The Effects of Flexible Work Arrangements on Stressors, Burnout, and Behavioral Job Outcomes in Public Accounting

Abstract

The majority of public accounting firms now offer flexible work arrangements to their professional employees. Presumably these arrangements help accommodate employee needs to manage work and family demands, while also improving job satisfaction and retention. The ability of flexible work arrangements to achieve these goals has received little attention. The current paper addresses this issue by reporting the results of a survey of CPAs working under a flexible work arrangement and a similar group of CPAs working under a standard arrangement but who appear to be plausible candidates for a flexible work arrangement. The survey elicited information about several key employment variables: job-related stressors (e.g., role conflict, role ambiguity, and role overload), burnout tendencies (e.g., emotional exhaustion, reduced personal accomplishment, and depersonalization) and behavioral job outcomes (e.g., job satisfaction and turnover intentions). Results show that CPAs on flexible work arrangements report higher job satisfaction and lower turnover intentions than those on a standard work arrangement. CPAs on flexible work arrangements generally have lower levels of burnout and stressors, though the reduced personal accomplishment burnout dimension may be conditioned upon whether the CPA has a mentor. Finally, for professionals switching to a flexible work arrangement, respondents indicated a significant improvement in job satisfaction and turnover intentions as well as some decline in burnout and stressors.