Factors for the Successful Work of Employees of Organizations During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Data of an International Study

Abstract

The purpose of the study was to describe the cultural and national specifics of the work of employees of organizations in Russia and Western Europe during the COVID-19 pandemic. Employee performance is viewed through the key concept of “Organizational Citizenship Behavior” (OCB). Respondents from various countries (total number – 619 people) were offered a questionnaire of 95 questions, which were reduced to 13 variables. The variables reflected the personal qualities, sociodemographic characteristics of employees, as well as the characteristics of their professional activities. No differences in the level of formation of OCB among employees of Russian and Western European organizations were found. A group of factors influencing OCB has been identified. The same factors for all countries are: “interaction with the leadership”, “resilience” and “satisfaction from remote work”. Two more factors influence the OCB of Russian employees: “work experience” and “satisfaction with the area of residence”. The research carried out seems to be relevant due to the novelty and scale of changes introduced by the pandemic to the work of employees.