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Hybrid career has been discussed in the literature for some time but is still an emergent concept. The study investigated the careers of university professional staff working in universities in Australia and the UK to better understand the careers of this underresearched cohort of staff. The findings were used to extend the theory of the hybrid career.

A total of 139 career stories were collected via an open-ended question in an online survey. Inductive thematic analysis was used to create themes and theorise career pathways relevant to the participants' careers.

It was found that participants had a hybrid career orientation (HCO) based on their essential values and their reciprocal relationship with their employer. Four career pathways emerged from the data: intra-organisational advancement, inter-organisational advancement, work–life balance and dead end.

There is a need for future research to investigate the HCO, both to add depth to the understanding of careers for university professional staff in universities and to examine the hybrid concept in other settings.

It is suggested that by grouping staff into career pathways, human resource practitioners could provide more targeted interventions to ensure that staff are motivated and productive for the benefit of the organisation.

The research has extended the concept of the hybrid career and discovered four career pathways relevant to university professional staff.

This paper examines an identified but unexplored career gap evidenced at a mid-level classification in the academic career path for women in Australia. This career-stalling effect or holding pattern, is examined to determine underlying causes of career trajectory interruption.

Guided by the epistemological stance of standpoint theory, this exploratory abductive study employs a novel arts-based method, draw, write, reflect, to access experiences that may be difficult to convey verbally. The obtained drawings and reflections were thematically analysed.

Drawing on Bourdieu’s concept of illusio this article finds support for female academics’ bifurcated consciousness. Results demonstrate how opposing social role prescriptions result in the deliberate avoidance of work-life conflict, a nuanced lack of confidence in work tasks in combination with other, often competing responsibilities, and the uneven distribution of administrative duties known as “academic housework”, which combine to stall careers. Female academics feel pressure to prioritise their domestic role and eschew career progression.

Despite the small sample size, the findings provide rich career narratives and experiences of female academics in Australia providing additional impetus for increased gender equity efforts.

This study is the first to explore the previously unidentified holding pattern for female academics in Australia. Findings suggest there is a range of previously unexplored impediments resulting in a gendered stalling at a mid-level classification interrupting female academic career progression.

The professional development needs of university professional staff are an under-researched area. More data were needed to understand their needs to ensure that employers invest their resources appropriately. A conceptual framework is developed for the workplace learning of career development activities using concepts of professional learning communities, adult learning and non-formal learning. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the success of a professional development network in meeting the needs of university professional staff after a re-structure.

A case study of the development of a staff career network at an Australian university after a restructure is presented. An online survey was sent to 75 staff who had attended at least one professional development event. Quantitative and qualitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis.

This study has shown that a university professional staff career network has been a positive influence for its participants after an organisational restructure. The value of this network was to increase confidence and provide opportunities for self-improvement, career planning and networking.

A conceptual model integrating the concepts of professional learning communities, adult learning and non-formal learning has resulted in a model of social non-formalised workplace learning that may be of use in other contexts to improve staff motivation, outside of more formal learning opportunities.

This study aim to review and compile the latest research in women’s leadership internationally and across multiple sectors and industries to understand how to fast-track gender equality. As an outcome of this review, this paper presents an actionable universal framework for organisations to use to bolster their gender equity efforts.

A systematic literature review methodology resulted in 36 articles dedicated to research on women in senior leadership interventions across countries and organisational types. Thematic analysis identified a series of enablers and barriers that influence women’s progression into senior roles.

Research since 2020 has shown a significant shift from an individualised approach to improving women’s advancement to senior leadership roles, to a systematic one, acknowledging that there are entrenched behaviours resulting in a lack of equity.

Systematic literature reviews, although reducing bias, must still be acknowledged to have inherent bias due to the inclusion and exclusion criteria used. There is a need for future research to provide more theoretical underpinnings to advance knowledge and for implementation and review of the proposed EQUAL framework developed from this study.

The authors highlight the continuing issues at play in organisations that act as barriers to women’s progress into senior leadership. This paper suggest that organisations may need to consider ways to move past a “business case” approach towards gender equity becoming embedded at all levels. Their proposed EQUAL framework provides a practical set of evidence-based activities to enhance this approach.

Human capital is a key component of the success of organisations, and career development of staff is a vital component to both increasing and retaining human capital. Universities are no different, their people are key to their mission. There has been limited rigorous study of the careers of professional staff in the academy. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

A systematic literature review methodology resulted in a review of 23 articles dedicated to research on careers of professional staff in higher education (HE). Thematic analysis identified a series of enablers and barriers that influence career development and progression.

Career enablers and barriers have been found to exist at both the institutional and individual levels. Within the HE context, professional staff have a hybrid career mindset, desiring traditional and more contemporary career factors, leading to a reciprocal relationship between the organisation and the individual.

There is a need for future research to investigate the hybrid career mindset, and the reciprocal relationship, both to add depth to understanding of careers for professional staff in universities, and to examine this in other settings.

Universities may need to consider ways to integrate institutional support for high performance work systems (HPWS) with opportunities for professional staff, while individuals may need to consider adopting career self-management behaviours (CSMB) to fit their hybrid mindset.

This review has highlighted organisations and individuals will benefit if the relationship between HPWS and CSMB is better understood for the hybrid career mindset.

Using latent profile analysis, the authors explored the career profiles of young adult tertiary students (N = 468, 73.9% women; mean age 20 years) to determine the relative importance of traditional career orientation (TCO) and protean career orientation (PCO) beliefs for them.

Young adults studying at university can aspire to traditional career experiences as they believe organizations will support their professional and career development. However, since the development of newer career models, the TCO model has received little research attention compared to the PCO.

The authors found that the dominant profile exhibited average levels of TCO, PCO and career competencies, and that this mixed profile was associated with more mature career identity development and greater organizational commitment. A second profile, with low TCO, average PCO and career competencies, showed a similar level of career maturity to the mixed profile, but exhibited less organizational commitment. A third profile, with average TCO, low PCO and career competencies, especially vocational identity awareness, was related to less career development and organizational commitment.

The findings suggest that a mixed traditional-protean orientation is common in young adult tertiary students and that the development of a vocational identity is important for positive career outcomes, regardless of orientation.

The purpose of this paper is to explore an informal interdisciplinary peer-mentoring relationship between two early career researchers.

A case study approach, using autoethnography, was employed to explore the relationship from a complex adaptive systems (CAS) perspective.

Informal peer-mentoring relationships may improve the work effectiveness and quality of the doctoral student and early career researcher experience. CAS can be an effective overarching theory for expanding understandings about mentoring.

This case study is limited to two early career researchers.

Informal peer mentoring may help to overcome challenges encountered by doctoral students, early career researchers and university staff members. CAS accounts of mentoring have the potential to open new possibilities for future mentoring research.

This paper provides unique insights into the experiences of doctoral students postgraduation and a long-term informal peer-mentoring relationship. Explorations of mentoring relationships from a CAS perspective are innovative.