Search results

The purpose of the study is to develop a deeper understanding of the construct “integration within the HRM subsystem”. The study attempts to shed light on the conceptual perspective, the characteristics of this construct as well as the meaning and the mechanisms of internal integration within a HRM subsystem.

The procedure involves three main steps: first data reduction followed by data display and conclusion drawing/verification. Semi‐structured, face‐to‐face interviews with 21 vice‐president HRM managers and senior managers were conducted. The average time of the interviews was 60 minutes.

The findings revealed a model composed of HRM infrastructure (HRM cooperative policy, integrative core competence, and integrative technological infrastructure), internal communication process (formal and informal) and integrating process (consistency of HRM practices at the subsystem and individual levels). The first two categories are related with the dependent category‐integrating process.

HRM subsystems should develop their integrative technological infrastructure so that they can have a wide‐ranging view about their activities. Also, informal mechanisms may enhance the integrating process, as well as the formal mechanisms. Thus, managers should support and encourage the informal climate, and facilitate especially on informal communication.

The findings suggest a new approach for analyzing the integration process within an organizational HR sub‐system. On the one hand, the continuity of integration demonstrates how each category may contribute to the integration process on a high level. On the other, the low level of each category illustrates the opposite side of integration.

The purpose of this paper is to present a scale for measuring internal integration within human resource management (HRM) departments, which is developed and validated in this paper. Thus far, no valid, comprehensive operational instrument for measuring HRM internal integration has been introduced in the literature.

The scale items were developed on the basis of a qualitative analysis. The authors recruited 233 HRM professionals from 29 organizations to participate in the survey. In this paper, the authors present evidence of content validity, internal consistency reliability and construct validity that provides support for the use of an HRM internal integration scale. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to determine the underlying factors that comprise HRM internal integration, while confirmatory factor analysis was used as a confirmatory test of the scale.

The results of this study led to the development of a standardized 34-item instrument that can be used for measuring HRM internal integration.

The use of the scale opens up a new research avenue by focusing on the nature of integration processes, particularly within HRM systems. The scale will allow studies to be compared across various contexts.

The present study sought to shed light on the antecedents of HRM integration mechanism usage in MNCs and to establish the extent to which antecedents differ in importance across different mechanism types.

A set of hypotheses was developed and tested on a sample of 76 European‐owned subsidiaries located in China.

The results show that the use of HRM integration mechanisms is greater in more capital‐intensive subsidiaries that employ larger numbers of expatriates. Post‐hoc analyses provide support for the view that integration mechanisms are used in a complementary fashion rather than as substitutes.

The study did not include the MNC's strategic international HRM orientation and the sample size is rather small. The results of the study do not allow any conclusions to be drawn regarding the effectiveness of the mechanisms, however this would be a fruitful issue to pursue in future research.

The paper addresses a neglected issue in the international HRM literature, namely the mechanisms through which MNCs integrate HRM practices across their foreign subsidiaries, and why and how they are used. More specifically, this study makes its contribution by combining multiple mechanisms of HRM integration and providing explanations for their differential usage.

The purpose of this paper is to examine variations in the use of international integration mechanisms across individual human resource management (HRM) practices in MNCs.

Drawing upon data from a sample of over 450 MNC subsidiaries located in Ireland and Spain and an ordinal regression methodology, several models were tested.

The findings provide evidence that people, information and formalized-based mechanisms are positively related to the use of centralization-based integration processes. The results also demonstrate that the use of personal-based integration mechanisms is uniform across the suite of individual HRM practices among those MNCs where an international HRM committee is present, while the deployment of expatriates does not prove to be particularly significant in achieving integration across the range of HRM practices examined in the model. Information- and formalization-based mechanisms hold explanatory power in relation to performance appraisal systems and compensation practices.

Broadening the scope of the analysis the authors offer here, drawn from just two institutional environments, to a broader set of locations may contribute to future research in this area. Further analysis using longitudinal and quantitative methodologies may also prove important in unearthing integration patterns in HRM domain areas.

This paper offers a comprehensive analysis of the preferred modes of integration across HRM practices in MNC subsidiaries located in two different institutional environments. The authors reveal how modes of integration vary for different HR domain areas and the authors provide explanations for this variation.

The broad aims of this research are to analyse the status of, and processes underlying, strategic human resource management (HRM) integration within organisations and to contribute to theory development in the area. A great deal of attention is given in the literature to the facilitative role that HRM can take in organisational change but as yet little attention has been given to modelling the change processes within HRM itself. This paper addresses that gap by providing a model of the proposed influences on the move towards strategic HRM integration.

In‐depth interviews with senior HR, finance and line managers in 13 Australian Best Practice companies are used to explore the supports and barriers underlying strategic HRM integration.

The model that is developed uses ideas from the change literature to explain that the engagement of strategic HRM integration requires a certain set of symbolic and ritualistic gestures. These symbolic changes, however, do not always result in desired strategic HRM outcomes: symbolic adjustments must be accompanied by deeper levels of change both from within the HR profession and from other stakeholders in the organisation.

