unit6_assignment
V O L U M E 5 3
N U M B E R 1 , J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 4
HR SCIENCE FORUM PREDICTING RETIREMENT UPON ELIGIBILITY: AN EMBEDDEDNESS PERSPECTIVE PETER A. BAMBERGER AND SAMUEL B. BACHARACH 1
Concern over the impact of baby-boomers’ retirement on needed skills and proprietary knowledge
has stimulated an interest in identifying workplace factors associated with retirement upon
eligibility. Drawing from embeddedness theory, the authors identify work-based antecedents
potentially underlying a related, but distinct, form of withdrawal—retirement upon eligibility. The
authors generate and test hypotheses regarding the impact of fit-, sacrifice-, and links-related
antecedents using a prospective study design and a national probability sample of some 500 older
individuals who, at the time of the initial interview, were within months of becoming—for the first
time—eligible to receive such benefits. The findings indicate that, beyond the effects of person-
based antecedents (e.g., age, health, assets, expected retirement income), a combination of fit-
(i.e., job challenge), sacrifice- (i.e., perceived organizational support), and links-related factors (i.e.,
stability of close workplace peer relations) have a substantial influence on the decision to retire
upon eligibility.
GENDER ROLES AND ORGANIZATIONAL HR PRACTICES: THE CASE OF WOMEN’S CAREERS IN ACCOUNTANCY AND CONSULTANCY FIRMS IN CHINA FANG LEE COOKE AND YUCHUN XIAO 23
The Chinese finance industry has experienced significant expansion both within the state sector
and into the private sector. Professional consultancy firms have also emerged as a result of the
rising interest in the outsourcing of accounting and management services. However, the study
of women’s careers in the accountancy profession in contemporary China remains largely an
uncharted territory. Drawing on data from 69 interviews with auditors in five firms, this article
investigates the nature of work of external auditors in China and how women auditors view their
work-life choices and constraints. We explore the likely differences between male and female
auditors in their career aspirations and the extent to which these self-perceived differences are
informed by social conventions of gender role, organizational practices, and personal preferences.
The study has strong implications for human resource management in professional service firms
in China, with particular reference to job design, work organization, career support, and work-
life balance initiatives. The study contributes to the debate on gender, employment, and career
development in the accountancy profession in different parts of the world.
CAREER EXPLORATION AND PERCEIVED EMPLOYABILITY WITHIN AN EMERGING ECONOMY CONTEXT INGO FORSTENLECHNER, HASSAN SELIM, YEHUDA BARUCH, AND MOHAMED MADI 45
Following four decades of unprecedented economic, social, and cultural change, the United Arab
Emirates (UAE) labor market is highly segmented: The native population is almost exclusively
employed in the government sector, while the private sector is effectively outsourced to
foreigners. This has created an unsustainable situation with growing numbers of young citizens
reaching working age and with a public sector that has reached the saturation point. Policymakers
HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Human Resource Management, November–December 2014, Vol. 53, No. 6.
© 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com).
DOI:10.1002/hrm.21696
repeatedly try to legislate to encourage private-sector employers to hire citizens. These policies
have had limited success. We explored the career attitudes of 2,267 United Arab Emirates citizens
prior to their entry into the labor market. Using structural equation modeling, we found that the
social contract and resulting expectations toward state employment have strong implications for
willingness to work in the private sector.
HRM SYSTEMS FOR KNOWLEDGE WORKERS: DIFFERENCES AMONG TOP MANAGERS, MIDDLE MANAGERS, AND PROFESSIONAL EMPLOYEES
ACHIM KRAUSERT 67
This theoretical study contributes to the debate in the field of strategic HRM on whether HRM systems
should differ across employee groups within the firm. It explores differences in the efficacy of two
HRM systems—high-involvement HR and internal labor market systems—across top management
teams, middle managers, and professional employees. In addition, it examines factors that may
prevent the adoption of effective HRM systems for these groups of knowledge workers. A model
is proposed depicting how four job-level moderators influence the HRM-performance relationship
and how these moderators apply to each of the three employee groups. Short-term performance
pressures and favoritism in staffing are proposed as factors that may hinder the adoption of effective
HRM systems. Finally, HRM systems for different employee groups are classified based on their
gains potential and barriers to implementation, yielding four categories of strategic HRM activity
metaphorically labeled low-hanging fruits, high-hanging fruits, peanuts, and barren land.
IDENTIFICATION AND OCCUPATIONAL STRESS: A STRESS-BUFFERING PERSPECTIVE
CAMERON NEWTON AND STEPHEN TEO 89
Occupational stress research has consistently demonstrated many negative effects of work
stressors on employee adjustment (i.e., job-related attitudes and health). Considerable literature
also describes potential moderators of this relationship. While research has revealed that different
workplace identifications can have significant positive effects on employee adjustment, it has
neglected to investigate their potential stress-buffering effects. Based on identity theories, it
was predicted that stress-buffering effects of different types of identifications (distal versus
proximal) would be revealed when the identification type and employee adjustment outcome
type (distal versus proximal) were congruent. Predictions were tested with an employee sample
from five human service nonprofit organizations (N = 337). Hierarchical multiple regression analyses revealed that main and moderated effects relating to identification supported the notion
that occupational stress would be reduced when there was congruence of distal and proximal
identifications and distal and proximal outcome types. However, stress-buffering effects were
also found for high identifiers and low identifiers that were not in line with hypotheses posing
questions for the definitions of distal and proximal identifications. Findings are discussed in terms
of theoretical and practical implications.
