Human capital enhancing HRM systems and frontline employees in Australian manufacturing SMEs

The current study seeks to answer a number of key questions concerning the strategic management of frontline employees (e.g. individuals who do not occupy an executive, managerial or supervisory role in functions such as production, maintenance, service and clerical functions) and their contributions towards the performance of small- and medium-sized manufacturing firms in Australia. This study adopts a human capital perspective to examine the employee and organisational performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Australia. We were also interested in seeking to examine the presence of the human resource management (HRM) function of SMEs in Australia and their contribution towards employee and firm performance. Findings from the partial least square analysis identified the antecedents and consequences of a human capital enhancing (HCE) approach for the strategic HRM of frontline employees in Australia's manufacturing industry. Strategic orientations of small- and medium-sized manufacturing firms mediate the contribution of the HRM function in adopting a set of HCE HRM systems. HCE HRM system was found to have a direct and indirect impact on manufacturing performance outcomes. Frontline employees' performance was found to mediate the impact of HCE HRM system on manufacturing performance outcomes. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed in relation to the management of frontline employees in enhancing perceived employee and manufacturing performance.     

Strategic human resource management and inertia in the corporate entrepreneurship of a multinational enterprise

Abstract

Corporate entrepreneurship (CE) supports sustained competitive advantage through the continuous exploration and exploitation of new sources of knowledge. With an emphasis on combining knowledge in new configurations, strategic human resource management (HRM) activities are core to these entrepreneurial endeavours. We explore how strategic HRM activities may facilitate and impede CE through a rich, qualitative case study of three local entities within a business unit of a large multinational enterprise facing business stagnation and low levels of corporate entrepreneurship. Responding to a call for more empirical research that probes the subtle and complex interactions between HRM activities and other organisational factors affecting CE, we identify a configuration of inter-dependent factors that mutually reinforce each other and sustain inertia in corporate entrepreneurship. We also make two novel contributions to theory by (1) elaborating the links between organisational process-orientation, strategic HRM and CE; and (2) refining to our current understanding of human competencies for CE.     

HRM configurations in Korean venture firms: resource availability,institutional force and strategic choice perspectives

To examine various human resource management (HRM) configurations and their explanatory variables, we generated several hypotheses and tested them with data collected from Korean venture firms. For these purposes, we first suggested two ideal types of HRM configuration: a control-based human resource system (CBHRS) and a high-performing human resource system (HPHRS). Depending on contextual variables, firms are expected to make a choice between the two or among their variants. To generate hypotheses, we employed three theoretical perspectives: resource availability, institutional force, and strategic choice. To test the hypotheses, we collected data from 464 venture firms in Korea. From the data, we derived five different HRM configurations: Cost-minimizing type; Paternalistic type; Inducement type; Investment type; and Transitional type. Both the Cost-minimizing type and the Paternalistic type are classified as part of the CBHRS, the Inducement type and the Investment type are considered to be part of the HPHRS, and the Transitional type is taken to be mixed. We found that all three theoretical perspectives partly explained the selection of HRM configurations. Some related issues are raised and discussed in the final section.     

Learning capabilities,human resource management innovation and competitive advantage

The growing literature on innovation pays limited attention to the role of human resource management (HRM) innovation in creating competitive advantage. This paper adopts a knowledge-based approach to examine how firms design and implement HRM innovations (HRMIs) and how such innovations support competitive advantage. Drawing from multiple streams of literature and qualitative evidence from Australian manufacturing and service firms, our findings reveal that human resource (HR) functional-level learning capabilities, through which HR professionals build and nurture new knowledge configurations, facilitate the design and implementation of HRMIs. The findings also reveal that HRMIs, when coupled with top management support, can play a vital role in firm competitive advantage. Addressing the limitations of the term radical innovations to fully capture HRMIs and based on our findings and extant literature we propose a new classification that will capture the unique nature of HRMIs. In addition to contributing to theory, our paper provides valuable insights to practitioners for building and nurturing learning capabilities for HRMI-related competitive advantage.     

