Leading Asian countries' HRD practices in the IT industry: a comparative study of South Korea and India

In order to examine the relationship between organizational change and organizational learning the authors conducted interviews with managers in 137 Estonian companies concerning changes implemented and learning outcomes. According to this survey, the relationship between organizational change and learning is seen differently in a country in transition.     

The satisfaction of non-family employees with High Involvement HR practices: evidence from family SMEs

Most family businesses employ more non-family employees than family employees, making them a crucial resource for family small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). Thus, family SMEs must pay particular attention to developmental needs of such employees. However, there is limited empirical knowledge concerning how Family SMEs can manage and develop their non-family employees. Drawing on organizational justice theory, this study set out to investigate how and why non-family employees are satisfied with the High Involvement HR practices (HIHRPs) adopted by family SMEs. Empirical evidence was drawn from the experiences of 16 non-family employees from six SME family-owned enterprises. Findings suggest that a balance between formal and informal HIHRPs is need among family SMEs for non-family employees to be satisfied with them. Moreover, satisfaction with both formal and informal HIHRPs can encourage non-family employees’ engagement with the enterprise and the development of their skills and capabilities. Findings also suggest that the satisfaction with HIHRPs varies with respect to the organizational positioning of non-family employees. Our findings make a valuable and timely contribution to the human resource development and SME literatures in general.     

Approaches to HRD in Russian IT-companies in the period of economic crisis

Economic crisis differently impacts on the decisions of companies how to manage human resource development (HRD) initiatives. For the IT sector, intellectual capital becomes a core source of sustainable competitive advantages where HRD is seen like a tool to develop the internal stock of human capital. This article explores the approaches to HRD used by Russian IT-companies during the crisis. On the basis of the conceptual debates regarding the necessity to invest more in HRD programs even in the crisis conditions and our own empirical research, we tried to find out what happened with HRD costs during the crisis and what was the relationship between HRD costs and company’s performance during the crisis in Russian IT-companies. We conclude that Russian IT-companies perceive the value of HRD programs; hence, the most innovative-active and fast developing IT-companies prefer to constantly invest more in HRD initiatives. In crisis conditions, we recommend them to develop and implement more internal training programs.     

The mediating role of leadership and people management practices on HRD and organizational performance

Drawing upon prior research, we identify strategic value and transaction effectiveness as two significant HRD contributions and examine their dyadic effect on leadership and people management practices, and influence on firm performance. Results of path analysis on 138 participants supported the dyadic effect hypothesis. More significantly, we found leadership and people management practices as a significant predictor on the relationship between strategic value and organizational performance, which suggests that organizational performance is affected by the combined effect of leadership and people management practices. A key implication of this research is that where organizations had effective leadership and people management practices, both types of HRD contributions – strategic value and transaction effectiveness – significantly enhanced firm performance.     

Effect of best management practices on the performance and productivity of small firms

Abstract

Recent research on productivity finds that best management practices are a crucial but neglected element in explaining firm productivity. This stream of research also focuses on why a large number of firms may not implement best management practices despite their apparent benefits. In this paper, we examine the adoption of best management practices in small leveraged buyout (LBO) firms. Our choice of small LBO is motivated by the fact that these firms undergo extensive restructuring and, therefore, there is an opportunity to study the adoption process of best management practices. The findings show that buyout companies introduce best management practices (operations, monitoring, targets and incentive-related practices) at different stages of their development, and more importantly, these practices evolve in response to changes in various firm-level characteristics. For example, companies emphasizing cost leadership tend to follow targets and monitoring related practices while firms following a differentiation strategy are more likely to implement incentives and operations related management practices. Buyout sponsors’ board representatives and new CEO also play a critical role in the adoption of these best management practices which are linked to superior firm performance, measured as growth in revenues, productivity and return on assets.     

Confucian values and the implications for international HRD

Abstract

The consideration of cultural issues has become increasingly important in scholarly inquiry and explorative practice in international human resource development (HRD). We review and explore the core characteristics of Confucian-based culture in relation to organizations and unfold how these Confucian values may affect organizational and management practices in China and other Asian countries. Five major aspects of Confucianism are examined. They are: (a) hierarchy and harmony, (b) group orientation, (c) guanxi networks (relationships), (d) mianzi (face) and (e) time orientation. The impact of these values on management practices in the Chinese organizational context is presented in four areas: (a) working relationships, (b) decision-making processes, (c) ruling by man (ren zhi) instead of by law (fa zhi) and (d) HR practices. Implications for organizations and international HRD are also discussed.     