HR PROFESSIONAL ROLE TENSIONS: PERCEPTIONS AND RESPONSES OF THE TOP MANAGEMENT TEAM
CATHY SHEEHAN, HELEN DE CIERI, MICHELLE GREENWOOD, AND HARRY J. VAN BUREN III 115
The aims of the research are to explore evidence of professional human resource management
(HRM) role tensions, the factors that affect HRM role tension, and to consider the impact on
management perceptions when role tensions exist. Using a qualitative approach, 25 interviews
were conducted in Australia with senior HRM personnel, top management team (TMT) executives,
and a management consultant. Findings reveal that the failure of the HRM profession to attract
people with a business focus increases HRM role tensions. Respondents report that tensions were
reduced when aspects of the HRM role were devolved or outsourced, there was an acceptance of
a changed psychological contract, and clearer attempts were made to communicate an agreed-
upon strategic focus for HRM. HRM role bias led to a reduced willingness among TMT members to
respect, and communicate with, HRM professionals. The implications of the negative outcomes of
HR role tensions are discussed with reference to the power of the HRM function.
(continued)
MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF EFFECTIVE INTERNATIONAL HRM: ANALYSIS OF THE ANTECEDENTS OF GLOBAL MINDSET JOANA S. P. STORY, JOHN E. BARBUTO JR., FRED LUTHANS, AND JAMES A. BOVAIRD 131
The full force of globalization has hit today’s organizations, and it is clear that there are many
cultural and human problems. International human resource management (IHRM) is being asked
to better understand and develop multinational organizational leaders to meet the challenges.
A prominent solution that is receiving increased attention is the construct of global mindset,
which has growing rhetoric but little research support. To help fill this need, after first theoretically
framing global mindset as made up of one’s cultural intelligence and global business orientation,
this study identifies and empirically tests some theory-driven antecedents. Utilizing a diverse
sample (N = 136) of global leaders of a well-known multinational, we found that personal, psychological, and role complexity antecedents were related to the participants’ level of global
mindset. The practical implications of these findings for effective international human resource
management conclude the article.
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: COGNITIVE ANTECEDENTS OF WORKAHOLISM AND ITS AFTERMATH CORINE I. VAN WIJHE, MARIA C. W. PEETERS, AND WILMAR B. SCHAUFELI 157
Workaholism is commonly conceptualized as a compulsive inner drive to work excessively hard.
This study investigates to what extent rigid personal beliefs—i.e., performance-based self-esteem
(self-esteem that is contingent upon good performance) and an enough continuation rule
(continuing with work until one feels one has done enough)—contribute to exhaustion through
workaholism. To examine these potential antecedents and consequences of workaholism, data of
a two-wave longitudinal survey study with a six-month time interval was used (n = 191). Results of structural equation modeling provided support for our hypotheses. Taken together, our findings
show that rigid personal beliefs at T1 predicted primarily working compulsively at T2, and working
compulsively at T1 influenced exhaustion at T2. Moreover, reciprocal relationships were found
between applying the enough continuation rule and working compulsively, and between working
compulsively and exhaustion. These results suggest partial mediation from cognitive antecedents
(personal beliefs) through workaholism to exhaustion. In practical terms, the results indicate
that cognitive antecedents may provide a good starting point for interventions for preventing
exhaustion and workaholism.
FOREIGN DIRECT INVESTMENT FROM EMERGING MARKETS TO AFRICA: THE HRM CONTEXT GEOFFREY WOOD, KHELIFA MAZOUZ, SHUXING YIN, AND JEREMY ENG-TUCK CHEAH 179
In this article, we explore what determines the decisions of emerging-market multinational
corporations (MNCs) to invest in Africa and whether this is any different from their counterparts in
mature markets, focusing on the HRM context. More specifically, we explore the effect of potential
host-country wages, local capabilities, and the relative rights of owners versus workers on foreign
direct investment (FDI) decisions, as well as other relevant factors such as mineral resources and
corruption. We found that emerging-market MNCs were not deterred by relatively weak property owner
rights (as indeed was also the case for their counterparts from mature markets); hence, any weakening
of countervailing worker rights is unlikely to unlock significant new FDI. However, emerging-market
MNCs were more likely to invest in low-wage economies and did not appear to be concerned by local
skills gaps; the latter would reflect the relative de facto ease with which even partially skilled expatriate
labor can be imported into many African countries. At the same time, a reliance on low-wage, unskilled
labor, coupled with the extensive usage of expatriates, brings with it a wide range of challenges for the
HR manager, which a firm committed to cost-cutting may lack the capabilities to resolve.
