Work transformation and professional mobility: towards new practices in human resource management in enterprises

Correlatively, increasing complexity and unpredictability of their environment encourage enterprises to undertake profound transformations in their organization. These involve the development of professional mobility which aims at adapting human resources to the new requirements of work in some a mechanic way. In contradiction to this functionalist approach of professional mobility, it is our opinion that it should be defined as a psycho-social transition which facilitates the significations necessary to the treatment of the uncertainties of work. The sense construction processes at work in these transition phases are accompanied by identity repositionings which become a part of the definition of new professional roles. A study of 251 technicians involved in ascending professional mobility reveals the existence of identity strategies, the elaboration of which implies a plurality of existential domains beyond the sphere of work. These strategies account for an active socialization which does not confine itself to the role model linked to the required professional status. They are dependent on the socio-biographic characteristics of the individuals, the influence of which is moderated or mediated by the signification processes they use. These results contribute to the defining of new orientations for human resources management techniques in the organization of work.

Jean Luc Megemont, Raymond Dupuy, Work transformation and professional mobility: towards new practices in human resource management in enterprises in "RISORSA UOMO " 1/2003, pp , DOI: