Professor Timothy Bartram

Professor Bartram's research is in human resource management (HRM), high performance work systems (HPWS) industrial relations and healthcare management. His work also focuses on the effective management and inclusion of vulnerable groups working in organisations such as workers with intellectual disability, neuro-diverse workers, Indigenous men and older men. His research work has culminated in 124 refereed journal publications.  Publications include articles in Human Resource Management, Human Resource Management Journal, Journal of Management Studies, The British Journal of Industrial Relations, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, British Journal of Management, Public Management Review, and Applied Psychology: An International Review, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Advanced Nursing, and Health Care Management Review. Professor Bartram's work has been cited almost 6000 times (Google Scholar) and has a H-Index of 39. Web of Science Author Analytics has recently ranked him as the fourth most impactful researcher of HPWS in business and management research. 

Professor Bartram has led a number of large externally funded research projects including ARC grants (Discovery and Linkage(s)), DFAT funded grants, Federal and State Government research contracts, as well as contract research for both private and public sector organisations which have culminated in over $1,000,000 in research income. He has held three ARC grants ((1) DP120103071 Testing the integration and differentiation of national employment systems: Multi-nationals in an international comparative context; (2) LP110200528 Work process change in hospital services; (3) LP200200379 Promoting Long-Term Employment of Autistic Individuals). 

CI-Bartram's research work utilises cutting edge research methods and strong theoretical underpinning (e.g., HRM, organisational behaviour and management theories) to solve real-world contemporary challenges such as the effective management of healthcare professionals in contemporary hospitals, development of sustainable and effective management systems and the inclusion of vulnerable groups of workers such as Men's Shed participants, people with intellectual disability and neuro-diversity. His most significant contributions to HRM/HPWS research include a theoretical and empirical examination of the relationships between high performance work systems, clinician attitudes and behaviours (i.e., intention to leave, emotional labour) and clinician/hospital performance (i.e., HRM performance indicators, quality of patient care and patient safety). This work has been at the cutting edge of HRM in health research and as a result he has developed research relationships and commissioned research with key health care industry players (e.g., Victorian Hospitals' Industrial Association, Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, Australian Men's Shed Association, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Health and Ageing, etc.), as well as  a range of leading health care services. He has also contributed innovative research to lean management and HRM in health care organisations (e.g., British Journal of Management), and has recently published leading research on wellbeing orientated HRM practices and employee resilience (e.g., Human Resource Management, Human Resource Management Journal, International Journal of HRM). 

His work on HRM and disability is also cutting edge. This work has made a significant contribution to social enterprise organisations and other organisations, such as hotels and supermarkets that employ people with a disability and has been published in the Journal of Business Ethics, Personnel Review and the Journal of Vocational Education and Training. 

Professor Bartram has been involved in large scale research projects examining the employment, management and social inclusion of workers with disability across Australian industries. He and his team have examined using a qualitative research the inclusion of workers with intellectual disability design in 15 organisations which has culminated in over 10 journal articles (e.g., Journal of Business Ethics; Personnel Review) and a special issue in the Journal of Vocational Education and Training.  

He has also led large scale projects for the Department of Health and Ageing (DoHA) on the Men's Shed movement in Australia (e.g., examining indigenous men's participation in Men's Sheds and related health, wellbeing and employment outcomes and evaluating the operations of the Australian Men's Sheds Association (AMSA)). These projects have involved a census of all the Men's Sheds in Australia (including shed coordinators, men members and health care service workers. He has advised Department of Health and Ageing (DoHA) (Federal Government) on the efficacy of the current management (including HRM) operations of AMSA and indigenous sheds and community groups and their impact on men's health and wellbeing in Australia. He is regarded as the leading expert on the Men's Shed movement (throughout Australia and internationally) having conducted research with twenty-six Indigenous groups across every State and Territory. The research included a review/consensus of over 1,000 Men's Sheds in Australia. This was the first ever census of Australian Men's Sheds. This research has made a significant impact on building healthy communities and improving the health and well-being of people.  He has published over 10 journal articles on Men's Sheds and he and his team have undertaken several interviews with the media (e.g., ABC Breakfast, ABC radio, The Australian, Wall Street Journal). 

Professor Bartram has also consulted to several medical and health care associations (e.g., Victorian Hospitals' Industrial Association) and health care unions (e.g., Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation and Medical Scientists Association of Victoria).  He has also published a report detailing the adoption of strategic HRM in the Victorian public health care sector (published by the Victorian Hospitals' Industrial Association). This was the first ever large-scale survey of HRM practice of Victorian public health care organisations. He also led complex research projects in large tertiary hospitals on the use of strategic HRM and HPWS and impact on employee wellbeing and quality of patient care. This research has contributed significantly to the development of management practices within many of these organisations.  He has presented his research work at world leading management, human resource management and employment relations conferences, at health practitioner and union delegate conferences and healthcare human resource director forums. 

Professor has successfully supervised 14 PhD students to completion.  He has also successfully supervised to completion 24 DBA students.  

Professor Bartram is the Co-editor of Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources (APJHR) with Professor Fang Lee Cooke. He acts as a referee for many leading international journals including the Journal of Management Studies, Human Resource Management, International Journal of HRM, Personnel Review, Relations Industrielles, British Journal of Management, the British Journal of Industrial Relations, and Human Relations.

• Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), La Trobe University, 1998-2000.
• Master of Commerce (Honours), The University of Melbourne, 1996-1997.
  
• Graduate Diploma in Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management, The University of Melbourne, 1995.
  
• Bachelor of Commerce, The University of Melbourne, 1992-1994.
  

Professor Bartram commenced employment with RMIT University in February 2018 within the School of Management.

His professional interests focus on the application and examination of HRM within the healthcare sector and related healthcare organisations. His work focuses on the role of HRM in better managing and mitigating some of the most important challenges in healthcare such as managing clinician turnover, improving quality of patient care and safety, improving rostering and the implementation of workplace innovations and work processes, and professional development and engagement of clinicians.

He also has an interest in the role of HRM to supporting workers with intellectual disability and neuro-diversity. He was previously Professor of HRM at the La Trobe Business School, La Trobe University. As Professor of HRM he was Director of Research for the La Trobe Business School for almost five years. He is currently a member of the Australian Human Resource Institute and the Academy of Management.