AUTHOR=Ipsen Christine , Kirchner Kathrin , Andersone Nelda , Karanika-Murray Maria 

TITLE=Becoming a Distance Manager: Managerial Experiences, Perceived Organizational Support, and Job Satisfaction During the COVID-19 Pandemic

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.916234

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2022.916234

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=Due to the COVID-19 pandemic having radically changed the way we now work, many recent studies have focused on employees’ experiences and well-being, their performance and job satisfaction, and ways to ensure the best support for them when working from home (WFH). However, less attention has been given to managers’ experiences in adapting to the new role of distance management and supporting them with this transition. This study aims to explore how managers experienced distance management, and their perceptions of organizational support (POS), and the effect of organizational support has on their job satisfaction during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.  
Data from 1016 line, middle, and top managers in Danish workplaces were collected in March 2021, one year after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. We applied descriptive statistics, ANOVA, and partial least square structural equation modelling to investigate the relation of perceived organizational support (POS) and the job satisfaction (JSA) of distance managers.  Control variables were the respondents’ demographic characteristics, specifically gender, age, and management level. The study offers insights into the managerial experiences of becoming a distance manager, helps to understand the relationship between POS and managers’ job satisfaction, and shows a positive relationship similarly for the managers as for employees. The data demonstrate that managers received the most support from their own employees and manager peers, whereas administrative support was largely lacking. The data also show that the majority (67%) of the managers prefer to manage from the office, but similarly, they can continue managing from a distance if needed post-pandemic. The study adds to the literature on workplaces’ transitioning to distance management and hybrid-remote work and contributes to understanding the role of POS and managers’ job satisfaction during this transition. Consequently, if an organisation aims to offer hybrid-remote work, improving support from top management and in-house support functions would help maintain or increase managers’ job satisfaction.