N U M B E R 2 , M A R C H / A P R I L 2 0 1 4
SPECIAL ISSUE
Balancing Employment Relations in the 21st Century
GUEST EDITORS
Keith Townsend and Adrian Wilkinson
GUEST EDITORS’ NOTE TIME TO RECONNECT THE SILOS? SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES IN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS AND HUMAN RESOURCES KEITH TOWNSEND AND ADRIAN WILKINSON 203
HR SCIENCE FORUM CAN UNION VOICE MAKE A DIFFERENCE? THE EFFECT OF UNION CITIZENSHIP BEHAVIOR ON EMPLOYEE ABSENCE STEPHEN J. DEERY, RODERICK D. IVERSON, DONNA M. BUTTIGIEG, AND
CHRISTOPHER D. ZATZICK 211
The interests of organizations and unions are often seen to be in competition. However, the union-
voice hypothesis suggests that unions can provide a distinctive mechanism to lower organizational
costs by reducing exit behavior. This study looks at union citizenship behavior as a form of voice
and examines its effect on employee absence. It draws on data from 367 branches of a large
unionized banking organization to explore both the antecedents and outcomes of union citizenship
behavior. Union citizenship behavior directed toward helping fellow members with workplace
grievances was found to reduce branch-level absenteeism, while union loyalty mediated the
impact of a number of union-related variables on union citizenship behavior. The implications for a
balanced union-management relationship are discussed in the article.
FROM EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS TO CONSUMPTION RELATIONS: BALANCING LABOR GOVERNANCE IN GLOBAL SUPPLY CHAINS JIMMY DONAGHEY, JULIANE REINECKE, CHRISTINA NIFOROU, AND BENN LAWSON 229
Global supply chains are part of the corporate strategy of many multinational companies,
often with adverse effects on labor conditions. While employment relations scholars focus on a
production-oriented paradigm, revolving around interactions among employers, workers, and
government, much of the activism motivating the development of private labor standards is based
around companies’ relations with their consumers. This article proposes an analytical framework
conceptualizing the interface of employment relations and consumption relations within global
supply chains, identifying four regimes of labor governance: governance gaps, collective
bargaining, standards markets, and complementary regimes. Finally, we suggest a research
agenda for examining the role of consumption relations in the changing nature of global labor
governance.
TWENTY-FIRST CENTURY EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIPS: THE CASE FOR AN ALTRUISTIC MODEL GAIL P. CLARKSON 253
Different parties in any form of employment relationship (ER) will display variation in terms of their
motivations and what they want to accomplish. Insights into how we might meet these potentially
competing interests come from the discipline of sociobiology. In particular, this article focuses
upon multilevel selection (MLS); the central tenet being that internally altruistic groups are likely to
outperform their more selfish counterparts, which many contemporary theoretical biologists agree
is a legitimate theory accounting for evolutionary change and success. On the assumption that the
interests of all parties are more likely to be realized in the context of overall organizational success,
the simple logic of MLS challenges the quid pro quo arrangements central to dominant theoretical
perspectives of the ER. Drawing upon the growing evidence in support of MLS theory, and long-
accepted insights from social psychology, the case for altruism as a model of the ER fit for the
twenty-first century world of work is presented and consideration is given as to how altruistic
behaviors can be encouraged in all parties.
ENJOYING NEW WAYS TO WORK: AN HRM-PROCESS APPROACH TO STUDY FLOW PASCALE PETERS, ERIK POUTSMA, BEATRICE I. J. M. VAN DER HEIJDEN,
ARNOLD B. BAKKER, AND THOMAS DE BRUIJN 271
This article investigates the relationships between human resource management practices
associated with New Ways to Work (employee empowerment, home-based teleworking, and
creating trust relationships) and work-related flow as experienced by employees (absorption,
work enjoyment, and intrinsic work motivation). Hypotheses, based on a combined perspective
integrating insights from the HRM-process model and the job demands-resources model, are
tested using multiactor multilevel data comprising employees ( N = 1,017) and their line managers
( N = 89), across 89 job categories in 30 organizations. Although organizations may implement
management practices aimed at empowering employees in particular job categories, this study
showed that anticipated effects on work-related flow (particularly work enjoyment) are not
achieved when employees themselves do not experience being empowered, and when they
do not use and experience their working conditions as job resources (home-based teleworking
and trust relationships characterized by supporting leadership, collegial support, and collegial
commitment). The article concludes with recommendations regarding organizational change aimed
at implementing New Ways to Work and suggestions for future research.
RECONSIDERING BOUNDARIES: HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT IN A NETWORKED WORLD JUANI SWART AND NICHOLAS KINNIE 291
In the twenty-first century, work activities tend to span organizational boundaries and take place in
projects or networks. This cross-boundary working has major implications for current HRM models
that are more suited to an industrial economy, which assumes a single employer and where work
is carried out within a set of clearly defined boundaries. We draw on a decade of empirical research
in cross-boundary contexts to identify: (1) three types of networks (interactive, interwoven, and
integrated) that vary according to their boundary properties, the focus of the work activity, and
the prominent identification; (2) the particular structural, relational, and knowledge-based tensions
(Phelps, Heidl, & Wadhwa, 2012) that are inherent in each networked context; and (3) three HRM
models (buffering, borrowing, and balancing) that are appropriate to sustain networked working
in these contexts. The main contribution of the article is the identification of HRM models in
networked contexts.
EXPANDING THE YOUNGER WORKER EMPLOYMENT RELATIONSHIP: INSIGHTS FROM VALUES-BASED ORGANIZATIONS RICHARD P. WINTER AND BRENT A. JACKSON 311
This article aims to expand understanding of managing younger workers by making work values
central to their employment relationship. Attention is focused on values-based organizations
where intrinsic values of societal contribution, work-life balance, and inclusive management
practices may take on added significance for younger workers. Asking younger workers to explain
what “success” or “efficiency” means to them in their work provides a window into the values-
based reasoning underpinning younger workers’ work-related attitudes and behavior. Person-
organization values fit findings suggest areas where the younger worker employment relationship
has possibly expanded (prosocial work, direct communication, managers as mentors, work-life
balance). Implications for managing younger workers in values-based contexts are discussed.
