Human Resource Management Practices and Trust in Public Organizations

Abstract

Trust has been acknowledged as a valuable managerial resource within organizations. Working as a lubricant of organizational functioning, trust reduces opportunistic behaviours while it increases voluntary compliance to organizational norms and rules as well as enhancing individual and organizational performance. Considering the importance of trust, it is worthwhile to explore what factors may help build trust within organizations. This research investigates whether perceptions of several human resource management (HRM) practices are associated with trust in government organizations. According to social exchange theory, HRM practices signal management's commitment to employees which in turn leads to greater trust in the organization. Using data from an employee survey conducted for the Georgia Department of Transportation in 2007, this research tests how employee perceptions of HRM practices are related to trust in three distinct levels of management in a large department of state government: trust in department leadership, trust in one's leadership team, and trust in one's supervisor. Binary logit analyses suggest that perceptions of HRM practices focusing on autonomy, compensation, communication, performance appraisal, and career development are associated with trust in public organizations. According to the result, those practices present variation in their leverage on trust in leadership at different levels.     

Organizational practice transfer within a transnational professional service firm: the role of leadership and control

Most cross-border organizational practice transfer involves implementation challenges, yet key literature in this field largely overlooks the mediating role of the transfer coalition, which serves as a ‘bridge’ between headquarters and subsidiaries in transferring an organizational practice. By exploring an in-depth case study of a top-tier professional service firm, this study contributes to the literature on cross-border human resource management practice transfer. We show that the transfer coalition displayed activities that translated into two separate managerial roles – transfer leadership and control – that were practiced with quite different levels of commitment by different members and impacted the successful management of the transfer process. We propose two distinctive transfer coalition archetypes – the entrepreneurial and the ceremonial type – where the leadership and control roles were practiced quite differently and reached different levels of organizational practice adoption. Furthermore, we suggest practical implications for HR professionals in order to improve global leadership and control competence.     

Strategic human resources management is irrelevant when it comes to highly skilled professionals in the Canadian new economy

The goal of this paper is to explain the commitment behaviour of highly skilled professionals in Canadian business-to-business (B2B) technology services companies that do not have a formal and explicit managerial commitment strategy and to emphasize the need to take the organizational context into consideration when developing a theory that seeks to account for differences in employee's organizational commitment. Our contribution is to reappraise the relevance of the traditional organizational commitment definition in this organizational context, a new organizational form. We demonstrate that in the companies which are different from the traditional bureaucratic organizational forms and which employ highly qualified professionals, the employment relationship is based on a psychological contract that is not accounted for in the strategic HRM theory.

Indeed, the basic principles of strategic HRM dictate that an organization's most valuable asset is its employees; it is therefore incumbent on management to do whatever is necessary to retain its workforce, readily described as a key resource, and to use human resources management (HRM) practices as tools to elicit commitment. In a study of highly skilled workers in Canadian business-to-business (B2B) technology services companies belonging to the so-called ‘new economy’, we observed that although the competitive advantage enjoyed by these companies depends to a large degree on the creativity and innovativeness of their workforce, these companies barely have any official HRM policies, and the HR department plays a very unobtrusive role. Yet, no one could say that the employees in these firms are not committed – on the contrary! This situation has several implications in terms of career for these professionals, in terms of HR practices for the employers.

Nevertheless, until now, existing theoretical models of organizational commitment have shown little interest in highly skilled workers in general and even less in new economy professionals.     

Able,willing, and knowing: the effects of HR practices on commitment and effort in 26 European countries

This study extends previous studies of human resource (HR) practices by examining how organizational commitment and work effort are related to the use of HR practices enhancing discretion and skills based on international comparative survey data from 26 European countries. By analyzing individual level data instead of the organizational level data that are examined in prior studies, this article allows investigating whether and how employee perceptions of HR practices are related to their attitudes and behavior. The multilevel analyses largely support the hypotheses that both the intensity and the consistency of these HR practices contribute to organizational commitment and work effort since they enhance the ability of employees and their willingness to cooperate and inform them about the expectations of the organization.     