Sustainable development in small and medium enterprises: The role of entrepreneurial orientation in supply chain management

Organizations are under increased pressure to improve their sustainable performance through the adoption of green supply chain management (GSCM) practices. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have lagged behind larger corporations due to a number of factors. Chief among these factors is the lack of resources and capabilities. In this study, we investigate whether entrepreneurial orientation as a distinctive firm-level resource contributes to the successful implementation of GSCM practices within SMEs. We use primary data obtained from 316 manufacturing SMEs and analyze the data by using a fuzzy-set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA). Our findings show four equifinal configurations of GSCM practices and the components of entrepreneurial orientation (EO) that lead to high environmental performance. Two practices, “eco-design” and “internal environmental management”, are present in all configurations, with the latter being the single core condition. The components of EO are present in all the configurations. Three distinct configurations lead to the simultaneous achievement of high environmental performance and high economic performance. Some noticeable differences appear in these configurations: “internal environmental management” is no longer a core condition, instead external practices (“green purchasing,” “cooperation with customers including environmental requirements,” and “investment recovery”) and “risk-taking” become core conditions. We exptrapolate our findings into a set of propositions that expand theory on the link between entrepreneurial orientation and sustainable performance. Our study provides insights for managers who seek to infuse entrepreneurial thoughts and actions into their green supply chain initiatives.     

Human resource management and organizational performance of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria

The link between human resource management (HRM) and firm performance of organizations has received significant research attention, generally focused on large firms from developed countries to the omission of studies focused on small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and those from developing countries. This study partially addresses this gap in the literature. We investigated the relationship between HRM practices and the financial (FIN) and non-financial performance (NONFIN) of SMEs in Nigeria. A survey design with 236 respondents was used to test the hypotheses. Multiple regression results showed that human capital development and occupational health and safety had a direct relationship with NONFIN, and employee performance management and NONFIN on FIN performance. HRM practices as a group accounted for 16% of the variance in NONFIN and 12% of the variance in FIN. Regression analyses controlled for size and age of the firm. This study partially supports a model of positive relationships between certain HRM practices and firm performance.     

An empirical study of high performance HRM practices in Chinese SMEs

This paper explores the performance effects of human resource management (HRM) practices in 74 Chinese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Four high performance HRM practices are identified: performance-based pay, participatory decision-making, free market selection, and performance evaluation. Regression analysis results support the conventional idea that the adoption of HRM practices generates better HRM outcomes and, in turn, better HRM outcomes contribute positively to firm performance. However, not all HRM practices, and their effects, led to improved SME performance. Among the Chinese SMEs investigated, a high level of employee commitment was identified as being the key HRM outcome for enhancing performance.     

Firms' human resource in information system and sustainable performance: does their organizational identity matter?

Research suggests that firms' human resource management (HRM) in information technology (IT) may have a positive effective effect on their strategies of sustainable development. Based on the perspective of organizational identity orientation, we argue that firms' collectivistic orientation may moderate the relationship between the HRM and the implementation of the strategy. Focusing on firm performance in environmental protection, we test our predictions with empirical data from China's manufacturing industry. The results show a significant direct effect of the HRM and a significant moderating effect of identity orientation on the dependent variable, i.e. performance in sustainable development.     

Ambidextrous work in smart city project alliances: unpacking the role of human resource management systems

Abstract

Organizations that are competing in dynamic global markets are increasingly adopting ambidextrous strategies where exploration and exploitation capabilities are combined simultaneously. However, ambidextrous work raises new challenges for human resource management (HRM). Based on 21 interviews with managers in seven multinational firms in Europe, we investigate how ambidextrous work in smart city work is supported through HRM systems. Our findings suggest a complex mix of three different HRM systems (one at corporate and two at project levels) designed to support ambidextrous exploratory and exploitation work. Specifically, corporate HRM systems focused on incentives and development of dual capabilities for smart city managers (SCMs). At project levels, interconnected explorative and exploitative HRM systems offered tailored managerial tools to support social integration and knowledge management between internal and external employees. Theoretical contributions, future research paths, and practical implications are addressed.     

