Explore research partnership opportunities with the Future of Work Institute Partner with us Explore research partnership opportunities with the Future of Work Institute Partner with the Future of Work Institute Partnering with the Future Work Institute connects you with leading organisational psychology researchers who can help tackle your organisation’s most pressing challenges. Our research has helped organisations navigate complex workplace challenges, implement evidence-based solutions and achieve measurable impact across sectors. We provide opportunities for engagement and partnership at all points of the impact cycle Challenge framing Involves opportunities for discussion and planning to identify important future issues and establish the institute’s priority directions Collaborative projects The engine room where applied research is conducted across multiple themes Application and dissemination The production of practical resources including online tools, training programs and policy guidelines Evaluation Involves assessing effectiveness and building an evidence base for effective practices We have helped major organisations solve the following challenges: Equipping the mining industry with evidence-based recommendations into creating positive cultural change Applying work design interventions to address psychosocial risks within the healthcare and social assistance industry Working with organisations to understand their employees’ perception of their wellbeing and engagement Enhancing human capabilities and optimise overall system performance between humans and unmanned autonomous vehicles Investigating responsible and effective use of generative AI technologies in the workplace See our list of partners Our impact cycle Interested in partnering with us? Contact us for more information

We welcome PhD candidates who are passionate about improving work and contributing to healthier, more productive workforces. Study with us Browse current opportunities and find out why FOWI is the perfect place for a PhD. Is a PhD the right next step for me? Are you excited by the idea of conducting original research that could influence how millions of people experience work? Do you thrive on deep, sustained investigation into complex workplace problems? If you are intellectually curious, passionate about addressing complex workplace challenges, and eager to make a meaningful impact through research, pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) may be the ideal next step. At the Future of Work Institute (FOWI), we welcome candidates who are passionate about improving work and contributing to healthier, more productive workforces. What support and funding options are available? Eligible candidates may receive a Research Training Program (RTP) Scholarship, funded by the Australian Government. Each scholarship includes: Tax-free living stipend Tuition fee offset Additional allowances for research expenses In addition to financial support, you will benefit from a rich research experience, including: Opportunities to collaborate on industry-funded projects that shape real-world policy and practice Individualised supervision and mentoring from internationally recognised researchers A collaborative, inclusive environment with opportunities for personal and professional growth Publication and writing support to help you build a strong academic profile Access to conferences and networking opportunities to connect with global experts and peers Illustrative research projects (2026) PhD Project: Generative Artificial Intelligence Disruption in Talent Acquisition The project aims to unpack how generative artificial intelligence co-pilots will impact both the assessment of candidates seeking paid work and the evaluation of incumbents’ job performance. Supervisor: Professor Patrick Dunlop PhD Project: Motivational Assumptions of Leaders The project involves a comprehensive business school curriculum assessment, following the development of business school students’ motivational assumptions, developing a valid psychometric assessment of motivational assumptions, and testing different methods to change motivational assumptions. Supervisor: Professor Marylene Gagne PhD Project: Motivational Architecture This project involves developing and validating