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The initial objective of the research presented in this paper was to investigate human resource management (HRM) practices from a business process perspective. The paper first demonstrates the level of inconsistency in the field with respect to HRM models. The paper then develops the need for a more formal systems engineering‐based approach for modelling HRM practices from a business process viewpoint. The paper then goes on to describe the model developed for the HRM business process together with the methodology used to validate the model. The paper concludes with a discussion on the validity of the model, which further demonstrates the differing points of view in this complex and multidisciplinary field.

Human resource (HR) process research emerged as a response to questions about how (bundles of) HR practices related to organizational outcomes. The goal of HR process research is to explain variability in employee and organization outcomes by focusing on how HR practices are intended (adopted) by senior managers, the way that these HR practices are implemented and communicated by line managers, and how employees perceive, understand, and attribute these HR practices. In the first part of this chapter, we present a review of 20 years of HR process research from the start, to how it developed, and is now maturing. Within the body of HR process research, several different research theoretical streams have emerged, which are largely studied in isolation without benefiting from each other. Therefore, in the second part of this chapter, we draw on previous work to propose a staged process model in which we integrate the different research streams of HR process research, recognizing contingencies in the model. This leads us to an agenda for future research and practical implications in the final part of the chapter.

This research approaches human resource management (HRM) as a service and aims to develop and test a process for improving perceived HRM service quality.

A three-step process was developed by incorporating concepts and tools from service design approach. Based on the literature, it was hypothesized that applying this process could improve perception of HRM service quality, perceived HRM service value, level of leader–member exchanges along with perceived organizational support, role clarity and role ambiguity. A case study was conducted and these variables were measured and compared, before and after testing the process for a test group and a control group within an organization.

The main findings suggest the effectiveness of the presented process in improving the perceived HRM service quality and social exchanges (in terms of perceived organizational support and leader–member exchanges), while reducing role conflict and role ambiguity in employees and supervisors.

In a general sense, the obtained result implies that leveraging holistic and collaborative service design tools and concepts in (re)designing internal services, such as HRM, could improve perception of quality in organizational services, which in turn may lead to several important benefits for organizations, particularly in terms of HRM as per the context of this study.

This paper demonstrates development of an employee-centered method by borrowing from service design concepts and tools, to improve the perception of HRM service quality.

In recent years, theory and research have been increasingly devoted to understanding organizational behavior in cross-cultural and global contexts, with particular attention being paid to the appropriateness of various human resources management (HRM) practices because practices that may be effective within one cultural context may not be effective in other cultural contexts. This chapter argues that a multi-level perspective is needed to explain the interplay between HRM practices and employee responses across cultural contexts. Specifically, the multi-level framework developed in this chapter elucidates the importance of fit between HRM practices, individual values, organizational values, and societal values. Societal values play a key role in the adoption of HRM practices, and the effectiveness of these HRM practices will depend largely on “fit” or alignment with the values of the societal culture in which the organization is operating. HRM practices also shape the collective responses of employees through organizational climate at the organizational level and through psychological climate at the individual level. For positive employee attitudes and responses to emerge, the climate created by the HRM practices must be aligned with societal and individual values. Building on these notions, the strength of the societal culture in which the organization is operating serves as a mechanism that links relationships between climate, value fit, and attitudes across levels of analysis. The chapter concludes with some recommendations for future research and implications for practice.

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 explore the interplay between human resource management (HRM) and emergent factors in constructing a strong HRM climate. Specifically, the paper aims to shed light on how employee perceptions of the HRM process and emergent factors together construct a strong HRM climate, i.e. employees' shared perceptions of HRM.

The paper uses qualitative interview data (managers and employees) from two organisations operating in Finland. The data are analysed based on a systematic data analysis and gives an illustration of the interplay between high-performance work system and the emergent factors.

The findings illustrate the three types of interplay between HPWS and emergent factors – supplementation, substitution and suffocation – that construct employee experience.

The paper extends earlier discussions on the relationship between HRM and employee experience by empirically examining how the HRM process – together with emergent factors – constructs a strong HRM climate. The present study contributes to further theorising and increasing our understanding of the creation of employee experience.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an in‐depth description of the process of institutionalisation and development of human resource management (HRM) practices in subsidiaries of German multinational companies in Russia.

The study is based on nine case studies of Russian subsidiaries including 26 interviews (13 German expatriates and 13 local employees), participative observations and document analyses. The data analysis follows a qualitative methodology.

The study provides four patterns of institutionalisation processes of HRM practices. They stress the importance of personal, institutional and contextual factors for the institutionalisation of HRM practices. Moreover, the key role of expatriates with their specific value orientations and behaviour in this process is highlighted.

