Purpose

This study investigates the antecedents of career initiative, a proactive behavior, whereby individuals engage in activities to promote their career development. The authors first argue that organizational tenure – the length of time employed within a specific organization – will exhibit a curvilinear or inverted-U-shaped relationship with career initiative. In the early years of an employment relationship, career initiative gradually increases as employees overcome the initial challenges of joining a new organization. However, career initiative will plateau and eventually decline as employees struggle to envision further development.

Design/methodology/approach

This study uses a survey design with data collected from the North American operations of a large global telecommunications company.

Findings

This study identifies two key mechanisms, both concerning relational context, that drive the curvilinear relationship between organizational tenure and career initiative: mentoring and barriers to networking. Specifically, increased mentoring and reduced barriers to networking both significantly weaken the curvilinear effect.

Research limitations/implications

The results suggest that organizations can promote proactive behaviors through employee mentoring and by removing network barriers, particularly for those most at risk for reduced career initiative: early- and especially later-tenure employees.

Originality/value

Career initiative is a valued behavior among employees, but individual-level phenomena can be fostered, or inhibited, by relational context. So, while some scholars have found a trend toward “boundaryless” careers, this study reveals the importance of considering how the boundaries and social context within organizations can create an environment in which employee proactivity can flourish.

中文翻译：

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抵消组织任期和职业主动性之间的曲线关系：指导和网络障碍的作用

目的

本研究调查了职业主动性的前因，这是一种主动行为，个人通过这种行为来参与促进其职业发展的活动。作者首先认为，组织任期——在特定组织内受雇的时间长度——将与职业主动性呈现曲线或倒 U 形关系。在雇佣关系的最初几年，随着员工克服加入新组织的最初挑战，职业主动性逐渐增强。然而，随着员工难以设想进一步的发展，职业主动性将趋于稳定并最终下降。

设计/方法/途径

本研究使用调查设计，数据来自一家大型全球电信公司的北美业务。

发现

这项研究确定了两个关键机制，它们都与关系环境有关，它们推动了组织任期和职业主动性之间的曲线关系：指导和网络障碍。具体来说，增加指导和减少网络障碍都会显着削弱曲线效应。

研究局限性/影响

结果表明，组织可以通过员工指导和消除网络障碍来促进积极主动的行为，特别是对于那些最有可能降低职业主动性的人：早期和后期任期的员工。

原创性/价值

职业主动性在员工中是一种有价值的行为，但个人层面的现象可以通过关系背景得到促进或抑制。因此，虽然一些学者发现了“无边界”职业的趋势，但这项研究揭示了考虑组织内部的边界和社会背景如何创造一个员工积极性可以蓬勃发展的环境的重要性。