organisational design assessments across a variety of organisations and assess their influence on (1) manager’s leadership styles, and (2) employee motivation, performance, and well-being. Supervisor: Professor Marylene Gagne PhD Project: Modelling Human-Automation Team Decision Making This project addresses a major gap in our understanding of human-automation interaction, with direct implications for safety, productivity, and technology design in domains like aviation, defence and health care. By advancing theory and translating it to applied contexts, this project offers a rare bridge between psychological science and critical workplace challenges. Supervisor: Dr Luke Strickland Expressions of Interest have now closed Download our prospectus to learn more about the PhD experience at FOWI, explore available research projects and find detailed information on Curtin University’s Higher Degree by Research (HDR) application process. Download Current PhD candidates Contact Natalya Desai Project title: Adapting to new technologies in multidisciplinary healthcare units Natalya is investigating the introduction of two new technologies: Remote Monitoring System, designed to improve the quality of healthcare by 24/7 monitoring of acute patients, and the Undiagnosed Diseases Program (UDP), designed to increase the diagnostic rate of rare diseases. Supervisors: Professor Mark Griffin, Professor Marylene Gagne and Dr Georgia Hay Contact Eyüp İlker Camgöz Project title: Want more Leaders? Think Enriched Work Design Ilker is investigating whether enrichment of one's work design (which basically means the "awesomeness level" of one's work in terms of psychological factors) affects one's aspirations to become a leader (i.e.., leadership motivation, intentions and actual emergence), which may help us tackle the leadership shortage. Supervisors: Professor Sharon Parker, Dr Florian Klonek and Dr Anu Jolly. Contact Annika Mertens Project title: The Role of Work Design in the Technology Implementation Process in Healthcare In collaboration with Perth Children’s Hospital and Fiona Stanley Hospital, Annika is investigating how a new technology introduced at work changes existing work design and how existing work design impacts the technology implementation process. Supervisors: Professor Sharon Parker, Dr Madison Kho and Dr Gareth Baynam. Contact Rachel Xia Project title: The social class effect on employee selection Rachel's thesis aims to investigate how job candidates' social class signals influence recruiters' hiring evaluation and decisions, with the ultimate goal of helping organisations develop effective practices to mitigate unintentional discrimination and improve hiring quality. Supervisors: Professor Patrick Dunlop, Professor Amy Tian and Associate Professor Serena Wee. Contact Shannon Rowley Project title: Employee Recruitment Messaging, Anticipated Universal Needs Satisfaction, Value Congruence, and Individual Characteristics Shannon is investigating if employee recruitment activities, including information provided on career websites and job advertisements impacts jobseeker attraction and pursuit intentions through a motivation and fit perception lens. Supervisors: Professor Patrick Dunlop and Professor Marylene Gagne. Contact Yijing Liao Project title: Understanding how Generative AI Tools Influence Task Performance: The Role of Skill Level and Human Learning Yijing's research employs a range of experimental interventions to explore how Generative AI tools can impact workers learning or 'skill levelling'. Supervisors: Professor Sharon Parker, Dr Claire Mason and Professor Eva Kyndt. Contact Guofan Li Project title: Will AI Hire Me? - How and when AI Decisions Affect Applicant's Psychological Mechanisms, Reactions, and Intentions Guofan is exploring how AI decisions affect workers' psychological mechanisms, reactions, and intentions, as well as providing intervention measures to alleviate workers' negative reactions. Supervisors: Professor Sharon Parker, Dr Fangfang Zhang, and Professor Patrick Dunlop. Contact Wanghuan Lin Project title: A Unified Cognitive Model for Understanding Human Operators' use Automated Advice Wanghaun is using computational models to explore the affects of automation on human learning and decision-making, her research