Global Transfer Exchange Connie Zheng Explores Well-being in the Workplace
As a guest researcher at HUMAINE, she also looks at the roles of artificial intelligence in improving diversity in personnel selection.
Associate Professor Dr. Connie Zheng is an expert in exploring human resource management (HRM) strategies. Prompted by an interest in population issues in China, Zheng began addressing gender inequality at the organizational level during her doctoral degree. As a employee wellbeing researcher she now focuses on how organizations are set up and can promote appropriate HMR policies and practices for diverse employees.
Until May 2024, Connie Zheng will be working together with Prof. Dr. Ute Wilkens, Director of the Human-Centred AI Network (HUMAINE), as a guest researcher in the global transfer exchange program. The collaboration focuses on exploring how artificial intelligence (AI) can improve diversity in personnel selection. In the interview, Connie Zheng describes her passion for her research on promoting employee well-being.
Welcome to Ruhr University Bochum, Dr. Zheng, can you tell us something about where you grew up and how your career began?
I was born and raised in a mountainous village in Fujian Province, located south of China, across from Taiwan. In the early 1990s, I moved to Australia, where I pursued and completed my PhD study in management at Charles Sturt University, situated in Bathurst, New South Wales in the period of 2001-2005. Following this, I embarked on my academic career.
What does an employee wellbeing researcher do?
As an employee wellbeing researcher, I explore how organizational strategy, structures, and size, along with their human resource management (HRM) policies, influence organizational goals both in economic and social performance, and employees’ abilities to achieve work-life balance, innovation, and creativity.
Can you explain your research topic a little bit more?
My research focus lies in understanding the cultural and institutional factors that shape both national and organisational HRM policies, especially within multinational companies and their diverse global workforces.
I also investigate the disparities between organizational HRM policies and actual management practices, analysing how these differences impact on employee experiences and organisational effectiveness. Ultimately, my research aims to offer insights into developing HRM strategies and enhancing management practices to improve the overall quality of work life for diverse employees across various national and organisational settings.
What fascinates you about exploring organizational dynamics?
What excites me most about my work and research is getting to explore how organizations are set up, how they manage their diverse employees, and how all of this affects how people feel at work and in their personal lives. I find it fascinating to see how things like culture and rules in different countries can affect the way companies treat their employees in different parts of the world.
Ultimately, being able to make a positive difference at workplaces and help people feel better at work is why I'm so passionate about my research.
When I study the differences between what companies say they do and what they actually do, and how this varies across different countries and organisations, I learn a lot about the challenges employees and managers face. Understanding these challenges helps us figure out how to make work a better place for people everywhere. Ultimately, being able to make a positive difference at workplaces and help people feel better at work is why I'm so passionate about my research.
Do you remember what sparked your interest in human resource management?
I first became interested in population issues in China, particularly the significant disparity in the sex ratio, where there were far more males than females. This raised questions for me about gender equality and the different treatment of males and females in families, organisations, and communities. As I pursued my doctoral degree in management, my focus shifted towards addressing gender equality at the organisational level, where I could explore how these disparities manifest and how they can be addressed through appropriate human resource management policies and practices within workplaces.
What brought you to Bochum?
I got in touch with Ruhr University Bochum and HUMAINE through Professor Uta Wilkens. I met her during a research seminar she gave last September on "Exploring and Fostering Workplace Innovation - The Competence Center HUMAINE and Beyond." During our conversation, we discussed collaborating on a project focused on the roles of artificial intelligence (AI) in improving diversity in personnel selection.
Being on-site at HUMAINE allows me to gain firsthand experience with AI tools and understand how they work in practice.
Why did you decide to come to Bochum?
I decided to come to Bochum for three reasons: Firstly, we're actively working on a research project investigating the roles of AI in enhancing diversity in personnel selection. Being on-site at HUMAINE allows me to gain firsthand experience with AI tools and understand how they work in practice. I'm also currently on a six-month Professional Experience Program (PEP), formerly Sabbatical Leave. This extended stay in Bochum gives me the opportunity to dedicate substantial time to advancing the proposed project. And lastly, I received travel funding from WORDLFACTORY International, which greatly supported the costs of my trip.
And what exactly are you working on at HUMAINE?
At the moment, I am actively engaged in several projects at HUMAINE. For example, I am co-writing a paper with colleagues titled “Augmenting Diversity in Hiring Decisions with Artificial Intelligence Tools”. I am also preparing a book chapter on “An HR Perspective of AI Roles in Organisations”.
On 11 April, I attended the HUMAINE Spring Fair to discuss our project with industry professionals. At the Career Fair on 12 April, I talked about student exchange and career opportunities in research in Australia. And then there's my lecture as part of the FutureLab entitled “Diversity and Inclusion in International Project Management: A Bibliometric Analysis” on April 24th, 2024, to a wider RUB community.
For me, Ruhr-Universität Bochum stands for...
Research innovation, international collaboration, industry focus and workplace diversity.
If you hadn't become an academic, then...
If I hadn’t become an academic, I would have become a journalist or a missionary to Malawi.