks at home are analogous to pre-industrial cottage workers in many respects. In this sense, it may be easier to "turn off ' and turn away from more mindless and routinized tasks. Conversely, skilled information analysts and high-level professionals may become more engaged in their work and find it difficult to establish boundaries when working at home. Rather than balance, these individuals may confront elevated stress, marital discord, errors and burnout, rather than the hoped-for family life benefits of virtual work.

These factors suggest that HRM may make a meaningful contribution to employee well-being in the form of training and organizational support. Training could include virtual workshop sessions suggesting ways to establish firm physical and emotional boundaries between work and non-work, as well as rituals that set daily routines that facilitate disengagement from the virtual office (Hill et al., 1998). Based on this dis- cussion, we propose the following:

Proposition 13: Work~family balance will be positively related to the presence of preschool children in the home and to clerical or rote telework tasks.

Proposition 14: There will be a positive relationship between formal training and support in managing work~family balance and performance, citizenship behaviors, and individual intent to stay among distance and telecommuting employees.

V. Conclusion

The Information Age has revolutionized the workplace. While it is possible to purchase or copy machines and technology, their very interchangeability means they fail to create a sustained competitive advantage for an organization (Barney, 1991). The research directions this paper offers are intended to develop firm knowledge that allows creation of inimitable human resources. Importantly, in the rush to embrace new information technologies, organizations must remember the fundamental principle that workers will invest in firm goals in the presence of shared values and a commitment by the firm to make their well-being a priority. We urge continued attention to fulfillment of the psy-


chologica l contract, and to the "people issues" that f requent ly seem less crit ical than

issues o f hardware or technology.

We sugges t as we l l that scholars make inves tments in longi tudinal studies and

adhere to control group methodo log ies in pursuing this research, since the te lework lit-

erature to date relies pr imari ly on anecdotal information. In addition, there is a need for

internat ional studies that take into account cross-cul tural issues involved in dis tance

and vir tual work. The cha l lenges o f work ing ef fec t ive ly wi th t eam member s across

nat ional boundaries present an untapped field o f inquiry, and one with great potential

for sc ience to make a meaningfu l contribution.

N O T E S

1Citizenship behaviors are also referred to by other writers as organizational citizenship behaviors and civic virtue behaviors. These concepts refer to engaging in spontaneous behaviors that are not specified by the job description, but that may contribute to organizational effectiveness (Robinson, 1996).

2Integrated manufacturing technology includes the use of advanced manufacturing technology (including computer-aided manufacturing and computer aided process planning), just-in-time inventory control, and total quality management (Snell and Dean, 1992). These elements work interactively and require computer integration and advanced information technologies.

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