will examine if an over-reliance and dependance on information aids can influence cognitive processes, and whether key task-related factors such as workload and time pressure are impacted. Supervisors: Dr Luke Strickland and Professor Mark Griffin. What our students say "Professor Gagne is a walking example of a need-supportive and committed leader who brings out the best in people." - Dan Agate, PhD Candidate from the United States Learn about Dan's story PhD Alumni Dan Agate Project title: The Communication Dynamics Behind Team Motivation Emergence Completion year: 2025 Supervisors: John Curtin Distinguished Professor Marylène Gagné, Dr Florian Klonek, and Professor Thomas O'Neill Eva Zellman Project title: The role of leadership in managing an ageing and age-diverse workforce Completion year: 2024 Supervisors: Associate Professor Daniela Andrei and John Curtin Distinguished Professor Sharon Parker Hayley Moore Thesis title: I Can't Get No (Need) Satisfaction: Applying Basic Psychological Needs Theory to Foster Human Connection and Improved Applicant Reactions to Asynchronous Video Interviews Completion year: 2023 Supervisors: Professor Patrick Dunlop, John Curtin Distinguished Professor Marylène Gagné, Dr Djurre Holtrop Lucinda Iles Thesis title: An Investigation into the Organisational Challenges Associated with An Ageing and Age Diverse Workforce Completion year: 2023 Supervisors: Associate Professor Daniela Andrei and John Curtin Distinguished Professor Sharon Parker Notable achievements: Hal Kendig Prize for Best ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR) PhD Thesis 2023 Cheryl Sykes Thesis title: Thinking Beyond 'Sticks' in Australian Employment Services: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective Completion year: 2022 Supervisors: John Curtin Distinguished Professor Marylène Gagné and Professor John Phillimore Cheryl Yam Thesis title: Examining the Curvilinear Effects of Autonomy at Work Completion year: 2022 Supervisors: John Curtin Distinguished Professor Sharon Parker and Dr Laura Fruhen Notable achievements: Best paper in the Journal of Organisational Behaviour (2019) Belinda Cham Thesis title: Endurance in Extreme Work Environments Completion year: 2021 Supervisors: John Curtin Distinguished Professor Mark Griffin, Associate Professor Daniela Andrei, Dr Micah Kate Wilson, Dr Sam Huf Notable achievements: Eureka Prize Finalist (2021) Bin Wang Thesis title: Thrive in a Digital Age: Understanding ICT-enabled Work Experiences through the Lens of Work Design Completion year: 2020 Supervisors: John Curtin Distinguished Professor Sharon Parker and Dr Yukun Liu Notable achievements: Recipient of the Chinese Government Award for Outstanding Self-financed Students Abroad Fangfang Zhang Thesis title: Reorienting Job Crafting Research: Theoretical Clarification and Novel Investigations into Demands Crafting Completion year: 2020 Supervisors: John Curtin Distinguished Professor Sharon Parker and Professor Marylène Gagné Notable achievements: Best paper in the Journal of Organisational Behaviour (2019) 10 reasons to do your PhD at FOWI Learn more Testimonials from our PhD Alumni "Knowing that the research I do has a real impact on people in society, is a really rewarding experience." - Dr Cheryl Yam, FOWI Research Fellow and PhD Alumni Learn about Cheryl's story "One of the best aspects of doing a PhD at FOWI is that I can do both of these things at the same time. I receive great mentorship and guidance to develop my own research expertise, but I also get to conduct research that is impactful, multidisciplinary and collaborative... This has made my PhD journey more meaningful, interesting and varied." - Dr Belinda Cham, FOWI Research Fellow and PhD Alumni Learn about Belinda's story "The Centre for Transformative Work Design is a place where Work Design is researched, understood and practiced. You can hardly ask for a better environment in which to learn and conduct research." - Jia-Xin Tay (Jay) Ready to begin your PhD journey? Submit your Expression of Interest by 18 August 2025. Download our prospectus to learn more about the PhD experience at FOWI, explore available research projects and find detailed information on Curtin University’s Higher Degree by Research (HDR) application process. Download

