Human resource management and organizational strategies in German- and US-owned companies

The development of the international economy over the past twenty years has bred considerable diversity in the form and substance of employment relations (labour-management relations, human resource management practices) throughout the world. Cases of ‘social partnership’ are today found in the ‘free market’ United States economy; some companies operating in Germany's ‘social’ market economy are rejecting traditional forms of social partnership in the name of more unilateral strategies.

This paper examines (a) the extent to which ‘strategic diversity’ – variation in human resource strategies and policies – is possible within the heavily institutionalized, co-operative and codeterminative German economy, and (b) how managers perceive the effects of different kinds of HR approaches on organizational change and industrial adjustment. It is based on empirical evidence drawn from seven large chemicals companies operating in Germany – three of them US-owned firms and four German-owned.

The main conclusions are that considerable strategic diversity is possible within the German context, and that managers perceive distinct costs and benefits to specific aspects of the typically American ‘unilateral’ style and the more German ‘negotiated’ approach to structuring the relationship with human resources. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of these trade-offs for the transferability of HR strategies across international borders, giving special attention to policies to avoid some of these potential costs.     

The role of human resource management in cross-border mergers and acquisitions

Cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As) have become the dominant mode of growth for firms seeking competitive advantage in an increasingly complex and global business economy. Although human resource management (HRM) can play a value-adding role in the merger process, existing research and evidence does not clearly demonstrate how it can do so. This paper addresses the neglected human side of M&As by providing a strategic fit framework to assess the link between M&A strategy and HRM strategy. Because cross-border M&As are of an order of magnitude more complex than domestic mergers, we examine contingencies in national contexts that influence outcomes in the merger process. We draw on recent empirical evidence to highlight HRM roles in terms of resources, processes and values that reflect the influence of both strategic fit and national context in the integration stage of cross-border M&A.     

The impact of socially responsible human resource management on employees' organizational citizenship behaviour: the mediating role of organizational identification

Based on insights from social exchange and social identity theories, this paper examines the influence of three dimensions of socially responsible human resource management (SR-HRM), namely legal compliance HRM, employee-oriented HRM and general CSR facilitation HRM, on employees' organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB). Structural equation modelling of dyadic data collected from Chinese employees and their direct supervisors in three phases revealed that whilst organizational identification fully mediated the relationship between employee-oriented HRM and employee OCB, general CSR facilitation HRM had a direct effect on employee OCB. In contrast, legal compliance HRM neither influenced employee OCB directly, nor indirectly through organizational identification. The findings highlight the important but complex role played by SR-HRM in eliciting positive employee work outcomes, and contribute to our knowledge of the mechanisms underlying this relationship.     

Local complexities and global uncertainties: a study of foreign ownership and human resource management in China

Drawing on qualitative data, this paper examines developments in human resource and employment policies and practices among a sample of joint venture and wholly owned foreign enterprises operating in China. The research reveals that the effects of parent company nationality and ownership form were most visible in the areas of remuneration, worker representation and aspects of employee selection. There was, however, little overt involvement of multinational parent companies in the management of human resources of their Chinese operations. The trend was towards indirect reporting relationships with regional sub-units of multinational companies rather than direct links with the parent headquarters. Overall, these intermediate sub-units were playing an important role in the integration of Chinese business units in the global management systems of multinational companies.     

Careers and human resource management—a European perspective

Although many of the principal milestones of current career research are of U.S. origin, the influence of European contributions slowly grows. Drastic changes of careers and career contexts surfacing in the early 1990s have renewed the interest in career issues. In addition, new concepts such as the boundaryless career propelled the European career discourse and triggered career studies in Europe. Despite the difficulty to give a comprehensive picture because of the differences within Europe and the many possible measures of comparison, this paper identifies three major characteristics of European career research and practice: (1) Substantial heterogeneity in terms of career practice; (2) The use of theoretical concepts usually coming from social sciences in career research; (3) The emphasis on social structures in conceptualizing influencing factors of career. After identifying and explaining these characteristics, the paper discusses their implications for human resource management research and practice.     

Total quality management and human resource systems: an international comparison

This paper takes advantage of a unique international data set to examine the determinants of the adoption and sustainability of total quality management techniques, focusing in particular on the role played by human resource professionals and practices. The data come from a 1991 survey conducted by Ernst and Young and the American Quality Foundation covering the use of TQM tools in the computer, auto, health care and banking industries in Japan, the United States, Canada and Germany.