Context‐bound configurations of corporate HR functions in multinational corporations

Considerable attention has focused on how multinational corporations (MNCs) deal with the simultaneous pressures of globalization and localization when it comes to human resource management (HRM). HR function activities in this process, however, have received less focus. The study presented here identifies configurations of the corporate HR function based on international HRM (IHRM) structures, exploring how issues of interdependency shape corporate HR roles. The study is based on 248 interviews in 16 MNCs based in 19 countries. The findings are applied to develop a contextually based framework outlining the main corporate HR function configurations in MNCs, including new insights into methods of IHRM practice design. © 2010 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Ambidexterity and IT competence can improve supply chain flexibility? A resource orchestration approach

Supply chain flexibility (SCF) has become an important competitive weapon for companies in the current dynamic environment. This paper explores the influence of ambidexterity on supply chain flexibility (SCF) and theorizes the moderating effect of information technology (IT) competence on that relationship. Whereas prior research focuses on the positive results of SCF for business performance, little empirical research has studied its facilitators, leaving the gap this study seeks to fill. We draw on resource orchestration theory to develop our research model. According to this theory, a firm can exploit the full potential of its resources and capabilities only when these are deployed in a complementary manner. This study proposes that ambidexterity impacts SCF positively and that its effect is amplified when the firm possesses IT competence. In order to test our hypotheses we have employed a hierarchical regression methodology and put into service data collected from manufacturing enterprises. The study confirms that ambidexterity, as the ability to explore and exploit SC resources, enables their orchestration, making SC resources flexible, and a high IT competence facilitates that orchestration.     

Exploring the reality of educated middle managers' capability and involvement in human resource management in China

Since the recent global financial crisis, human resource management (HRM) policies may be seen more than ever as one of the cornerstones for building an appropriate organizational culture to better promote effort and cooperation between human resource (HR) managers and other middle line-managers. This article is designed to explore the reality of educated middle managers' capability and involvement in HRM in China, given that the concepts of HR roles in general and middle managers in particular are relatively new there. By analysing the results from more than 300 middle managers who had been educated at MBA programmes in different parts of China, our findings, we argue, have important implications for both the HRM literature and management practice in emerging economies.     

Epidemics,labour markets and unemployment: the impact of SARS on human resource management in the Hong Kong service sector

This article examines the links between epidemics and their economic consequences, specifically in terms of their impacts on labour markets and jobs. To exemplify the above, we examine the effects of SARS (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome) on the Hong Kong economy, its labour market and its level of employment and unemployment. The article hypothesizes that the greatest impact would be on human resource management (HRM) in the service industries and on particular sub-sectors, such as the hotel sector. It concludes that the dramatic demand and supply ‘shocks’ significantly affected both the demand for and the supply of labour in the sector, with discernible HRM consequences.     

Knowledge-oriented human resource configurations,the new product development learning process,and perceived new product performance

We propose a set of organizational efforts that can help companies accumulate and learn knowledge related to new product development (NPD) activities. We call it the NPD learning process and argue that a set of coherent human resource management (HRM) practices, termed knowledge-oriented human resource (HR) configuration, can facilitate the NPD learning process. Collecting survey data from Taiwan, we find that the knowledge-oriented HR configuration is positively related to the NPD learning process and that the NPD learning process is positively related to managers' perceived new product performance. This study contributes to the literature of strategic HRM and innovation management.     

The labour relations heritage and lean manufacturing at Fiat

The objective of the paper is interpreting, from an evolutionary perspective, recent developments of work organization and human resource management policies at Fiat Auto, one of the world's largest automobile manufacturers, which achieved a successful restructuring in the early 1990s. Building on a heritage of adversarial labour relations and ‘mass production’ organizational principles, Fiat developed an original and to some extent hybrid version of ‘lean’ human resource management practices (teamwork, flexible compensation, multi-skilling, etc.).

The paper analyses this process of organizational change from an evolutionary perspective based on the concept of dynamic capabilities. From this standpoint, IR. HRM and work organization practices are the result of a learning process, based on original development, imitation, analogical replication, combination and selection of organizational capabilities; organizational capabilities have a cumulative and path-dependent nature; workplace innovations are also rooted in organizational absorptive capacities, that is, the ability of firms to exploit new (and often extramural) organizational and HRM developments; the existence of complementarities among organizational competencies, assets and choices in term of HRM are likely to push toward the adoption of a set or system of (rather than single and insulated) innovations in work organization, HRM practices and industrial relations policies.