(continued)
N U M B E R 3 , M AY / J U N E 2 0 1 4
HR SCIENCE FORUM RETHINKING LOVE AT THE OFFICE: ANTECEDENTS AND CONSEQUENCES OF COWORKER EVALUATIONS OF WORKPLACE ROMANCES G. STONEY ALDER AND DOUGLAS M. QUIST 329
Researchers have pointed out a wide variety of organizational effects attributable to workplace
romances, concluding that the impact of such romances on the workgroup can range from positive
to negative. To date, however, little research has attempted to pinpoint the elements leading to
this divergence. We suggest that coworker evaluation of a romance or anticipatory injustice may
play a key role in influencing the positive or negative impact of the relationship on the workgroup
at large. Our model proposes that three separate mechanisms (procedural fairness, intragroup
cognitive dissonance, and normative adjustment), each corresponding to a different domain of
evaluation, may mediate the apparent relationship between coworker evaluation of a romance and
various aspects of group performance.
THE EFFECTIVENESS OF RECRUITMENT ADVERTISEMENTS AND RECRUITMENT WEBSITES: INDIRECT AND INTERACTIVE EFFECTS ON APPLICANT ATTRACTION MATTHIAS BAUM AND RÜDIGER KABST 353
This study compares the effect of printed recruitment advertisements and recruitment websites
on applicant attraction and shows how these recruitment activities interact with one another. Our
results indicate that websites have a significantly stronger impact on applicant attraction than
printed advertisements. We show that websites and printed recruitment advertisements have an
indirect effect on applicant attraction that is mediated by employer knowledge. Furthermore, printed
advertisements supplement the positive effects of websites and, thus, the simultaneous use of
multiple recruitment activities directly influences applicant attraction.
EXPANDING INSIGHTS ON THE DIVERSITY CLIMATE– PERFORMANCE LINK: THE ROLE OF WORKGROUP DISCRIMINATION AND GROUP SIZE STEPHAN A. BOEHM, DAVID J. G. DWERTMANN, FLORIAN KUNZE, BJÖRN MICHAELIS,
KIZZY M. PARKS, AND DANIEL P. MCDONALD 379
The present study extends knowledge of the performance consequences of workgroup diversity
climate. Building upon Kopelman, Brief, and Guzzo’s (1990) climate model of productivity, we
introduce workgroup discrimination as a behavioral mediator that explains the positive effects of
diversity climate on workgroup performance. In addition, we investigate group size as a moderator
upon which this mediated relationship depends. We test these moderated-mediated propositions
using a split-sample design and data from 248 military workgroups comprising 8,707 respondents.
Findings from structural equation modeling reveal that diversity climate is consistently positively
related to workgroup performance and that this relationship is mediated by discrimination. Results
yield a pattern of moderated mediation, in that the indirect relationship between workgroup
diversity climate (through perceptions of workgroup discrimination) and group performance was
more pronounced in larger than in smaller workgroups. These results illustrate that discrimination
and group size represent key factors in determining how a diversity climate is associated with
group performance and, thus, have significant implications for research and practice.
HOW HIGH-COMMITMENT HRM RELATES TO ENGAGEMENT AND COMMITMENT: THE MODERATING ROLE OF TASK PROFICIENCY CORINE BOON AND KARIANNE KALSHOVEN 403
In a multisource field study, we examine the relationship between employee perceptions of
high-commitment human resource management (HRM), task proficiency, work engagement, and
organizational commitment. Based on conservation of resources (COR) theory, we first propose that
work engagement mediates the relationship between high-commitment HRM and organizational
commitment. Second, we propose a mediated moderation model in which employees’ task
proficiency moderates the relationship between high-commitment HRM and work engagement,
which in turn affects organizational commitment. Results indicate that the relationship between
high-commitment HRM and organizational commitment was fully mediated by work engagement.
Results also supported the mediated moderation model. A significant indirect effect was found from
high-commitment HRM to commitment via engagement for low task proficiency, but not for high
task proficiency. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.
HOW DOES RELATIVE DEPRIVATION INFLUENCE EMPLOYEE INTENTION TO LEAVE A MERGED COMPANY? THE ROLE OF ORGANIZATIONAL IDENTIFICATION BONGSOON CHO, DONGSEOP LEE, AND KWANGHYUN KIM 421
Recognizing the importance of postmerger integration from a human resource management
perspective, this study explores the relationship between employee perceptions of relative
deprivation during a merger and acquisition (M&A) process and their turnover intentions. Drawing
on social identity theory, we investigate whether the relationship between relative deprivation and
turnover intention can be mediated by employee organizational identification. The results, based
on a two-phase survey of 222 employees in a merged Korean company, show that egoistic relative
deprivation, defined as people’s feelings of deprivation due to their dissatisfaction with their
position as an individual, predicts employee turnover intention. Moreover, employee identification
with the postmerger organization was found to fully mediate the relationship between egoistic
relative deprivation and turnover intention. The article concludes with theoretical contributions,
practical implications, and future research directions.
