The launch of Capabilities at Work is now on Vimeo

We recently celebrated the launch of Capabilities at Work: The Added Value of the Capability Model for Well-Being and Work (Cambridge University Press, 2026), edited by Jac van der Klink and Sebastiaan Rothmann. If you missed the event, or would like to relive it, a short highlights video and the full recording are now available on Vimeo.

▶️ Short video: Click here.

▶️ Full book launch: Click here.

What if work did more than provide an income?

That question is at the heart of the book. The capability approach holds that work should enable people to achieve what they value, develop their skills, and take part fully in society. From this view, a good job is one that gives people real opportunities to be and do what matters to them, in addition to an income.

The book shows how organisations, leaders, and policymakers can put this into practice by removing the barriers that limit people’s potential, improving the quality of work, and making opportunities accessible to all. Equity is a central theme: work should reduce disparities and foster inclusion across gender, socio-economic, and cultural divides.

What you will find in the book

The fifteen chapters, written by contributors from several countries, are organised in three parts:

• Part I: The capability model in relation to work. This part covers the theoretical foundations, including justice, assessment, and how the capability approach connects with other theories of work, health, and well-being.

• Part II: Applications at different levels in the organisation. The chapters move from corporate governance and human resource management to individual workers and practical interventions.

• Part III: Work capabilities in different contexts. This part offers cross-cultural perspectives, a view from the Global South, studies across occupations and countries, leadership, and the future of work amid digitalisation, globalisation, and climate change.

The book also includes practical tools, such as the Capability Set for Work Questionnaire and a Capability Conversation Guide.

Free to read

Capabilities at Work is published open access, so anyone can read and download it at no cost: Click here.

Thank you

Thank you to all the contributors, to the funders who made open access possible, and to everyone who celebrated with us. Please share the videos and the book with colleagues and friends who care about fair and meaningful work.