Organizational socialization and career success of Asian managers

This study proposed a new framework to conceptualize organizational socialization. It examined two broad socialization strategies: perceived organizational support and developmental experience and their relationships with career success. Data were obtained from interviews with 374 line managers and human resource managers in four industrial sectors in five Asia countries/societies, namely, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Thailand. There is partial support for the predicted relationships. The results from the present study add to our understanding of how organizational socialization affects career success. Implications for research and managerial practices, as well as future research directions, are provided.     

The influence of strategic HRM and sector on perceived performance in health services organizations

In this study, we examine a variety of management characteristics of for-profit and not-for-profit organizations in the health services (HS) industry. Data collected from Australian senior executives are used to test the relationships between managerial constructs such as employee commitment, customer demandingness, strategic HRM orientation and the adoption of human capital-enhancing human resource (HR) practices and perceived overall performance. Data analysis conducted using the Partial Least Square Modeling show a statistically significant path from commitment to employees, customer demandingness and strategic HRM orientation to the adoption of human capital-enhancing HR practices (such as selective staffing, comprehensive training, and performance appraisal) to perceived organizational performance. The results also show that private sector health service organizations have a higher level of perceived performance.     

Introduction: service work and its implications for HRM

This article draws on our four case studies to examine the nature of the relationships between ABB and its Canadian subsidiaries. Starting from a critical review of the literature, it develops a framework that is sensitive to three levels of analysis: the factors that shape the parent corporation's strategies, the characteristics of the host countries in which the MNC operates and the characteristics of the local subsidiaries themselves. The empirical material illustrates how innovation is generated by a two-way process, in which the initiative of corporate leaders challenges the ‘interpretation’ of local actors. In doing so, we point to a number of key omissions in the influential attempt by Bartlett and Ghoshal to use ABB to develop a managerial theory of the firm. This research also leads to broader considerations regarding the interface between markets and organizations. As distinct from the orthodox view, a transnational corporation may be conceived as a mediator between the market and a local subsidiary. In many ways, the global corporation channels and mediates the impact of external market forces on internal organizational actors, through a process involving the exercise of politics and power. The article has significant implications for decision making on human resource management. In particular it stresses that local managers, local unions, and employees can think and act strategically only in as far as they properly assess the limits of their respective sphere of organizational autonomy within the corporation.     

Increasing perceived work meaningfulness by implementing psychological need-satisfying performance management practices

To further investigate the relationship between human resource practices and organizational performance, research suggests focusing on psychological employee outcomes. In this paper, it is proposed that the positive psychological concept of work meaningfulness constitutes a mediator between human resource practices and performance which is worth investigating. The author argues that performance management practices can potentially lead to an increase in employees' perceived work meaningfulness, if they focus on satisfying the three psychological needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness. Based on findings from research focusing on performance management trends, goal setting, performance appraisal, performance feedback, and self-determination theory, the paper suggests a new perspective on how to incorporate concepts rooted in the science of positive psychology in performance management practices to contribute to positive workplace outcomes such as well-being and performance.     

Innovative human resource practices and organizational commitment: an empirical investigation

In the contemporary business environment, human resource (HR) is an indispensable input for organizational effectiveness. Hence, an effective management of human resources has an important role to play in the performance and success of organizations. Competitive pressures have encouraged organizations to be proactive in diagnosing HR problems and to adopt more innovative HR practices since these were no longer a matter of trend, but rather of survival. The present study attempted to explore the relationship of three dimensions of innovative human resource practices (IHRPs): that is, the extent of introduction of IHRPs, their importance for organizational goal achievement and satisfaction with implementation of IHRPs, with organizational commitment (OC). Regression analyses showed that the perceived extent of introduction of innovative human resource practices by the organizations was the most significant predictor of organizational commitment.     

Inclusion climate: A multilevel investigation of its antecedents and consequences

This study investigates the antecedents and consequences of organization‐level inclusion climate. A national sample of human resource decision‐makers from 100 organizations described their firms' formal diversity management programs; 3,229 employees reported their perceptions of, and reactions to, their employers' diversity management. Multilevel analyses demonstrate that identity‐conscious programs (programs that target specific identity groups) generate an inclusion climate. Moreover, the analyses provide evidence of multilevel mediation: In organizations with an inclusion climate, individual employees perceive the organization as fulfilling its diversity management obligations and respond with higher levels of affective commitment. This study represents an important step toward understanding how a shared perception of organizational inclusiveness develops and how inclusion climate facilitates the achievement of diversity management objectives. The findings also shed light on the important role of identity‐conscious programs in promoting organizational commitment within a diverse workforce.     