CAREER MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES OF PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES MUKTA KULKARNI AND K. V. GOPAKUMAR 445
People with disabilities (PWD) tend to experience less career success than their counterparts
without a disability, and their talent and skill remain underutilized. Disability literature also outlines
various barriers to careers of PWD. Yet there are those who successfully manage their careers. Our
aim in the present interview-based study was to understand which strategies PWD engage in to
manage their careers proactively. Findings indicate that strategies include maintaining a positive
mind-set; trouncing competence stereotypes by sensitizing people to their ability through learning
and applying new skills, and by seeking feedback; engaging in disability advocacy to remove
performance myths; and building, leveraging, and contributing to disability networks. We noted
gender and tenure differences with regard to strategies employed. Findings imply that career
objectives of PWD are not those traditionally expected or lauded by organizations, and motivations
for career self-management are unique to PWD as compared to those without a disability.
HR LEADERSHIP FORUM BALANCING INTERESTS IN THE SEARCH FOR OCCUPATIONAL LEGITIMACY: THE HR PROFESSIONALIZATION PROJECT IN CANADA DIONNE POHLER AND CHELSEA WILLNESS 467
Despite broad debates surrounding how the human resource management occupation can
increase its legitimacy, researchers have yet to examine the collective steps HR practitioners are
taking in this regard and the extent to which they have been successful. We conduct a case study
of the HR professionalization project in Canada via multisource qualitative and quantitative data,
which we analyze using a unique integration of the trait and control models from the sociology of
professions, as well as isomorphism from institutional theory. Viewed through the lens of these
frameworks, we find that HR practitioners are attempting to emulate traits that define traditional
notions of professions, and are aspiring to transcendent values associated with balancing the
sometimes conflicting interests of employers and employees. Objective data from external
stakeholders and institutions show that these collective strategies have been somewhat successful
in garnering greater legitimacy thus far, particularly when comparisons are made with the HR
professional project in the United States. We highlight numerous implications for future research
and practice surrounding the legitimacy of the HR profession.
(continued)
N U M B E R 4 , J U LY / A U G U S T 2 0 1 4 SPECIAL SECTION
Are HRM Processes Important?
GUEST EDITORS
Karin Sanders, Helen Shipton, and Jorge F. S. Gomes
GUEST EDITORS’ INTRODUCTION IS THE HRM PROCESS IMPORTANT? PAST, CURRENT, AND FUTURE CHALLENGES KARIN SANDERS, HELEN SHIPTON, AND JORGE F. S. GOMES 489
Ten years ago, Bowen and Ostroff (2004) criticized the one-sided focus on the content-based
approach, where researchers take into account the inherent virtues (or vices) associated with
the content of HR practices to explain performance. They explicitly highlight the role of the
psychological processes through which employees attach meaning to HRM. In this first article
of the special section entitled “Is the HRM Process Important?” we present an overview of past,
current, and future challenges. For past challenges, we attempt to categorize the various research
streams that originated from the seminal piece. To outline current challenges, we present the
results of a content analysis of the original 15 articles put forward for the special section. In
addition, we provide the overview of a caucus focused on this theme that was held at the Academy
of Management annual meeting in Boston in 2012. In conclusion, we discuss future challenges
relating to the HRM process approach and review the contributions that have been selected—
against a competitive field—for this special issue.
SPECIAL SECTION: ARE HRM PROCESSES IMPORTANT? THE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN MBO SYSTEM STRENGTH AND GOAL-CLIMATE QUALITY AND STRENGTH EDA AKSOY AND MAHMUT BAYAZIT 505
We adopted Bowen and Ostroff’s (2004) HRM system strength concept so as to test it within the
context of a management by objectives (MBO) system, which was utilized by six independent
firms owned by a large, diversified family business group in Turkey. For this purpose, we surveyed
the middle managers to measure 10 context-specific metafeatures of the MBO system. By
using aggregated scores at the functional group level (N = 47), we captured the distinctiveness,
consistency, and consensus dimensions of this HRM practice. We tested and compared three
alternative theoretical models of HRM strength where the three dimensions have compensatory,
additive, and distinctiveness mediated effects on climate quality and strength. Results support
the compensatory model and indicate that the strength of the MBO system (as a reflective
latent variable representing the shared variance of the system’s distinctiveness, consistency,
and consensus) is positively related to business units’ quality and strength of goal climate. In
addition, distinctiveness—but not consistency and consensus—of the MBO system appears to be
particularly critical for the emergence of a strong and high-quality goal climate. Lastly, implications
and limitations of the study as well as possible future research directions are discussed.
CONTENT VS. PROCESS IN THE HRM-PERFORMANCE RELATIONSHIP: AN EMPIRICAL EXAMINATION ANASTASIA A. KATOU, PAWAN S. BUDHWAR, AND CHARMI PATEL 527
This study investigates the impact of a human resource management (HRM) system, which
integrates both content and process of human resource (HR) practices, on organizational
performance, through collective employee reactions. The analysis is based on a sample of 1,250
Greek employees working in 133 public- and private-sector organizations, which operate in the
present context of severe financial and economic crises. The findings of the structural equation
modeling suggest that content and process are two inseparable faces of an HRM system that help
to reveal a comprehensive picture of the HRM–organizational performance relationship. Based
on the findings that collective employee reactions mediate the HRM content (i.e., organizational
(continued)
performance relationship) and HRM process moderates the HRM content (i.e., employee reactions
relationship), the study has several theoretical and practice implications.
