2022 Future of Work Research Prize awarded to Brittany Torrez from Yale University
Zurich (Switzerland) — 15 December 2022
Brittany Torrez (Yale University) receives the second annual UZH CLFW Future of Work Research Prize; Alexandra Kirienko (London School of Economics and Political Science) is honored as runner-up.
The Center for Leadership in the Future of Work is delighted to announce the winner and runner-up for the second annual Future of Work Research Prize.
Brittany Torrez, a PhD student from Yale University, has been honored with the award for her project entitled “Camera Off, Inclusion On: The Role of Virtual Work Governance in Shaping Agency and Well-Being Amongst Racially Minoritized Employees” with collaborators Prof. Michael W. Kraus and Prof. Cydney H. Dupree. As remote and hybrid work increases and boundaries between personal and professional lives become ever more blurred, racially minoritized employees–who are often both highly visible and intensely scrutinized in the workplace–face new challenges and have new opportunities to manage their self-presentations. Torrez, Kraus, and Dupree’s research thus aims to examine in surveys, experimental studies, and qualitative interviews how organizational governance of self-presentation in the virtual workplace–that is, whether employees have greater or lesser control over their self-presentation, such as being able to turn the camera off–shapes agency and employee well-being among racially minoritized employees. The results of this research will help to provide practical guidance to organizational leaders in their aim to structure an inclusive future of work when using new ways of working enabled through technology. Click on the image above to view a short video of Brittany Torrez’s research proposal.
The jury members also selected a runner-up, Alexandra Kirienko, a PhD student from the London School of Economics and Political Science, for her project entitled “Is Hybrid Work the Future of Work? Examining Outcomes of Different Hybrid Work Arrangements on Employee Well-Being and Productivity” with collaborator Prof. Laura M. Giurge. While past research suggests that working outside the office can boost productivity and well-being, there is no research to date that has explored how different configurations of hybrid work affect employees, or how hybrid work compares to the traditional five-days-in-office model. Kirienko and Giurge’s research thus aims to examine in experiments and longitudinal field studies with organizations how different hybrid and non-hybrid work arrangements shape key employee outcomes. For instance, does having the employee or their manager determine which days are spent at the office shape the benefits of hybrid work? The results of this research can help to inform organizational leaders on how to best design hybrid work arrangements.
The Center would also like to congratulate the three additional finalists for the submission of their exciting projects:
Annabelle Hofer (University of Cologne), “Sustainable career development in times of precariousness: Organizational and individual interventions to reduce job and career insecurity”
Sophie Pychlau (University of Oregon), “Understanding belongingness in the gig economy – The uplifting and undermining effects of online communities on lonely gig workers”
Mihwa Seong (University of St. Gallen), “Marginalized entrepreneurs’ navigation of networking processes and challenges: A mixed methods approach”
The team at the CLFW would like to thank all of the submitters for their excellent contributions and inspirational research questions, all of which spoke to important human challenges in the future of work. We wish you all the best of luck with the future of your research!
The Future of Work Research Prize will return next year, opening submissions for the third annual prize in Summer 2023. Sign up to our newsletter to stay informed of the publication of solicitations for submission.