HR award for Professor Kinman and Dr Almuth McDowall

Two psychologists have been awarded a coveted human resources prize.

Professor Gail Kinman, from the University of Bedfordshire's School of Psychology, and Dr Almuth McDowall, from Birkbeck University, were awarded the Ian Beardwell Prize for their research into the 'always on' culture permeating British workplaces.

The pair were awarded the accolade for their paper The new nowhere land? A research and practice agenda for the 'always on' culture, which was presented at last year's Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) Applied Research Conference and published in the Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance this year.

Receiving significant national media coverage, the paper called for UK employers to do more to help employees switch off outside of work hours for the sake of their wellbeing.

Professor Kinman said: 'Many organisations expect their employees to work remotely. Our research clearly indicates that they need to do more to help their employees manage their use of technology in order to improve their wellbeing, work-life balance and job performance.  We provide some guidance to help them do this.'

The judging panel praised the paper for its critical perspective on the changing use of technology in the world of work as a crucial employment issue, and its consideration of how e-working can impact on working lives.

The Ian Beardwell Prize was set up in memory of leading human resources academic Ian Beardwell, following his death in 2002. It is designed to recognise research excellence in a stand-out paper which was published on the back of the CIPD Applied Research Conference.

- Read our new interview with Professor Kinman, plus a 2015 interview with Dr Almuth McDowall. The pair also contributed to our recent feature on 'the changing workplace'.