The role of organizational culture in the relationship between leadership and organizational commitment: an empirical study in a Greek organization

The aim of this paper is to explore the nature of relationships between organizational culture and leadership behaviours in affecting employees' commitment to their work organization. Building on organizational commitment literature, this study used a survey methodology. Empirical evidence was obtained from 300 employees working in a large Greek service company. The analyses indicated that the culture orientations examined served as mediators in the relationship between leader behaviour and followers' affective and normative commitment to the organization. The findings also indicated that continuance commitment is a two-dimensional construct; the ‘personal sacrifices’ dimension was found to be related to organizational culture and transactional contingent reward. This research paper has key messages for practitioners contributing to the fields of commitment, organizational culture, leadership and human resource management.     

An Exploration of How the Employee–Organization Relationship Affects the Linkage Between Perception of Developmental Human Resource Practices and Employee Outcomes*

abstract The purpose of the present study was to examine whether and how the quality of the employee–organization relationship (EOR) influences the relationship between employee perception of developmental human resource (HR) practices and employee outcomes. Analyses of 593 employees representing 64 local savings banks in Norway showed that four indicators of the EOR (perceived organizational support, affective organizational commitment, and procedural and interactional justice) moderated the relationship between perception of developmental HR practices and individual work performance. A strong and direct negative relationship was found between perception of developmental HR practices and turnover intention, but perceived procedural and interactional justice moderated this linkage. No support was found for a mediating role of the EOR indicators in the relationship between perception of developmental HR practices and employee outcomes. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

Management of paradox: a comparative study of managerial practices in Korean and Japanese firms

Numerous scholars are recognizing that paradoxes are indigenous to organizational functioning. Managers too are being challenged to do more and spend less, and delegate and know the details. As a corporate objective, neither efficiency nor innovation can be sacrificed. In this paper, we have attempted to capture this emerging trend empirically. Defining management of paradox as ‘managerial practices that realize the simultaneous accomplishment of multiple strategic objectives that are seemingly or actually incompatible,’ this paper explores how organizational capabilities of effectively dealing with paradox can be acquired. Specifically, the paper attempts to address two organizational mechanisms: decision-making structure and human resource practices (HRPs). Propositions deduced from the existing literature were tested with the data collected from 103 Korean firms and 136 Japanese firms. The data indicated that firms have to be multi-talented. It was found that firms that successfully accomplished innovation and efficiency objectives simultaneously were those that were able to mix paradoxical organizational practices: decentralization and control on the one hand and the three HRPs on the other. It was also found that the Japanese corporations were more apt in deploying paradoxical managerial practices than the Korean counterparts. The paper concludes by discussing a few theoretical implications.     

Exploring the black box in Spanish firms: the effect of the actual and perceived system on employees' commitment and organizational performance

Several studies in strategic human resource management have described a relationship between people-management practices and organizational performance. However, the mediating processes that explain such a relationship remain unexplored. This study examines how both the actual people-management system (assessed by managers) and the perceived system (assessed by employees) influence employees' commitment, and how this in turn contributes to employee and organizational outcomes. Multilevel analyses of a sample of 732 employees from 26 Spanish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) supported a model in which employees' commitment mediates between the actual system and unit-level absenteeism, which in turn has an effect on productivity. Results also showed the importance of the perceived system in attempting to understand the true effect of the actual system on employees' commitment to the organization.     

Why and when organizational culture fosters affective commitment among knowledge workers: the mediating role of perceived psychological contract fulfilment and moderating role of organizational tenure

Drawing on Denison and Mishra (1995)’s framework of organizational culture, this study examines why and when organizational culture is related to knowledge workers’ affective commitment. Data were collected from 640 employees working in three high-technology companies in China. The findings indicate that the relationship between organizational culture and affective commitment is mediated by perceived psychological contract fulfilment. In addition, organizational tenure moderates the relationship between two external dimensions (i.e. adaptability and mission) of organizational culture and perceived psychological contract fulfilment. This study extends the current theoretical framework of organizational culture by demonstrating the underlying mechanism and the boundary condition of the relationship between organizational culture and affective commitment. The findings also provide practical implications for international managers to design appropriate human resource management policies and practices in China.     