Our Partners Browse through our extensive list of government, industry and not-for-profit partners Research partners The Future of Work Institute collaborates with other research partners in order to fulfill its vision of helping people and organisations thrive in the digital age. Work Science Center CEPAR The ARC Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (CEPAR) produces world class research on population ageing. The Centre is a unique collaboration bringing together academia, government and industry to address one of the major social challenges of the twenty first century. CIAO Centre of Expertise Inclusive Organisations Research Partners Industry partners The Centre works with industry partners across the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. Corporate Consultancy Societies and Interest Groups Not-for-profit Government partners The Centre works with a diverse range of state and federal government departments across Australia. State and Federal Interested in partnering with us? Contact us for more information

L.E.A.D model - Safety Leadership Project team Project lead Professor Mark Griffin Project member Tristan Casey Integrating psychology and systems perspectives Developed by Mark Griffin, LEAD is a model for safety leadership that provides organisations with four clear capabilities to target in order to improve safety. Assessment tools, workbooks, workshops and case study materials are available to develop a complete safety leadership program. Read more about this project

The Ageing Workforce Maximising the Productivity, Health and Well-Being of Mature Workers Project members Project lead Professor Sharon Parker Project lead Daniela Andrei Project lead Gigi Petery Project member Gina Chatelier Project member Jane Chong Project member Professor John Cordery Project member Christine Soo About the project We can't ignore that the workforce is ageing. With increasing life expectancy and changing welfare policies, many mature workers will have both the capacity and demand to work until until they are older. The health of our nation will be served through creating work that preserves the wellbeing and social, psychological, and mental capital of older workers. Our reserach, part of the ARC Centre of Excellence for Population Ageing Research (CEPAR), addresses these crucial challenges of work and ageing. Read more visit the CEPAR website Key Research Goals The aim of this research is to identify work designs and practices to attract and retain mature workers, thus enhancing their performance and wellbeing, and improving productivity within organisations and society more broadly. Specifically, there are three research questions addressed: 1. What are the factors that promote successful ageing in the workplace? 2. How can we promote successful teams, organisations, and societies by facilitating mature workforce participation? 3. How can organisations facilitate the optimal balancing of work and care responsibilities for mature employees? The outcomes of this research will inform best practice, organisational policies and implementation to enable older workers to participate longer in paid work while balancing this with their external care demands.

Thrive at Work Audit: Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia (RAC) Project members Project lead Professor Karina Jorritsma Project lead Megan Orchard Overview Led by Curtin University's Future of Work Institute (FOWI), Thrive at Work is a ground-breaking workplace well-being initiative centred on designing work that helps employees, organisations and industry to thrive. The Thrive at Work Audit is a practical and simple tool developed to assist organisations, of all sizes and maturity, in evaluating their current state and their progress towards creating a thriving workplace. The collaboration In 2018, the Future of Work Institute commenced a collaboration with the Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia (RAC) to undertake an audit of RAC’s current mental health and well-being activities across the pillars of the Thrive at Work Framework, which include: Mitigating Illness, Preventing Harm, and Promoting Thriving. The aim of the collaboration was for the audit results to inform the development of an RAC employee mental health and well-being strategy. As part of the audit process, RAC undertook three facilitated workshops that involved representatives across functional departments including Human Resources, Occupational Health and Safety, Organisational Development, and People and Culture. During these workshops, they consolidated their current workplace mental health and wellbeing activities and assessed the maturity of those activities using the Thrive at Work Framework. Visit the Thrive at Work website, to learn more Industry outcomes Where they sit currently Establish a baseline position in terms of mapping current policies, procedures, activities and practices against the Thrive at Work Framework. Mapping out the organisation Identify gaps, strengths, and opportunities for development. Take stock and assess impact Prioritise resources and investments based on their impact.

WA Department of Education Unplanned Absenteeism Analysis Project member Project lead Yukun Liu Overview Client: Western Australia Department of Education The Future of Work Institute (FOWI) partnered with the Western Australia Department of Education’s internal workplace planning team to investigate unplanned absenteeism within the department. This collaboration marked the first time that the WA Department of Education’s absenteeism data had been analysed for scientific purposes. Through rigorous statistical analyses, FOWI researchers generated several interesting findings and patterns. Highlights of the findings include: Yearly leave statistics by different categories such as job groups, leave types, regions, and schools; Statistical associations between staff demographics and duration and patterns of their unplanned leave; Pattern differences among teaching and support staff; Statistical associations between yearly leave patterns at the school-level and Index of Community Socio-Educational Advantage (ICSEA) and; Patterns of monthly leave durations at both the department level and the person level. Industry outcomes Generation of useful data Enabling the WA Department of Education to gain an overview using data insights. Identify features Thoroughly analyse leave patterns across different organisational levels, categories, and time periods. Reduce unplanned absenteeism Propose and design planning strategies or initiatives to effectively reduce department staff.