The data provided in the paper show that the process of innovation of workplace practices at Fiat Auto (summarized by the concept of the Fabbrica Integrata) is curiously non-linear. The newly designed HRM policies have, on the one hand, been resisted by the unions (who have not been involved in the design process) and by segments of the work-force; on the other hand, they have been hindered by existing organizational features and personnel practices which, in turn, were key success factors during the 1980s. This inertia is significantly lower at the new greenfield plant of Melfi. On the whole, the restructuring process was successful from the competitive and financial standpoint, and represents the basis on which management and the unions can develop a new co-operative model of industrial relations.     

The configuration between supply chain integration and information technology competency: A resource orchestration perspective

Research indicates that deploying appropriate information technology (IT) competency in a manner that fits the supply chain integration (SCI) of a firm induces superior firm performance; however, our understanding of how to empirically conceptualize and assess the performance effect of the fit remains limited. Drawing upon resource orchestration theory and the literature on fit assessment methodologies, our study employs both a contingency and a configuration perspective to conceptualize and operationalize “fit.” The results of a survey of 196 firms in China provide the first empirical evidence for the existence and nature of interrelationships between multiple components of SCI and IT competency and their effects on firm performance. In particular, fit as “moderation” approach indicates that IT competency could strengthen the relationship between SCI and both operational and financial performance. Fit as “profile deviation” approach further reveals that the more similar the IT competency configurations are to those of the top performers in the high-level SCI group, the higher their operational and financial performance are. However, in the medium- and low-level SCI groups, the SCI-IT competency fit is significantly positively associated with financial performance and insignificantly associated with operational performance. The theoretical contributions and managerial implications of the study are discussed.     

Research on manufacturing grid resource service optimal-selection and composition framework

In order to address the resource service optimal-selection (RSOS) and composition problem in manufacturing grid (MGrid) system and provide high-quality service to users, an MGrid RSOS and composition framework (MGrid-RSOSCF) is investigated in this study. The process of RSOS and composition is divided into the following five steps in MGrid-RSOSCF: (1) decomposing the submitted manufacturing task into several subtasks (i.e. single resource service requested task) if the submitted task is a multiple resource service requested task; (2) searching out the qualified resource service for each decomposed subtask and generating the corresponding candidate resource service set; (3) retrieving, evaluating and comparing the quality of service (QoS) for each candidate resource service, and provide data for service optimal-selection and composition –if the submitted task is a single resource service requested task; (4) evaluating synthetically the overall quality of each candidate resource service and ranking them, and selecting the optimal one for the task – if the submitted manufacturing task is an multiple resource service requested task; (5) selecting one candidate resource service from each candidate resource service set and constructing a new composite resource service according to the submitted task requirements, and collecting all the possible resource service composite execution paths (RSCEP) and selecting the optimal paths to execute the task. The proposed MGrid-RSOSCF consists of five layers and each layer provides the corresponding necessary services and algorithms to address one problem mentioned above. The five layers are: (1) T-layer, responsible for MGrid task decomposition; (2) S-layer, responsible for resource service match and search; (3) Q-layer, responsible for QoS processing; (4) O-layer, responsible for evaluating and ranking the candidate resource service and (5) C-layer is responsible for resource service composition and optimal-selection. The case study and comparison of performances of the algorithms demonstrate that the proposed methods are sound on success rate and executing efficiency.     

Towards a configuration of socially responsible human resource management policies and practices: findings from an academic consensus

Abstract

The integration of socially responsible behaviour has become a strategic priority for companies in recent years. Academic contributions that merge the fields of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and human resource management (HRM) have been expanding, demonstrating a broad sweep of benefits reflected in greater levels of commitment, motivation, and performance by employees. However, little has been clarified about what academics and business management understand to be a configuration of socially responsible human resource management (SR-HRM) practices. This paper aims to define and provide an initial academic approximation of a set of socially responsible human resource practices. In order to accomplish this objective, a content analysis was conducted based on a review of the literature, CSR reports, and international CSR standards such as the Global Reporting Initiative and ISO 26000. The theoretical findings were supported by a panel of experts who inspected them over three rounds of reviews. The sample for the study was created by consulting the academic literature, strengthened by the input from the panel of experts. The results show an academic consensus of 80%, and support the existence of a valid configuration of 8 socially responsible human resource policies divided into 32 practices.