The impact of human resource management practices on intention to leave of employees in the service industry in India: the mediating role of organizational commitment

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of a bundle of eight human resource management practices on intention to leave, and to examine the mediating effect of organizational commitment on the relationship between the HRM practices and intention to leave of employees of a service organization in India. Most of the prior HRM practices–employee turnover studies have been from the HR manager's point of view. This study took a different approach and studied this relationship from an employee's point of view. Internet survey questionnaires were used to collect the data from 183 employees working in a service company in India. Multiple linear regression and hierarchical linear regression analysis were conducted to test the hypotheses. The study found not only that the HRM practices lower employee intentions to leave, but also that this relationship is partially mediated by organizational commitment. The results of the study not only supported that organizations should focus on employee perceptions of the organizations' HRM practices but also indicated that human resources should go beyond establishing policies and procedures to providing an employee-friendly work environment (Biswas and Varma 2007).     

Antecedents of commitment to a parent company and to a local operation: empirical evidence from western employees working for multinational companies in Vietnam

Rising business of multinational companies in Asia has been paralleled with an increase in the number of western expatriates sent overseas. This has created challenges for the multinational companies as how to develop dual commitment of these expatriates to the parent companies and to the local operations during international assignments. In this study, we simultaneously examined the nature of dual organizational commitment among 254 western expatriates currently working for the subsidiaries of the multinational companies in Vietnam, and investigated specific antecedents of the dual commitment by using multi-dimensional approach. The results confirmed the existence of two distinct commitment foci and proved that the commitment to a parent company was stronger than that to a local operation. Tenure in a parent company, clarity of repatriation process, promotion and compensation were responsible for the differences in level of commitments with regard to two foci. While promotion, compensation and clarity of repatriation process more significantly predicted components of parent company commitment, pre-departure training was more associated with components of local operation commitment. Pre-departure training, promotion, compensation and transformational leadership were primarily indicated to predict dual commitment in terms of high levels to both foci. The results were discussed in the light of dual commitment and international human resource management.     

Taking charge and employee outcomes: the moderating effect of emotional competence

This study examined how taking charge was related to job satisfaction, affective organizational commitment, and job performance among Hong Kong Chinese newcomers, and how emotional competence moderates the latter relationships. The results of a two-wave survey involving 137 newcomers supported the proposition that taking charge would be positively associated with job satisfaction and affective organizational commitment, but not with job performance. In addition, emotional competence significantly moderated the relationship between taking charge and job performance, such that taking charge was positively related to job performance only when newcomers’ emotional competence was high.     

External organizational commitment

Building on the organizational commitment literature and recent management practices like relationship marketing and total quality management, a new focus of work commitment is proposed: external organizational commitment (EOC). It is envisioned as a global construct and defined as an employee's identification and involvement with another organization. A model of EOC specifying its antecedents, consequences, and moderating factors is offered and 28 propositions emanating from the model are articulated. Implications for human resource practitioners are discussed.     

How Adult Attachment Styles Relate to Perceived Psychological Contract Breach and Affective Organizational Commitment

The current study examines the relationship between adult attachment style and both perceived psychological contract breach and affective organizational commitment in a sample of college students with employment experience. Attachment style is argued to be an individual difference factor that affects how an individual perceives organizational events based on theory and existing empirical research related to adult attachment style. Individuals with insecure attachment styles were predicted to perceive more psychological contract breach and have lower levels of affective organizational commitment. The results reveal that individuals with higher levels of preoccupied and dismissive attachment styles perceived higher levels of psychological contract breach, and preoccupied attachment style significantly and negatively relates to affective organizational commitment. The relationship between attachment style and psychological contract dimensions was stronger for relational than transactional contract dimensions. Evidence is also found that perceived psychological contract breach mediates the relationship between preoccupied attachment style and affective commitment. Future potential research directions are described. The implications of these findings for managerial practice is discussed.