In a recent article, Dr Solveig Beyza Evenstad $(2022)$ argued that the COVID$-19$ pandemic resulted not only in increased morbidity and mortality due to the virus but also in significant health, lifestyle, economic and societal changes because of lockdown, home confinement, and social distancing. After the first two years of the pandemic, there was a consensus that the mental health of populations has been adversely affected. It is no secret that after the COVID$-19$ pandemic, a range of phenomena are disrupting the labour market the world over. This tightening of the labour market has been brought on by a sustained period of economic growth, a mismatch of skills required by the new economy, and an unexpected labour shortage created by the COVID$-19$ pandemic. At the same time, employees are reporting increasing work$/$life conflict emanating from increased pressure at work, rising work hours and greater work induced stress.

First, there was the $$Great Resignation$,$ which was followed by $$Quiet Quitting$$ and now, $$Quiet Promotion$.$ The $$Great Resignation$$ was coined by Anthony Klotz, a professor at University College London, who predicted a large wave of resignation following the COVID$-19$ pandemic. Many academics and commentators seized on this catchy phrase to make claims about employees $$taking back$$ their lives citing high burnout rates, a desire for better work$/$life balance and toxic work environments $($Needelman$,2022$ Smith, $2022$ Sull et al$.,2022).$ The great resignation led to the other catch phrases such as $$quiet quitting$$ and $$quiet firing$$ reflecting employees withdrawing their extra role behaviours and employers piling on unpleasant and unrewarding work $($Harter$,2022$ Miller, $2022).$ The great resignation and recent layoffs across industries has left many teams short$-$staffed and the remaining employees have been horizontally and vertically loaded with additional tasks, hence $$quiet promotion$.$ In this regard, $$quiet promotion$$ represents a de novo manifestation of the paradigm shift at the nexus of business and the labour market.

As stated in the article above, $$some diligent staff are being tasked with greater responsibility on the sly$.$ The term $$quiet promotion$,$ according to Van Beek, can also be used to describe a situation where high$-$performing employees are $$punished$$ for their success by being given more work and responsibilities instead of being recognised and rewarded for their contributions. Whichever way the $$quiet promotion$$ takes place, the end result is the same: it can lead to burnout and decreased job satisfaction, and ultimately, higher turnover of staff. While its disruption to organisational functioning may be less visible than that of the great resignation, quiet promotion can in fact be even more damaging. What happens to the remaining employees who get stuck picking up the leftover, often more demanding, work?

As a business researcher with a research interest in organisational behavior and employee well$-$being, you suspect that the

Great Resignation, Quiet Quitting and Quiet Promotion phenomena are all symptomatic of an unfolding paradigm shift in the organisational environment. You believe that a deeper understanding of the novo$-$contemporary phenomenon of $$quiet promotion$$ and its concomitant effect on employee performance will enable management to develop effective mitigating strategies to reduce employee burnout and improve organisational outcomes.

Accordingly, you are proposing a qualitative study with the aim of exploring the effect of perceived quiet promotion practices on employee performance at selected JSE$-$listed technology companies.

You have formulated the following research objectives for the proposed study:

$$ To explore the discourse surrounding the great resignation, quiet quitting, and quiet promotion phenomena across the selected JSE$-$listed technology companies.

$$ To understand how best to craft resilient organisational cultures that are responsive to the unfolding paradigm shift characterized by the great resignation, quiet quitting, and quiet promotion phenomena across the selected JSE$-$listed technology companies.

$$ To examine the nexus of perceived quiet promotion practices and employee burnout across the selected JSE$-$listed technology companies.

$$ To proffer practical recommendations to the management of the selected JSE$-$listed technology companies on how best to mitigate quiet promotion for improved employee performance.

Please outline how you would go about conducting the study with reference to the following:

$1\mathrm{.}4$ Based on your understanding of research philosophy, critically discuss the ontological and epistemological perspectives of the proposed study.

$1$ How do employees perceive the great resignation, quiet quitting, and quiet promotion phenomena in the context of JSE$-$listed technology companies?

$2$ What organizational cultural factors contribute to the emergence and perpetuation of quiet promotion practices within JSE$-$listed technology companies