Purpose The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the impact of career attitudes (traditional career vs boundaryless career) on perceived employability (internal vs external employability). In addition, the authors examine whether career self-management strategies act as mediators of these relationships. Due to high unemployment rates in the last two decades, it is important to assess the extent to which young graduates’ career attitudes affect perceived internal and external employability, along with the role of career self-management strategies as an employability enhancement tool. Design/methodology/approach As part of a cross-sectional research design, the authors administered a survey questionnaire to a sample of 131 graduates (i.e. master’s students) with at least one year of work experience. The empirical data were analyzed with partial least squares structural equation modeling, which combines confirmatory factor analysis, multiple linear regression and path analysis. Findings The results reveal that there is a positive and significant impact (direct effect) of a traditional career attitude (TCA) on internal employability, while there is no significant negative impact of a TCA on external employability. Additionally, the results show that there is a negative impact (direct effect) of a boundaryless career attitude (BCA) on internal employability, while no significant positive impact is found of a BCA on external employability. This study also confirms the mediation effect (full mediation) of career positioning strategies on the BCA-external employability relationship, and a partial mediation of career influence strategies on the TCA-internal employability relationship. Research limitations/implications Limitations of this study relate to the sample size and the use of a convenience sampling technique. Hence, some caution is needed regarding results’ generalization. In addition, this research uses a cross-sectional design, thus the authors cannot assess longitudinal causal relationships between variables. Future research should be replicated with different types of respondents and in different cultural contexts. Practical implications The results suggest that organizations would benefit more from employees that hold a TCA than those that hold a BCA, especially if they are interested in fostering the internal employability of their workforce. At the individual level, the results identify optimal career self-management strategies (internal vs external employability) for young graduates. Originality/value This study offers new empirical evidence of the predictive value of perceived internal vs external employability and the mediating role of career self-management strategies in explaining employability. Young graduates perceive a TCA as more advantageous than a BCA for both internal and external employability. This is an unexpected but interesting finding, since the bulk of the literature on contemporary career attitudes overemphasizes the advantages of a BCA, while disregarding potential disadvantages for both individuals and organizations.

Enquadramento: O estudo foca-se no conceito do Contrato Psicológico (CP) na perspetiva de que a perceção das obrigações existentes entre empregador e empregado é construída pelo indivíduo. Objetivos: Identificar o conteúdo do CP dos enfermeiros chefe, identificar a (in) existência de perceção de violação deste contrato e as reações à eventual perceção de violação. Metodologia: Estudo exploratório descritivo, de abordagem qualitativa, que recorreu à entrevista semiestruturada numa amostra de dez enfermeiros chefe. Resultados: Os conteúdos do CP, ou seja, o que os enfermeiros chefe esperam receber do seu empregador, passam pelo reconhecimento profissional, pela satisfação no trabalho, pela progressão na carreira e pela remuneração compensatória. Quanto ao que estão dispostos a oferecer ao empregador, identificou-se a lealdade à hierarquia, à entidade empregadora e à classe profissional, e um desempenho de excelência. Conclusão: Todos os entrevistados percecionaram violação do CP por parte do seu empregador. As principais reações à violação foram: diminuição do empenhamento organizacional, precipitação para a reforma (intenção de abandonar a organização), desmotivação e negação da nova condição profissional.

The non‐profit sector is increasingly important, both in terms of the services rendered to society and level of employment provided. As part of a move towards the professionalization of the sector, training is seen as a vital tool for capacity building. Although the training practices of non‐profits are fairly well documented in countries like Australia, the UK and the USA, this is not so in Portugal. We provide an overview of the training practices of Portuguese non‐profit organizations, and identify indicators of professionalization that influence training investment. We find wide variation among organizations in this sector, both in terms of training provision and expenditure, and in the management practices implemented. We also find that the presence of a professional manager and formalized policies, especially those related to performance, are significantly associated with higher levels of training, suggesting that professionalization has beneficial effects on training in the non‐profit sector.

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