Work Systems Design Optimising the performance and wellbeing of humans in complex and human-machines systems Project members Chief Investigator Professor Sharon Parker Chief Investigator Professor Mark Griffin Project lead Professor Karina Jorritsma Project member Katrina Hosszu Project member Belinda Cham Project member Micah Wilson Project member Luke Strickland Project member Alex Boeing Overview What we do We are a team of researchers with a background in organisational, experimental, and cognitive psychology with expertise in 'work systems design', an area of applied research which sits at the intersection of organisational psychology, human factors, cognition, and systems engineering. We engage with industry and government to inform the design of optimised work systems using an integrative socio-technical approach. Our goal is to support the performance and wellbeing of employees working in complex and dynamic work systems. For more information contact: Karina Jorritsma What is a work system? Work systems comprise both social systems (human-related) and technical systems (non-human). As the rise of digital technologies transforms the way we work and live, the design and integration of technical systems will be crucial to their uptake and success. The core principle underlying our approach is that the design of social and technical systems should co-evolve, and work systems optimisation can only be achieved when human and technical aspects are prioritised equally. Our Core Tenets Consultative and collaborative: An optimised socio-technical system (STS) design process must include representation from end users in the work system as well as technical experts (e.g., designers/developers) and social system experts (e.g. psychologists) in order to capture key needs and system considerations and constraints. Human-centric: Job roles should support wellbeing by ensuring challenging yet meaningful work for humans. Task allocation guided by good work design principles can enhance human strengths and ensure human limitations are supported by the technical system. Sustainable design: A sustainable work system considers the ongoing endurance of workers over time. This includes not only sustained individual and team performance, but also ongoing attraction and retention of personnel. Pragmatic & compatible: Development of socio-technical systems must be integrated within an organisation’s existing change processes and systems engineering processes. Cross-disciplinary: Expertise is drawn from across a broad range of human sciences to ensure a holistic focus, e.g., how do biological processes, shift structures, work design, and design/technology features contribute to worker fatigue and endurance? Recursive and iterative: A recursive and iterative approach allows for a flexible design process that canadapt to evolving design requirements

Navigating the Job Search Journey Project members Project lead Professor Marylène Gagné Project lead Cheryl Skyes Overview (Research approval number HRE2020-0551)

Western Australian Workers’ Mental Health Project member Project lead Yukun Liu Overview The Future of Work Institute (FOWI) partnered with PeopleSense, an employee assistance program (EAP) services provider, to analyse their large dataset of anonymous responses from clients regarding mental health issues. This collaboration marked the first time that PeopleSense’s EAP database had been analysed for scientific purposes. Through rigorous statistical analyses, FOWI researchers generated several interesting findings and patterns. Highlights of the findings include: Mean and deviation levels on stress, depression, and anxiety; quantified impact of mental health on personal life and work performance; Gender differences on mental health and its impact on work and life; associations between mental health and demographics such as marital status and; Identification of the most common presenting work- and personal- related problems such as relationship or family difficulties, interpersonal conflict with managers or peers and workload. FOWI also provided feedback and suggestions on how to improve the design of PeopleSense’s client surveys and questionnaires to more effectively capture data on mental health issues. Industry outcomes Informing key members and individuals Present more evidence-based patterns and findings to their stakeholders. Tailoring to needs Customise their EAP programs and treatments to provide better services to their clients.