From a sapling to the forest: the saga of the development of HRD in India

This is an account of the growth and development of HRD function in India. What started in the mid-1970s as a conceptualization of an integrated HRD system to change the performance appraisal systems in a large engineering company, resulted in the establishment of HRD departments in many firms. Further dissemination and perseverance resulted in the establishment of a centre for HRD, and subsequently the birth of a professional body and, later, an academic institution. The authors describe the growth in eight stages and conclude the path for future is in moving towards national HR policies and other social sectors.     

Exploring a theoretical foundation for HRD in society: toward a model of stakeholder-based HRD

This article explores a theoretical foundation of human resource development (HRD) that can be adopted to explain the increasing use of HRD interventions and practices in the wider context of society and the world. While there has been growing interest in and literature about the societal meaning of HRD, previous research has focused mostly on HRD practices and lacked a theoretical framework that could explain and characterize the interactions between HRD and society. Based on a review of current approaches to the HRD–society nexus, we suggest that the nexus can be better understood when complex interactions between internal and external stakeholders of an organization are recognized, and we introduce the stakeholder-based HRD (SBHRD) model as a tool for identifying the interactions between HRD and society and the characteristics of the interactions with regard to plurality, interdependency, and legitimacy. The SBHRD model carries theoretical implications of possible changes in the epistemology of HRD, pushing forward well-being as the purpose of HRD, and enlarging HRD research topics. From a practical standpoint, the SBHRD model enhances the value of social responsibilities of corporations and ethical management, enlarges the scope and beneficiaries of HRD activities, increases the opportunities of collaboration with adult education, and points to different modes of communication in practice.     

HRD in 2020: a hop-on,hop-off city tour

This article reports on the outcome of a Future Search Conference in the UK to consider human resource development (HRD) in 2020 and beyond. We firstly consider themes from the past into the present. This includes the persistence of solutions in HRD that are systematic, predictable, how apprenticeships in the UK have had to accommodate government policies to ameliorate youth unemployment and the long-standing difficulty for HRD of failing to demonstrate a return on investment (ROI) on activities. We then present four scenarios based on key questions for the future relating to value of HRD and whether this will be a future for HRD. Reponses to the questions form scenario logics which we present against the theme of city tour. Each scenario is explained against the presented logic with positive, negative, ambiguous and uncertain implications for HRD. We suggest that each scenario carries a glimpse of what might be.     

Collective voice mechanisms,HRM practices and organizational performance in Italian manufacturing firms

The literature on employee voice has grown enormously over the past decades. However, the relationships between different employee voice mechanisms and organizational performance are far from being fully understood, and the existing research shows mixed evidence. Moreover, the HRM literature tends to concentrate on individual voice mechanisms (e.g. employee involvement) and to underestimate the role that collective voice may have in the HRM performance relationship. This paper aims to analyze how collective employee voice mechanisms (i.e. union voice and team voice) affect organizational productivity and how these relationships vary when voice mechanisms are adopted in combination with other HRM practices (i.e. variable pay, training, performance appraisals and multitasking). The analysis of a sample of 223 Italian manufacturing firms matched with an external database (AIDA) containing balance sheet information found that union voice is positively related to labor productivity, while team voice does not show any significant relationship with labor productivity. Moreover, both union and team voice have important moderation effects in the HRM-performance relationship. Union voice moderates positively the relationship between variable pay and performance and negatively the relationship between training and performance. Team voice positively moderates the relationship between training and performance. The implications of these findings are discussed.     

A conversation with Edgard Cornacchione: understanding the HRD field in Brazil through his lens and perspectives

This article contains a conversation with Edgard B. Cornacchione Jr, Full Professor and Chairman of the Department of Accounting and Actuarial Sciences, College of Economics, Business and Accountancy (FEA) at University of Sao Paulo (USP), Brazil. He is a pioneer scholar in HRD in Brazil, holding a PhD in the field from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) and another PhD in Accounting from USP. This interview explores Edgard's career in HRD practice, research, teaching and outreach and service, in addition to experiences in other related fields, such as Accounting and Business Education. It also considers current insights and perspectives of how HRD has been practised and studied in Brazil. He has been teaching at USP since 1992. To an international audience, who still might not be so familiar with his work and path, this interview has the potential to enhance both the understanding of his experiences and the status of the field in Brazil.     