MIND THE INTENDED- IMPLEMENTED GAP: UNDERSTANDING EMPLOYEES’ PERCEPTIONS OF HRM ERK P. PIENING, ALINA M. BALUCH, AND HANS-GERD RIDDER 545
This study aims to shed light on the implementation of HR practices as a key piece of the
human resource management (HRM)–performance puzzle. Although the literature suggests
that discrepancies between the organization’s intended and implemented HR practices are
essential to understanding employees’ perceptions of and reactions to HRM, little attention has
been devoted to this issue. Drawing upon a multiple-case study of German health and social
services organizations, we therefore explore the linkages (and potential gaps) between intended,
implemented, and perceived HR practices. Our study provides new insights into the underlying
mechanisms of this relationship, highlighting an organization’s ability to leverage its resources
as playing a crucial moderating role in implementing intended HR practices, while employees’
expectations of HRM moderate the link between implemented and perceived HR practices. We
advance a set of propositions that contributes to a more nuanced, multilevel understanding of the
complex phenomenon of HRM implementation.
WHAT DETERMINES EMPLOYEE PERCEPTIONS OF HRM PROCESS FEATURES? THE CASE OF PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL IN MNC SUBSIDIARIES JENNIE SUMELIUS, INGMAR BJÖRKMAN, MATS EHRNROOTH, KRISTIINA MÄKELÄ,
AND ADAM SMALE 569
Against the background of Bowen and Ostroff’s (2004) human resource management (HRM)
process theorization, this study explores influences on individual employee perceptions of the
visibility, validity, and procedural and distributive justice of performance appraisal in subsidiaries
of multinational corporations, and at what levels these influences reside. The study adopts an
embedded, multiple-case design with interview data from 33 managers and professionals in
six subsidiaries of three corporations. The findings show that perceptions of the performance
appraisal process are driven by a number of influences pertaining to the unit, relationship, and
individual levels. Further, the study highlights differences and similarities of influences across four
performance appraisal process features, and identifies overlaps and inter-linkages between the
process features suggested by Bowen and Ostroff (2004). For practitioners, the value of our study
lies in the identification of steps that can be taken to increase the likelihood that HRM practices are
perceived positively and as intended by the organization.
HR SCIENCE FORUM ACCOMMODATING EMPLOYEES WITH AND WITHOUT DISABILITIES LISA SCHUR, LISA NISHII, MEERA ADYA, DOUGLAS KRUSE, SUSANNE M. BRUYÈRE,
AND PETER BLANCK 593
Efforts to recruit and retain employees with disabilities are often tempered by employers’ concerns
over potential workplace accommodation costs. This study reports on accommodations requested
and granted in intensive case studies of eight companies, based on more than 5,000 employee
and manager surveys, and interviews and focus groups with 128 managers and employees with
disabilities. Two unique contributions are that we analyze accommodations for employees without
disabilities as well as for those with disabilities, and compare perspectives on accommodation
costs and benefits among employees, their coworkers, and their managers. We find people with
disabilities are more likely than those without disabilities to request accommodations, but the
types of accommodations requested and the reported costs and benefits are similar for disability
and non-disability accommodations. In particular, fears of high accommodation costs and negative
reactions of coworkers are not realized; all groups tend to report generally positive coworker
reactions. Multilevel models indicate granting accommodations has positive spillover effects on
attitudes of coworkers, as well as a positive effect on attitudes of requesting employees, but only
when coworkers are supportive. Consistent with recent theorizing and other studies, our results
suggest the benefits from a corporate culture of flexibility and attention to the individualized needs
of employees.
RESEARCH NOTE A MULTIPLE-GROUP ANALYSIS OF ASSOCIATIONS BETWEEN EMOTIONAL EXHAUSTION AND SUPERVISOR-RATED INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE: TEMPORARY VERSUS PERMANENT CALL-CENTER WORKERS NELE DE CUYPER, FILIPA CASTANHEIRA, HANS DE WITTE, AND MARIA JOSÉ CHAMBEL 623
This study investigates whether contract type (temporary versus permanent employment)
moderates the relationship between emotional exhaustion and supervisor-rated individual
performance. Most temporary workers desire permanent employment, and this may drive them to
uphold performance also when strained. This hypothesis was tested with multiple-group analysis
in a sample of 430 call-center operators from five Portuguese organizations from different sectors.
The results show that emotional exhaustion related negatively to supervisor-rated individual
performance among permanent workers, but not among temporary workers. Our conclusion is
that the relationship between emotional exhaustion and supervisor-rated individual performance is
conditional upon contract type.
N U M B E R 5 , S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 0 4 HR SCIENCE FORUM A FRAMEWORK FOR WORK-LIFE INSTRUMENTS: A CROSS-NATIONAL REVIEW E. ANNE BARDOEL AND HELEN DE CIERI 635
Recently there has been growing attention paid by practitioners to the need for effective
measurement of the contribution of work-life management initiatives to both financial and
nonfinancial performance objectives and to organizational effectiveness overall. We review a
range of performance indicators, criteria, and indices that are used in a variety of countries to
measure the performance of work-life initiatives. Using insights from research as a theoretical
foundation, we present a framework for organizations to use when developing metrics for work-
life measurement that comprise the four dimensions of planning and alignment, customization,
supportive culture, and demonstrated value. Finally, we offer recommendations for research and
practice related to measurement of work-life initiatives to assist scholars, managers, employees,
and communities.