East Metropolitan Health Service (EMHS) Remote Monitoring Service Project members Project lead Professor Sharon Parker Project lead Professor Mark Griffin Project lead Professor Karina Jorritsma PhD student Natalya Desai PhD student Natalie Griffins Overview What is the EMHS Remote Monitoring Service? Virtual care models including Remote Monitoring Services have a significant potential to transform traditional service delivery. Remote Monitoring Services use innovative technology to monitor patients in their hospital ward beds for subtle changes in their condition and early signs of clinical deterioration. This technology will allow medical professionals to more closely monitor patients, and respond to patient needs more efficiently, effectively, and consistently. Metropolitan Health Service (EMHS) is investing in a Remote Monitoring Service (RMS), a system which will provide clinicians located in a central Command Centre with a range of data provided by patient monitoring technology, data analytics tools, and clinical systems. These systems are designed to facilitate proactive, and not reactive care, by using technology to evaluate clinical information, identify patterns and predict deterioration earlier. Once patient deterioration is identified, RMS will facilitate communication between RMS clinicians and staff on the ward using two-way audio and video in order to support the development of an appropriate care plan. Our Mission The effectiveness of implementing remote monitoring systems has had mixed results, with much of the difference in these outcomes attributable to work design issues. In collaboration with EMHS and HEDA, the aim of this research project is to implement the institute’s SMART work design framework to the context of RMS, to understand how RMS influences work design factor for key staff members, and how work roles can be best designed to maximise the value of HIVE for patient outcomes, hospital outcomes, and staff outcomes. Data collection is ongoing and includes observations, interviews, and surveys with hospital staff, centring on staff work experiences, perceptions of their work, perceptions of RMS, and observations of current work design. Our Impact Not only will the insights from this research inform the effectiveness of the planned RMS implementation, but also serve as a foundation for facilitating the expansion of RMS to other sites with leading-edge knowledge to harness such technologies across Australia. Partners Professor Suzanne Robinson from Health Economics and Data Analytics (HEDA) Associate. Professor Richard Norman from Health Economics and Data Analytics (HEDA) East Metropolitan Health Service Key References Hay, G. J., Klonek, F. E., Thomas, C. S., Bauskis, A., Baynam, G., & Parker, S. K. (2020). SMART work design: Accelerating the diagnosis of rare diseases in the Western Australian Undiagnosed Diseases Program. Frontiers in Pediatrics, 8. Kahn, J. M., Rak, K. J., Kuza, C. C., Ashcraft, L. E., Barnato, A. E., Fleck, J. C., ... & Angus, D. C. (2019). Determinants of intensive care unit telemedicine effectiveness. An ethnographic study. American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, 199(8), 970-979. Rincon, T. A., Bakshi, V., Beninati, W., Carpenter, D., Cucchi, E., Davis, T. M., ... & Olff, C. (2020). Describing advanced practice provider roles within critical care teams with Tele-ICUs: Exemplars from seven US health systems. Nursing Outlook, 68(1), 5-13.

Centre for Transformative Work Design Innovative research. Informed leaders. Inspired workers. Centre director Professor Sharon Parker About the Centre Good work design makes life better Good work design means workers have moderate demands (e.g., reasonable work loads) combined with positive aspects of work such as job autonomy, social contact, and task identity. Our vision in the Centre is to transform work, through work design, to create better lives for workers, better results for organisations, and better outcomes for all in society. To learn more about the Centre, visit the website Research spotlight: The dull job effect Our new research published in the Journal of Applied Psychology (2019) has found that managers and professional employees with dull and boring jobs are more likely to design jobs for their colleagues that are: Demotivating Disengaging Low Skill Repetiton A series of three studies assessed how people design jobs for others as well as how their personal backgrounds contributed to these decisions. A key insight suggested that individuals who designed poor jobs were more likely to lack autonomy in their own role. This research suggests that poor work design does not happen in isolation, rather, it can create a ripple effect. If organisations wish to remain innovative, agile and high performing, it’s critical they equip themselves and their managers with the tools to design better work. Key research streams 1. Future work challenges What is the role of work design in delivering the benefits (or mitigating against the detriments) of radical change occurring in work and society? 2. Transforming individuals Which work designs optimize psychological growth across the lifespan? What is the role of work design in accelerating individual learning and development. 3. Transforming organisations How do we achieve good work designs in organisations? What knowledge, skills, and attitudes do stakeholders need to actively design good work? 4. The antecedents of good work design How can work design enable coordinated agility within work both efficiency and innovation? 5. Organisations and the mature workforce Against the backdrop of an aging workforce, what work designs and cultures support attract and retain mature workers? 6. Healthy Work How can we utlise work design to create healthy work environments, enabling workers to thrive and feel their best?