Telework in public organizations: a systematic review and research agenda

After a relatively slow policy intervention and scholarly take-up, recent developments created the urgency for massive efforts to implement and regulate telework in public organizations. We contribute to this debate through a systematic review of 120 studies across disciplines. Findings from our analysis reveal a few established antecedents of telework, including individual characteristics like family responsibilities and expected productivity, but also organizational aspects like supportive leadership, and contextual features like natural disasters. Self-reported productivity and work-life balance stand out as telework's most widely studied outcomes, although evidence is often conflicting when coming to the effects of telework. We present our results by distinguishing pre- and post-pandemic findings. Complementing our systematic review, we engage in a generative exercise by identifying emerging debates on telework in public bureaucracies. We conclude by indicating future research directions.