Optimizing Resource Planning in Hybrid Knowledge Work : Cost Efficiency With Well-Being And Location As Design Parameters
Adrita, Sumaita Faria Karim (2025)
2025
Master's Programme in Business and Technology
Johtamisen ja talouden tiedekunta - Faculty of Management and Business
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Hyväksymispäivämäärä
2025-12-12
Julkaisun pysyvä osoite on
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-2025121211571
https://urn.fi/URN:NBN:fi:tuni-2025121211571
Tiivistelmä
Hybrid and multi-location work has changed how knowledge-based organizations plan and use their resources. Digitalization enables work to be performed across locations. But it also introduces new limitations related to visibility, coordination, emotional load, and employee well-being. Research usually looks at resource planning, well-being, and hybrid work as separate topics. This means it is not fully understandable how these areas interact with each other in real life. This thesis addresses this gap by investigating how organizations balance cost efficiency, performance expectations, and human sustainability when planning resources in distributed knowledge work.
The study uses an abductive qualitative approach based on seven semi-structured interviews. The interviews were done across consulting, NGOs, academia, startups, SMEs, and product organizations. Using thematic analysis, three interconnected themes emerged. First one is resource planning as a multi-level, iterative, and constraint-sensitive process. Second one is well-being dynamics shaped by autonomy, hidden overload, emotional labor, and reduced visibility in hybrid work. Third one is organizational balancing mechanisms such as slack, pacing, task–location fit, and human-centred decision logics. These insights help create a clear model for resource planning. This model sees resource planning not just as a technical task to optimize efficiency, but as a negotiation that balances operational demands, distributed work situations, and human limitations.
This thesis makes important contributions to several areas. It builds on coordination theory, improves research on well-being, and introduces a new idea called “constraint-aware planning.” From practical viewpoint, it offers guidance for managers, HR professionals, and tool designers looking to build sustainable and efficient planning systems in hybrid environments. Methodological reflections, limitations, and directions for future research are also explained. Quantitative validation, sector-specific testing, and AI-supported planning tools, are also discussed.
The study uses an abductive qualitative approach based on seven semi-structured interviews. The interviews were done across consulting, NGOs, academia, startups, SMEs, and product organizations. Using thematic analysis, three interconnected themes emerged. First one is resource planning as a multi-level, iterative, and constraint-sensitive process. Second one is well-being dynamics shaped by autonomy, hidden overload, emotional labor, and reduced visibility in hybrid work. Third one is organizational balancing mechanisms such as slack, pacing, task–location fit, and human-centred decision logics. These insights help create a clear model for resource planning. This model sees resource planning not just as a technical task to optimize efficiency, but as a negotiation that balances operational demands, distributed work situations, and human limitations.
This thesis makes important contributions to several areas. It builds on coordination theory, improves research on well-being, and introduces a new idea called “constraint-aware planning.” From practical viewpoint, it offers guidance for managers, HR professionals, and tool designers looking to build sustainable and efficient planning systems in hybrid environments. Methodological reflections, limitations, and directions for future research are also explained. Quantitative validation, sector-specific testing, and AI-supported planning tools, are also discussed.