UK Establishes the Institute for Workplace Innovation

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 24, 2007) − The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees yesterday approved the establishment of the interdisciplinary Institute for Workplace Innovation (iWin) in the UK College of Social Work to respond to job quality issues that arise in today's workplace. With iWin, UK is among the first land-grant universities in the U.S. to respond to its state's economic and workforce development concerns.

 

“The Institute for Workplace Innovation is committed to assisting Kentucky-based organizations in the development of high performance work environments that align organizational policies, practices and workplace culture with the demands of employees’ lives on and off the job,” said Jennifer Swanberg, executive director of UK iWin.

 

Swanberg, who also serves as an associate professor of social work, is a national leader in academic research on work-life issues, making her well-suited to direct the new institute and to help it identify and execute innovative workplace solutions in Kentucky.

 

iWin's mission is to enhance workplace productivity in the changing economy by providing employers with knowledge and opportunities related to innovative practices enabling the creation of quality work environments while ensuring balance between employee commitment to work and family.

 

The institute is committed to:

·        engaging employers in adoption, implementation and utilization of innovative workplace solutions which benefit employers and employees;

·        developing a regionally based research agenda focused on the workforce and economy in the 21st century; and

·        affecting public discussion about the employer, employee and economic benefits associated with innovative workplace options.

 

In addition, iWin plans to assist the state's current and prospective businesses by giving employers the tools to make Kentucky a better place to live, work and raise a family. iWin aims to help employers negotiate difficult and stressful work-family issues and create positive work environments, satisfied employees, and increased productivity.

 

UK iWin will offer a number of services to engage the state's employers in innovative workplace solutions. Among the proposed services, iWin plans to:

·        create a corporate roundtable that will bring together leading employers interested in developing and maintaining quality work environments that positively impact the employer and the employees;

·        conduct nationally recognized, locally based, interdisciplinary workplace research that will inform workplace practices and state policy through surveys of Kentucky's workforce and the state's leading businesses' employer practices; and,

·        engage the broader business community in the adoption, implementation and utilization of innovative workplace practices by offering a range of services including executive and management coaching and training, organizational consultation, and the dissemination of information.

 

"The vision for iWin is that this institute will be a catalyst for organizational change and economic development within the Commonwealth," said Swanberg.

 

The upcoming report of Employer Best Practices in Kentucky highlights 24 Kentucky employers that are leading the way toward workplace innovation in the Commonwealth.

 

For more information on the Institute for Workplace Innovation, contact iWin at (859) 296-1089 or visit online at http://iwin.uky.edu.