Changes in Work Organisation Between Flexibility and Adaptation: The New Normal

The 'new normal' is an axiom grafted onto the logic of the complexity of flexible work, crossing every sphere of activity, from the productive to the economic and social. However, there is still no scientific formalisation of the phenomenon, nor sufficient data to demonstrate its future evolution. The present work aims to fill this gap in the scientific literature, seeking to arrive at a definition of a new work normality (new normal) that may encompass elements of smart working and sustainability. Our idea is to better understand what these elements are and on which new work logic could be based. The analysis was conducted on two levels. Firstly, a desk level provides for the collection and systematisation of research available on the subject of the study. Secondly, a field-type analysis was conducted using a CAWI modality and involving 62 healthcare organisations and 9,023 respondents. The results show the pandemic has brought about changes in the organisation of work, configuring new organisational models that tend towards hybrid forms. A new organisational model is configured considering smart working (SW) variables but is also equipped with drivers such as territoriality and workspace. Moreover, employees are increasingly satisfied adopting a work/organisational solution that is somewhere between flexible and normal, as indicated in the literature reviewed.