HRM practices of JIT firms in Canada

Many firms have adopted the just-in-time (JIT) philosophy to compete successfully in the global environment. The literature suggests that die success of JIT implementation depends on sound human resource management (HRM) practices that will attract, maintain, and retain employees with the required workforce characteristics. However, only a few field studies investigate the effectiveness of such practices. This empirical study examines HRM practices of 69 JIT manufacturing firms in Ontario, Canada. Specifically, it identifies important workforce characteristics, recruitment sources and selection instruments used by JIT firms. It also evaluates die degree of change in training, compensation, employee retention, and labour relations practices in the firms since JIT implementation. The level of attainment of various expected outcomes of JIT implementation and die competitiveness of the JIT firms are investigated. Problems faced by HRM managers are also discussed.     

The importance of recognizing generational differences in HRD policy and practices: a study of workers in Qinhuangdao,China

Amid the success of becoming a market economy and a member of the World Trade Organization, the response to China's economic reform is not the same across generational cohorts. The Cultural Revolution (CR) cohort, a by-product of the history of contemporary China, has been left behind. Based on the results of 384 highly structured interviews, this study found that the CR cohort sampled was the least satisfied with China's recent economic reform. The study calls for future research and collaboration among HRD scholars and practitioners to address generational differences and specifically the needs of the CR cohort.     

The impact of gendered power relations in HRD

This study examined how gender and power influence the interpersonal relationships among human resource development (HRD) managers. Specifically, the study focused on the workplace experiences of HRD managers and the strategies they used to negotiate their day-to-day interactions. A qualitative approach was used to examine respondents' experiences as well as the social contexts that framed their workplace relationships. Five female and five male HRD managers were interviewed using critical incident techniques to explore specific workplace interactions. Two major conclusions of the study indicated that the experiences of female and male respondents regarding the exercise of power were profoundly different and that the strategies used by respondents generally reflected the gendered contexts of power.     

Human resource development (HRD) resilience: a new ‘success element’ of organizational resilience?

ABSTRACT

Endlessly changing business and economic landscapes urge organizations to become resilient to ensure business survival and growth. Yet, in many cases, business world is becoming turbulent faster than organizations are becoming resilient. Relevant research indicates the ways through which organizations could respond to unforeseen events, mainly through suggesting that individual and group resilience could lead to an organizational one. However, research is nascent on how particularly human resource development (HRD) resilience could be built, and thus to contribute to organizational resilience as well. Within today’s business uncertainty and complexity, HRD resilience comes in line with the developmental strategies of organizations. Therefore, the purpose of this perspective article is to set the foundations of the term (HRD resilience) in order to initiate a dialogue around its ability to make a substantial contribution to organizational practice, and thus to be seen as a new ‘success element’ of organizational resilience.     

Redefining,relooking, redesigning,and reincorporating HRD in the post Covid 19 context and thereafter

ABSTRACT

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought several challenges to the way organizations were functioning globally. Considering the case of India, this is a time of complete work transformation for the entire workforce across all sectors of work. As the work from home scenario has never been a part of the functioning of Indian organizations, whether public or private, there are serious concerns of managing the same particularly in time of this crisis. Thus, the present article provides an insight into the response of Indian organizations in combating the repercussions that the COVID-19 pandemic has drawn with it as well as the challenges being faced. In line with the same, we propose the adoption of a 4-R Crisis-Normalcy Model of HRD that can be used by the HRD professionals to redefine, relook, redesign, and reincorporate the HRD interventions in the COVID-19 context. This model not only provides the basis for managing the COVID-19 pandemic aligned to organizational functioning but is a way forward to dealing with any type of crisis situation that may affect an organization.     

The Use and Misuse of SWOT Analysis and Implications for HRD Professionals

This article explores the often-used strategy tool known as the SWOT analysis. The history of this tool is explained as well as common uses. The results of a literature review indicate a clear lack of empirical research on the topic and what little research has appeared is reviewed for the purposes of understanding how to further support and develop this tool. An integrative process for conducting SWOT analyses is provided with recommendations for optimizing SWOT in HRD contexts. Common misuses and pitfalls are also discussed along with suggested research for adding robustness to this classic strategic tool.     

Exploring the relationship between our learning,E-learning and HRD: E-Learn 2005 conference report

Abstract

This report provides a personal reflection on the E-Learn Conference held in Vancouver, Canada, in October 2005. First, I provide a brief review of previous conference reports and then share my experiences of this particular conference, focusing on technical, social, pedagogical and cultural aspects.