The research distinguishes between two ways of implementing total quality management – one approach conceptualizes TQM as a relatively limited set of technical engineering changes while the second implements these technical changes as part of a larger transformation of the organization of work. We find support for the second approach in that the number of employees using quality tools and the number of quality tools in use is greater and lasts longer in firms that also have team-based human resource systems for frontline employees, with team structures, suggestion systems, meetings and group rewards. This central finding holds across all countries and industries studied.

We also find that achievement of these changes requires the commitment of organizational stakeholders to incorporate the interests of employees in strategic decision making. Though union presence alone does not predict the adoption or sustainability of these innovations, partnership between management and union does have a positive effect. The level of strategic influence of the human resource department also influences innovation, though in ways that differ across countries and industries.

The findings suggest the value of comparative studies and of research focused at exploring sub-national variation. The findings also suggest the value of a longitudinal study of the sustainability of innovation.     

Evolution of organizational governance and human resource management in China's township and village enterprises

This study reviews the evolution of organizational governance and human resource management practices in China's non-state sector, with a focus on China's township and village enterprises (TVEs). The empirical investigation on twenty TVEs located in Southern China provided the evidence that, as enterprises move towards a more formal corporate governance structure with clearer property rights relations, their human resource management practices tend to become more marketized, in order to meet the challenge of increased competition in the highly dynamic, transitional Chinese economy.     

农业行政管理部门人力资源管理现状及分析

农业行政管理部门人力资源管理直接影响到"三农"工作的推进,文章从人力资源管理意识、规划与配置、人力资源获取与激励机制以及人力资源开发等4个方面分析了农业行政管理部门中人力资源管理的现状及存在问题,并提出了相应的改进措施。     

The challenge of international human resource management: balancing the duality of strategy and practice

Over the last two decades there has been an unprecedented increase in the number of organizations that have internationalized their operations. The international movement of labour that has been concomitant with such expansion of international business has meant that issues associated with the management of human resources across international borders are increasingly important to international human resource managers and academics. The research presented in this paper examines international human resource management (IHRM) pedagogy and practice in Australia. It reports IHRM academicians' and practitioners' understanding of the major issues for teaching and practice in IHRM and elucidates current developments and directions for this field.     

From a labour-surplus to a labour-scarce economy: challenges to human resource management in Hong Kong

In this paper, the acute problems faced by the market economy of Hong Kong are assessed. These are seen to arise from the shift in the labour market from labour surplus to labour scarcity. The major geo-political role of Hong Kong both in servicing the extendal capital requirements of South China and as a key state within the conurbation of ‘little dragons’ is also examined. The consequences of this structural shift in terms of the challenges being mounted to HRM both strategically and functionally are also evaluated and are interpreted as an evolutionary process.     

The conditions for international human resource management: two case studies

A move towards the transnational or global corporation is widely canvassed. Rather less attention has been devoted to how the multinational company

actually organizes its HR activities or to the conditions which permit a transnational form of organization to emerge and survive. The paper explores these two issues, using case study evidence from two British-owned companies. The model of the transnational suggests that authority is devolved and control is dispersed. The paper shows, however, that central control was greater than is often thought. As for the conditions for transnationality, key immediate influences were the length of time for which the firms had been multinationals and the routes taken to attain this state; these influences were underpinned by differences in market structure. Even where a transnational approach had been developed, future competitive trends suggested that it might be under threat. The implication is that the‘transnational solution’may be attainable only in certain types of firm and that it may prove to be unstable.     

The adoption,character and impact of strategic human resource management: a case study of two large metropolitan Vietnamese public hospitals

In this paper the researchers set out to explore the adoption, character and impact of strategic human resource management (SHRM) in two large metropolitan Vietnamese public hospitals using a multi-level qualitative research design. Data are analyzed from 21 interviews and 5 focus groups with key players from the hospitals and government authorities. Findings show that the State controls many of the core day-to-day HR functions of public hospitals, curtailing local autonomy and management innovation. This is compacted by inadequate government funding, poor training of medical staff, and inadequate management and business skills of hospital managers. Inhibiting greater experimentation with SHRM is the fear of developing management initiatives out of sync with the State. Consequently, many managers and clinicians held negative views of the HR department and their relevance for the day-to-day management of healthcare services. Respondents reported that they perceived these factors had a negative impact on the well-being of medical staff and the quality of patient care. The paper concludes with a discussion on the necessity for continued State reforms that can enable greater autonomy of the hospitals' HRM functions and greater investment in local HR capabilities to materialize the link between SHRM, employee well-being and quality of patient care.     

