Staffing practices and employee performance: the role of age
ISSN: 2049-3983
Article publication date: 13 June 2018
Issue publication date: 19 March 2019
Abstract
Purpose
Staffing is a tool that employers use to decrease information asymmetry when hiring employees. However, how staffing effectiveness evolves according to employee demographic characteristics has not been thoroughly elucidated to date. The purpose of this paper is to develop and test a model linking staffing practices, age and employee performance.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a stratified sample of 1,254 employees, the authors hypothesize: the main effects of staffing practices on employee performance, the main effects of age on employee performance and the moderating effects of age on the relationship between staffing practices and employee performance.
Findings
The results show significant positive effects of staffing and age on employee performance and a negative moderating effect of age on the abovementioned relationship.
Practical implications
The organizations are urged to invest in recruitment and selection practices and implement focused practices that appeal to an aging workforce.
Originality/value
The paper is the first to explore the topic of aging workforce and the efficiency of staffing practices on employee performance in the context of the Greek labor force. The authors discuss the results, theoretical contributions, practical implications and future research directions in light of the challenge of managing an aging workforce.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
The study was financed by: a scholarship for doctoral studies funded by the General Secretariat for Research and Technology (GSRT) and the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation (HFRI) and a research funding grant from the Athens University of Economics and Business for junior academics. The authors would like to thank Professor Ioannis Nikolaou for his insightful comments as critical reader of the manuscript.
Citation
Pahos, N. and Galanaki, E. (2019), "Staffing practices and employee performance: the role of age", Evidence-based HRM, Vol. 7 No. 1, pp. 93-112. https://doi.org/10.1108/EBHRM-01-2018-0007
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2018, Emerald Publishing Limited