The research holds a number of practical implications for the career design of HR professionals: a case is made, for example, for a broader business career background requirement that may provide the level of business acumen necessary to be a credible participant at the senior management strategic decision‐making level. Intended future research will draw from a larger sample to test the proposed model.

This research model's specific responses and outcomes require an ideological shift both from the HR profession and from stakeholders within the organisation.

The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on HRM in MNCs from a knowledge transfer perspective, to identify some of the key weaknesses in extant research and to outline a future research agenda.

In this paper key contributions to the literature on HRM in MNCs are reviewed and discussed in connection with the knowledge transfer literature. The review and discussion culminate in the presentation of an agenda for future research.

The paper finds that, by viewing global HRM integration in MNCs as a process of knowledge transfer, three weaknesses in the extant literature are identified: inadequate consideration of HRM's knowledge characteristics at different levels within the organisation – the “what”; insufficient attention paid to the organisational mechanisms through which HRM is transferred – the “how”; and a lack of rigour in assessing when HRM transfer can be viewed as successful – the “when”.

In viewing global HRM integration as a process of knowledge transfer, the paper extends the HRM‐knowledge link and provides an alternative point of departure from which to study HRM in MNCs. In highlighting some of the weaknesses in extant research and in proposing a research agenda, it is also hoped that this paper can assist other scholars in making incremental improvements to a field reportedly in need of further theoretical development.

This study extends the understanding of the context of IHRM headquarters as one of the top management groups (TMGs) through the application of both upper echelons theory and contextual theory.

Semi-structured interviews were conducted with senior Israeli HR managers from international advanced-technology companies.

This study expands on theory by explaining how contexts act as constraints or opportunities for IHRM headquarter professionals as TMGs. The organizational context in which the IHRM headquarters take part is based on two themes: organizational structure and shared values. This is followed by the context of IHRM headquarters that includes two foundations for integration: strategic IHRM and trust. Finally, integration is derived from two themes: collaborative behaviors and electronic HRM.

This research has yielded a theoretical framework, which makes progress toward developing an integrative paradigm between IHRM headquarters' behavioral integration and organizational features. The paper presents a valuable “toolkit” for facilitating internal integration in IHRM headquarters.

This study aims to reveal the necessary human resource management (HRM) teamwork processes for achieving HRM integration.

A research survey was carried out among 233 HRM professionals from 29 HRM teams.

The findings revealed significant correlation between formal HRM aspects of HRM teams (HRM goals and strategy, formal communication and formalization) and informal HRM aspects (perceived proximity and trust). Another significant correlation was found between trust and HRM integration. Also, trust fully mediated the relationship between informal communication and centralization, on the one hand, and HRM integration, on the other.

The study contributed to the understanding of formal and informal aspects of HRM team (HRMT) processes.

The purpose of this empirical study is to develop an understanding of how human resource (HR) managers employed by organizations with an explicit sustainability agenda view employees as stakeholders, and to explore how such views are operationalized in HR policies and practices.

An interpretive approach using data from 35 semi-structured interviews was adopted for this study. Data were transcribed and analyzed using the Gioia methodology.

Comparison of approaches to sustainable human resource management (HRM) revealed three distinctive conceptualizations of employees with respect to the sustainability agenda – employees as a driving force for sustainability, employees as consumers of HR practices and employees as members of a community. Strong levels of integration between the HRM and sustainability agendas were only evidenced in those organizations where an attempt had been made to address all three roles simultaneously. Findings suggest that engagement with a sustainability agenda widens the remit of the HRM function, underscoring the importance of employees' roles as consumers of HR practices and as members of wider communities.

By addressing the integration of HRM with a sustainability agenda, this article helps practitioners recognize diversity among employees' roles and the varying associated needs. Examples of policy and practice initiatives that effectively address these needs are provided.

HRM has been widely criticized for overemphasizing shareholder value, thereby lacking in attention to the needs of other stakeholders, including employees. Findings from this study suggest the holistic approach advocated by a sustainability agenda can effectively quell these concerns.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the strategic integration of HRM practices with business/corporate strategy in the context of its applications and processes in two Japanese multinational companies in Malaysia.

The research used mixed‐methodology via case studies and questionnaire surveys. Overall 29 questionnaires, 15 from Company A and 14 from Company B were returned and analyzed for a response rate of 58 per cent. In addition, 15 respondents were interviewed, including Executive Director, Head of HR and line managers.

Analysis of questionnaire responses and interview findings shows strategic integration of HRM practices has been adopted by both organizations, though their approaches vary slightly. Importantly, the involvement of HR at board level, direct reporting of HR to the CEOs and the organization's supportive culture symbolize the integrative approach to HRM. Additionally, the findings indicate that although company strategies are in place, other factors such as business credibility of the HR manager and the level of commitment and support from CEOs and line management commitment are important determinants of strategic integration of HRM practices.

The influence of Japanese management practices which has similar characteristics of high performance work system (HPWS) and resource‐based view (RBV) approach that emphasizes participatory decision making and construe employees and HR function not as cost burdens but as sources of competitive advantage are important predictors of higher and effective strategic integration.

The paper provides some insights into approaches to strategic integration of HRM practices in two Japanese multinational companies in Malaysia.