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.     

The influence of human resource management on knowledge sharing and innovation in Spain: the mediating role of affective commitment

The aim of this paper is to explain and to test empirically how human resource management (HRM) practices contribute to knowledge sharing and innovation through employees' affective commitment. Results show that HRM practices do not influence knowledge sharing in a direct way, but they do have a positive effect when affective commitment mediates the relationship. We also find a positive relationship between knowledge sharing and innovation performance. That is, HRM practices contribute to knowledge creation and innovation through the generation of the affective commitment necessary for employees to be willing to share their knowledge. The relationships identified have been tested by applying structural equation models to a sample of 87 R&D departments of Spanish innovative companies.     

The theory and practice of strategic HRM and participative management: Antecedents in early industrial relations

A diversity of opinion exists about the definition, intellectual boundaries, and major premises of the fields of human resources management (HRM) and industrial relations (IR). To help provide a common frame of reference for discussion and debate on the symposium topic, I endeavor in this paper to flesh out a consensus position on these matters. The method used is largely historical. Based on a review of the origins and evolution of the two fields from the early 20th century to the present day, I show that human resources (HR) up to the early 1960s was typically considered to be a subfield of IR. In more recent years, however, HR has largely severed its links with IR and now is widely regarded as a separate, sometimes competing and sometimes complementary field of study. In the last part of the paper I use this historical analysis, together with a review of the literatures in the two fields and the findings and conclusions of the other papers in this symposium, to identity both the commonalities and differences that distinguish the two fields in terms of their approach to science building (research) and problem solving (policy/practice).     

The influence of collectivist human resource management practices on team-level identification

In this study, we investigate how a culturally specific human resource management (HRM) approach influences employees' relational identification at the team level, which may in turn influence the behavior of team members. Given the boundary condition of a collectivistic societal culture, collectivist HRM helps improve employees' team-level identification and their performance. Collecting empirical data from firms in different regions of China, we found that the collectivism-oriented HRM approach has a positive effect on employees' team-level relational identification. This team-level identification, in turn, can significantly improve the job satisfaction of team members and reduce their turnover intention. We conclude with a discussion of the implications of our findings for academic researchers and practitioners.     

An analysis of the relationship between total quality management-based human resource management practices and innovation

Innovative management models consider human resources to be a key dimension in the innovation process and its performance. In particular, the knowledge of the people making up the staff and their creativity is fundamental. However, scant study has been made of what specific type of policies and practices in human resource management fosters better knowledge, attitudes and behaviour in the staff that will lead to the best performance in innovation. This paper studies the relationship between the policies and practices of human resource management from the viewpoint of total quality management and performance in innovation. Specifically, it is argued that there is a direct relationship, as well as a possible moderating effect, of strategic orientation towards innovation. An empirical study made of 106 Spanish industrial firms found no evidence of this moderating effect, although it did find evidence of a direct relationship and, in particular, of the positive effects of teamwork on technological innovation.     

长春市联通综合资源管理系统的建设现状及展望

综合资源管理系统是一套定位于各省电信公司的后台运行支撑系统。文章介绍了中国联通长春市分公司综合资源管理系统的建设现状和前景。     

An analytical model for human resource management as an enabler of organizational renewal: a framework for corporate entrepreneurship

This article presents the development of a model of types of work based on organizational theory. It analyzes the different characteristics of work and efficient forms of Management, and joins all these aspects together in terms of corporate entrepreneurship. Organizational theory provides the instruments needed to manage work, the causes that make decentralization desirable and the technical, social and institutional mechanisms for its control. The literature on corporate entrepreneurship provides material for forms of discovery or creation of opportunities based on accumulated experience in the firm, on the collective relationships linked to entrepreneurship and on the way in which resources are managed. This article contributes to existing knowledge by systematically addressing these two fields, showing how the instruments that allow for the efficient management of work are the same as those necessary for corporate entrepreneurship and how the efficient management of work is a prerequisite and an enabler of entrepreneurial activity.     

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.