The research on Chinese ancient management philosophies' similarities with contemporary human resources management thoughts

Abstract

Purpose

Established on the detailed exploration of Chinese ancient management philosophies (CAMPs), the purpose of this paper is to extract enlightenments from CAMPs to see whether there exist some similarities between CAMPs and contemporary human resources management thoughts (CHRMTs) and pinpoint CAMPs' implications on human resource management practices nowadays.

Design/methodology/approach

Inspired by Lao Tzu's “When we can lay hold of the Dao of old to direct the things of the present day, and are able to know it as it was of old in the beginning, this is called (unwinding) the clue of Dao”, the paper explores, categorizes and integrates wisdom stemmed from CAMPs to evaluate whether there exist some commonly accepted arguments between CAMPs and CHRMTs.

Findings

CAMPs which have been passed on by generations for the past 2,500 years in China provide firm ground for human resources management thoughts and practices development; CAMPs' emphasis on people's well cultured morality and highly developed virtues has kindled a light to illuminate human resources management practices, not only in the past but also in the future. CHRMTs' principles concerning “people‐centered strategies”, employee recruitment and selection strategies, employee training and education strategies, staffing as well as employee retention strategies, can all trace their sources from CAMPs.

Originality/value

The research on CAMPs is not only significant to complement and extend CHRMTs but also useful to direct current human resource management practices.

Citation

Kong, D. and Zhang, J. (2011), "The research on Chinese ancient management philosophies' similarities with contemporary human resources management thoughts", Chinese Management Studies, Vol. 5 No. 4, pp. 368-379. https://doi.org/10.1108/17506141111183145