DO I REALLY WANT TO WORK HERE? TESTING A MODEL OF JOB PURSUIT FOR MBA INTERNS GERARD BEENEN AND SHAUN PICHLER 661
Job pursuit refers to the intentions, decisions, or behaviors indicative of a candidate’s interest
in a particular employer. This study develops and tests a process model of job pursuit for MBA
interns with data collected before, during, and after their internships. Our model integrates theory
from the person-environment fit and organizational socialization literature. Results show pre-
entry person-organization (P-O) fit and social aspects tactics jointly motivate proactive information
seeking about the employer (from those inside and outside the assigned department) during the
internship, and interactively motivate information seeking outside the assigned department. Yet,
only information seeking inside the assigned department is related to learning about the employer.
Learning about the employer also predicts job-acceptance intentions, which in turn predicts
job-acceptance decisions. The model developed in this study should serve as a guide to help
human resource managers understand job pursuit and acceptance in internships and other similar
employment relationships.
(continued)
ORGANIZATIONAL WORK-FAMILY CULTURE AND WORKING MOTHERS’ AFFECTIVE COMMITMENT: HOW CAREER EXPECTATIONS MATTER EUNMI CHANG, HYUN CHIN, AND JIEUN YE 683
The research undertaken here examines how an organizational work-family culture affects the
attitudes of working mothers.This research extends the existing findings by examining two
separate mediation processes: work-family conflict and career expectations. The cases of 1,308
working mothers were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results show that career
expectations mediated the effect of an organizational work-family culture on affective commitment
while work-family conflict did not. As an additional analysis, working mothers’ perceptions and
attitudes were compared with those of 288 peers. Results disclose that working mothers were no
less committed to their organization, and were even more committed than their peers early in their
careers. Working mothers’ career expectations, however, were consistently lower than their peers’
expectations. Implications of these results are included.
STANDARDIZE OR CUSTOMIZE: THE INTERACTIVE EFFECTS OF HRM AND ENVIRONMENT UNCERTAINTY ON MNC SUBSIDIARY PERFORMANCE JULIE A. COGIN AND IAN O. WILLIAMSON 701
This study examines the impact of customizing (as opposed to standardizing) human resource
management (HRM) practices on subsidiary performance in multinational corporations (MNCs). We
examine how this relationship is influenced by environmental uncertainty. Hypotheses were tested
using data from 92 subsidiaries of a large MNC operating in 27 countries. The results showed an
interactive relationship between the customization of HRM practices and subsidiary environmental
uncertainty on both financial (net profit) and nonfinancial (customer satisfaction) objective
measures of subsidiary performance. The results of this study provide important empirical
insights for researchers and practitioners into how HRM can be best configured to drive multiple
performance outcomes for MNC subsidiaries.
ADDRESSING THE STRESS OF WORK AND ELDER CAREGIVING OF THE GRAYING WORKFORCE: THE MODERATING EFFECTS OF FINANCIAL STRAIN ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN WORK-CAREGIVING CONFLICT AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING NAJUNG KIM AND JUDITH R. GORDON 723
Human resource policies and practices must consider the issues associated with an aging
workforce, and, more specifically, the stress experienced by those involved in caring for elders.
This study examined such stress by studying the relationship between work–elder caregiving
conflict and well-being, as well as the role of perceived financial need in moderating that re-
lationship. The sample included 583 women who worked full-time and had significant elder
caregiving responsibilities. The analysis showed that work interfering with caregiving (WIC) was
significantly associated with both positive and negative affect, but caregiving interfering with
work (CIW) was not significantly associated with either. Perceived financial need decreased older
women’s psychological well-being and moderated the relationship between work–elder caregiving
conflict and psychological well-being such that the negative effect of WIC was stronger for older
women with higher perceived financial need, while CIW decreased the well-being of older women
with lower perceived financial need but not for those with higher need.The results stress the
importance of considering elder care as a source of work-family conflict when managing the aging
workforce as well as suggest a way to attenuate the negative effect of work-family conflict by
managing the perception of financial resources and needs of the employees.
TRAINING AND PERFORMANCE OF A DIVERSE WORKFORCE TABEA SCHEEL, THOMAS RIGOTTI, AND GISELA MOHR 749
The moderating role of work contracts on the relationship between human resource management
(HRM) and the self-reported performance of 1,311 permanent and 924 temporary employees
across three sectors was studied using a multilevel design in 103 organizations in three European
countries. The HR practice examined was training and its allocation to the different workforce
groups. The relationship between training for permanent employees and performance was
moderated by work contract as well as country. In the Spanish sample, the performance of
temporary employees was more negatively related to training for permanent employees as
compared to the Dutch and the Swedish sample. Unexpectedly, in the Dutch sample, training
provision was negatively related to the workforce group it was provided for. It is the temporary
employees that seemed to be the cause of the interactions, underlining the call for special
treatment of this workforce. Results indicate a considerable role of the interplay of job dependence
and labor market conditions.
