Get what you give? : investigating employer and young professionals' psychological contracts in European SMEs

Mihelič, Katarina Katja (author), Bailey, Mark (author), Brueckner, Julie (author), Postuła, Agnieszka (author), Zupan, Nada (author)

This paper looks at psychological contracts in small and medium-sized enterprises, an underrepresented topic in the psychological contract literature. Adopting a multi-perspective approach, we explore what employers and young professionals expect regarding their employment obligations. The results of a qualitative research design and interviews conducted in four European countries reveal the importance of competence and performance-enhancing behaviours on one side and support for performance and development, good working conditions, autonomy, flexibility, workelife balance, and relationships on the other. Moreover, we identify what is offered and expected by both members of the dyad and shed light on the changing dynamics of today's psychological contracts. Our findings hold implications for both employers wishing to retain their best young professionals and individuals interested in understanding what small and medium-sized enterprises are offering prospective candidates.

• Language: English
• Keywords: SMEs, labour market, employment, contract labour, psychological contract, employers, young professionals, expectations, obligations, qualitative analysis
• Work type: Article
• Typology: 1.01 - Original Scientific Article
• Organization: EF - School of Economics and Business
• Publication status: Published
• Publication version: Version of Record
• Year: 2021
• Number of pages: Str. 86-99
• Numbering: Vol. 23, iss. 2 (art. 3)
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-129061
• UDC: 331.5
• ISSN on article: 2335-4216
• DOI: 10.15458/2335-4216.1008
• COBISS.SI-ID: 72427267
• Publication date in RUL: 25.08.2021

Record is a part of a journal

• Title: Economic and business review
• Publisher: Ekonomska fakulteta
• ISSN: 2335-4216
• COBISS.SI-ID: 268649216

Licences

• License: CC BY-NC-ND 4.0, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
• Link: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
• Description: The most restrictive Creative Commons license. This only allows people to download and share the work for no commercial gain and for no other purposes.
• Licensing start date: 01.01.2021

Secondary language

• Language: Slovenian
• Keywords: majhna in srednja podjetja, trg dela, zaposlovanje, pogodbeno delo

Projects

• Funder: EC - European Commission
• Funding programme: H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
• Project number: 734824
• Name: Global Entrepreneurial Talent Management 3
• Acronym: GETM3