One suggestion for further research would be to replicate the study quantitatively (in order to get more cases) as well as qualitatively (to get broader inter‐cultural data). Furthermore, it would be valuable to take a more long‐term focus to examine the described institutionalisation paths in the long run.

The paper highlights the importance of personal characteristics of expatriates that are often underestimated in companies' selection procedures. Moreover, the connection between the parent company's strategy and the pattern of institutionalisation of HRM practices should make the company management reflect upon the preferred pattern before taking the basic decisions. Taking into account the strong economic relationship between Russia and Germany and the expected further development of joint activities, the paper provides also important insights for the use of German expatriates in Russia.

This paper improves our comprehension of the complex process of implementation and institutionalisation of HRM practices abroad. Moreover, it contributes to the HRM literature as it employs the concept of “transnational spaces” as an alternative and additional approach to explain this process. The resulting patterns may not be restricted to the Russian case only but should be adaptable to other emerging countries as well.

The purpose of this paper is to explain and empirically test the dependence of organizational processes related to knowledge on the nature of assumptions operating in processes of human resource management (HRM) in organizations. It concentrates on practices related to training, career development and retention.

This empirical study as a quantitative nature and the sample is made up of 5,306 collaborators in 634 organizations belonging to an economic group in the banking sub-sector. Data were collected through two questionnaires: human resource management practices questionnaire and knowledge management questionnaire – short form. The model was tested by applying univariate and multivariate multiple regression analyses.

Findings provide support for the proposed model and show the predictive capacity of the HRM practices regarding knowledge management (KM) processes, revealing a strong direct relationship between the two constructs. It stands out that the people management practices adopted from an organic and valued perspective possess a particular and distinctive capacity to predict and impact positively on KM processes.

The findings may be used by human resources and KM practitioners interested in the development of organizational knowledge through human resource practices.

The main contribution of this study is to confirm the close relationship of dependency between organizational management processes regarding people and knowledge, showing the positive effect of best practices of HRM on KM processes, as opposed to traditional or transactional practices.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of an integrated HRM system (content, process and climate) on employee reactions (motivation, commitment, work engagement, and organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB)), through the mediating role of organizational justice (distributive, procedural and interactional) and organizational trust (integrity, competence and dependability), which has not been fully studied in the past.

The study is based on a national sample of 133 organizations from the public and private sectors in Greece and on data obtained from 1,061 employees. The statistical method employed is structural equation modelling.

The findings of the study suggest that the HRM process has a higher impact on employee reactions than HRM content. Additionally, the findings support the idea that procedural and distributive justice are related more to trust dependability and integrity, and that procedural justice is a better predictor of employee reactions than distributive justice.

The study does not allow for dynamic causal inferences because the data was collected using a questionnaire at a single point in time. Furthermore, the findings of the study may not generalize across borders, because the study was applied in the Greek context, which has different labour relations with respect to other countries.

The study has clear implications for both managers and decision makers, because it suggests that employees are more committed and satisfied when the HRM system is more consistent and distinctive, more rewarding and provides opportunities for training.

The theoretical significance of the study is important, because it suggests that both the content and the process of HR practices, as perceived by employees, strongly influence employees' reactions, such as motivation, commitment, work engagement and organizational citizenship behaviour OCB.

Drawing on the contingency perspective between business strategies and human resource (HR) practices, the purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of human resource management (HRM) system (which integrates both content and process of HR practices) on both proximal organisational outcomes (such as job satisfaction, motivation, and organisational commitment) and distal organisational outcomes (such as employee engagement, organisational citizen behaviour (OCB), co-operation among employees, intention to quit, and operational performance).

The analysis is based on a sample of 996 Greek employees working in 108 private organisations and the statistical method employed is structural equation modelling with bootstrapping estimation.

The results indicate that HRM content is more positively related to job satisfaction and motivation and less related to organisational commitment than HRM process. Moreover, HRM system is sequentially related to organisational outcomes (both directly and indirectly) and significantly influences employee job satisfaction and motivation, as well as OCB and co-operation among employees, and operational performance.

The data were collected using a questionnaire at a single point in time, and thus, not allowing dynamic causal inferences. Considering that Greece is experiencing a severe financial crisis, the findings from this unique context may not generalise across other contexts.

The core messages to decision makers are that employee development and rewards are the major dimensions of the content of an HRM system and that consistency and distinctiveness are the principal features of the process of an HRM system, even in cases where the organisation is operating under an economic crisis environment.

Investigations into the relationship between HRM systems and organisational performance have become increasingly common. Nevertheless, empirical studies that measure the impact of HRM systems, which being contingent on business strategies integrate both content and process of HR practices on organisational performance are still rare. This paper partially fills this gap.