Full Description
This book examines how individuals and organizations in Africa have found ways to integrate work and life roles effectively. It reflects on the notions that while many cultures have embraced women's participation in the workplace, African culture has been more resistant to change thereby forcing companies and employees to invent their own solutions. This presents its own set of challenges, for example African organizations are generally not up to speed with the family-friendly policies that are required in the modern workplace; the effectiveness of such policies is questionable and there is an increasing realization that work-family policies are not the only way to achieve work-life integration and others may be considered, such as workplace mentoring and introducing incentives.
With this in mind the authors consider multiple approaches to balancing work and life responsibilities with emphasis on three perspectives, namely organizational, individual and family and cultural.The book highlights and examines the joint responsibility that organizations, leaders and individuals have in achieving work life integration. Secondly the book considers why work-life integration initiatives fail and identifies the sources and remedies for these failures. Each chapter discusses the role of the identified dimensions necessary for collective achievement of work-life integration, while the final chapter sets out further research avenues and a conceptual framework that brings together the findings of the book.
Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction: Overview of the Book and Book Chapters.- Chapter 2: Work-life Integration: Overview and Trends.- Chapter 3: Organizational Production Process and Work-Life Integration.- Chapter 4: Technology and its Impact on Work-life Integration - Chapter 5 : Family Friendly Policies: Trend and Expectations in Africa.- Chapter 6: Evaluation of the Contributions of Work-Life Friendly Policies in Managing Work-Life Integration in Africa.- Chapter 7: Leadership and Organizational Climate: Effects on Work-life Integration. Chapter 8 : Understanding and Evaluation of Self: Role in Work-life Integration.- Chapter 9: Meaning of Life and Successful Life: Work-life Integration. Chapter 10: Understanding the Family Structure in Africa: Role in Work-life Integration.- Chapter 11: Revisiting the Gender Ideology: Traditional and Egalitarian Family Role Definition in Africa.- Chapter 12: Understanding the Multidimensional and Multifunctional Approach in Managing Work-life Integration .- Chapter 13: Future Directions of Work-life Integration Research in Africa.
