The seasons of the psychological contract: Overcoming the silent transformations of the employer–employee relationship

• We add a “silent” transformation element to the understanding of the PC.
• Through organizational seasons, PC as a sustainable workplace relationship has no form.
• Managers have to accompany PC as a living process rather than control it.
• Managers should adopt a “letting happen” attitude when they do not drive the change.

In this piece, we advocate a broader conceptualization of the psychological contract to incorporate a more comprehensive understanding of its characteristics and evolution over time. We provide an alternative conceptualization in order to sustain the PC by management practices from an accompaniment stance. Typically, the psychological contract is assessed by examining idiosyncratic information that carries particular meaning for either party, as well as standard information that is generalizable to a larger population. Traditional Western ideologies and methods of thought regarding the workplace relationship often focus on outcomes, or are caught up in defining the specific duties that each party has to the other. Here, we argue that this assessment must acknowledge that the information is not always defined by a specific event or action. The dialogue needs to change to establishing a more holistic understanding of individuals' interactions in organizations, informed by the Chinese philosophical tradition. With this understanding, comes an ability to positively affect how the employer and employee relate. We propose an alternate ideology characterized by the establishment of “letting happen” and a broader shared meaning between parties in the relationship.