Evaluating of job crating intervention for employee’s wellbeing support - a case study of administrative employees at a higher education institution

Purpose: The aim of this article is to evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention designed to enhance motivation and competencies in job crafting, and to identify selected factors that may influence the outcomes. The study examined the extent to which participation in a one-day workshop would enhance levels of task crafting, relational crafting, and cognitive crafting, as well as verifying whether employees' engagement would increase, and perceived work- related stress would decrease. Design/methodology/approach: A quasi-experimental procedure was used to achieve a goal. The procedure includes several stages, one of which was participation in a one-day workshop. Sample size of the intervention group (with workshop) was n = 23 of administrative employees from a private higher education institution, and control group n = 21 employees from the same organisation with comparable job characteristics. Findings: The results showed that the level of job crafting is related to individual characteristics such as self-efficacy and proactive attitude. In contrast, it does not depend on job characteristics such as autonomy and skill variety. In the conducted studies, no positive effects of the workshop on employee well-being were confirmed; however, it was noted that the workshop might act as a buffer protecting against a decline in well-being due to organizational factors. Research limitations/implications: The limitations of the research result from both the small size of the research sample and the narrow specialization of the surveyed employees. There is a need for research on other professional groups and in other sectors. Practical implications: Due to the pilot nature of the study and the limitations of the study mentioned above - no practical implications are identified. Originality/value: The research represents the first attempt in Poland to verify effects the of organizational intervention related to job crafting among administrative university employees.