Anticipated vs enacted telework: the roles of self-management and interpersonal trust in schedule flexibility and work-life balance

Purpose This study aims to examine whether telework evaluations and the relationships among key telework-related constructs differ between a low-experience, prospective context and a context of enacted telework. Design/methodology/approach The study compares anticipated and enacted telework perceptions using two independent surveys of Romanian employees: a 2018 survey in which respondents evaluated telework as a hypothetical work arrangement (n = 1,180) and a 2020 survey in which respondents reported their actual telework experience during the COVID-19 pandemic (n = 1,142). The analysis combines mean comparisons with partial least squares structural equation modelling and multi-group analysis. Because the samples are independent, the design permits a contextual between-sample comparison but does not trace within-person change from anticipation to experience. Findings Structural relationships differ across the two samples. In the 2018 anticipated-telework sample, self-management is positively associated with schedule flexibility, whereas in the 2020 enacted-telework sample this association is negative. Interpersonal trust is positively associated with schedule flexibility in both samples, with a larger estimated path coefficient in the 2020 sample. The association between schedule flexibility and work-life balance is also stronger in the 2020 sample. These results indicate between samples contextual differences rather than within-person change. Research limitations/implications The study relies on two independent cross-sectional samples rather than a longitudinal panel, so the findings should be interpreted as contextual differences rather than within-person change. Practical implications The findings suggest that managers should consider both individual and relational dimensions when evaluating remote work arrangements. In particular, differences in the relationships among self-management, interpersonal trust, schedule flexibility and work–life balance indicate that employee expectations and contextual conditions require attention when remote work is introduced or redesigned. Originality/value The study contributes by treating prospective and enacted telework as distinct evaluative contexts, a distinction relevant whenever employees assess remote-work arrangements before their specific organisational implementation.