MULTISOURCE RATINGS OF MANAGERIAL COMPETENCIES AND THEIR PREDICTIVE VALUE FOR MANAGERIAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS JUDITH H. SEMEIJN, BEATRICE I. J. M. VAN DER HEIJDEN, AND ANNE VAN DER LEE 773
This study examined the predictive value of multisource ratings of managerial competencies
for managerial and organizational effectiveness. Data from 155 subordinates, 59 peers, and
28 supervisors were gathered in order to provide insight into their perceptions on managerial
competencies for their managers. With regard to the outcome variable (i.e., effectiveness), both
individual-level (subordinates’, peers’, and supervisors’ ratings of managers) and organizational-
level (Balanced Scorecard) measures were used. As expected, subordinates, peers, and
supervisors have distinct perspectives on the managerial competencies that are relevant for effec-
tiveness. Moreover, the specific managerial competencies differ in terms of their predictive validity
respectively for managerial and organizational effectiveness. The outcomes of our study suggest
that a multisource and multimethod approach is valuable in assessing both managerial competen-
cies and managerial and organizational effectiveness. Several implications for human resource
management practices are discussed.
HUMAN RESOURCE SYSTEMS AND ETHICAL CLIMATES: A RESOURCE-BASED PERSPECTIVE LAXMIKANT MANROOP, PARBUDYAL SINGH, AND SOUHA EZZEDEEN 795
We know very little about how ethical climates are built and the potential role of a firm’s HR
system in facilitating the development of this resource. The resource-based view (RBV) of the
firm suggests that human resource systems directly influence a firm’s performance through the
development of resources that are deeply woven in a firm’s history and culture. How this occurs
though has not been thoroughly considered in the research literature. Drawing on the theoretical
insights from the resource-based view of the firm, this article explores how HR systems can
foster the development and maintenance of five types of ethical climates. In so doing, this article
improves our conceptual understanding of why ethical climates may be seen as having strategic
value for firms and how HR systems may influence that value. In addition, it contributes to theory
by extending the domain of the resource-based view of the firm by exploring its integration with
the varied types of ethical climates.
HIGH-PERFORMANCE WORK SYSTEMS AND TEACHERS’ WORK PERFORMANCE: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF QUALITY OF WORKING LIFE JIE SHEN, JOHN BENSON, AND BINHUA HUANG 817
This article examines the role of quality of working life (QWL) in the relation ships between
high-performance work systems (HPWSs) and employee in-role performance and extra-role
behavior. Using the data from 1,051 teachers and their immediate supervisors in 63 Chinese
schools, we performed multilevel analysis to test meso-mediation models. The results showed
that HPWSs directly and indirectly influence teachers’ in-role performance and extra-role behavior
through the mediation of QWL. These findings demonstrate that QWL is an important conduit
of the relationships between HPWSs and employee work behaviors. The article concludes
by discussing the implications for management and future research.
N U M B E R 6 , N O V E M B E R / D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4 SPECIAL ISSUE
Emerging Markets
GUEST EDITORS
Adrian Wilkinson, Geoffrey Wood, and Mehmet Demirbag
GUEST EDITORS’ INTRODUCTION PEOPLE MANAGEMENT AND EMERGING MARKET MULTINATIONALS ADRIAN WILKINSON, GEOFFREY WOOD, AND MEHMET DEMIRBAG 835
There is a very extensive body of literature on how multinationals manage their people in different
national contexts. However, the bulk of this literature focuses on the case of multinationals from
the advanced industrial economies, and to a considerable extent, the United States. Very much
less has been written on multinationals with their country of origin being an emerging market,
and what little there is has focused on a very limited number of preferred cases. The growing
importance of emerging economies has led to an upsurge of strategy research on the topic
(Wright, Filatotchev, Hoskisson, & Peng, 2005); however, research on human resource management
has not paid enough attention to emerging market multinational enterprises (EMNEs). Many
EMNEs tend to be smaller in size with considerably fewer resources and less international
experience than their counterparts from developed markets, limiting their ability to transfer
management practice across their subsidiaries (Thite, Wilkinson, & Shah, 2012), although there are
important exceptions to this rule. This introductory article seeks to contribute to the emerging body
of literature in this area, through seeking to encourage fresh insights, particularly on the varieties
of people management encountered in different national contexts.
HR SCIENCE FORUM EMERGING GIANTS, ASPIRING MULTINATIONALS, AND FOREIGN EXECUTIVES: LEAPFROGGING, CAPABILITY BUILDING, AND COMPETING WITH DEVELOPED COUNTRY MULTINATIONALS FRITHJOF ARP 851
The phenomenon of emerging-market organizations appointing foreign executives from distant
cultural contexts to headquarters positions has stirred public and academic interest. Emerging
giants, aspiring multinationals, and even local organizations that focus entirely on domestic
markets have joined the global hunt for management talent. This article reports why foreign
executives from significant cultural distance are appointed to local headquarters positions, what
they contribute, and why these positions are not filled with local executives. Data are sourced
from in-depth interviews with two sample groups in organizations founded and headquartered
in Malaysia (46 foreign executives from 13 countries and 25 host-country peers from three
local ethnocultural groups). Triangulation of dyadic data from these two sample groups reveals
a dichotomy between the initial reasons for which foreign executives are appointed and the
continued reasons why some of these executives remain in their positions.
CHINESE MULTINATIONAL FIRMS IN ASIA AND AFRICA: RELATIONSHIPS WITH INSTITUTIONAL ACTORS AND PATTERNS OF HRM PRACTICES FANG LEE COOKE 877
Interest in the internationalization of Chinese firms has soared in recent years. However, studies
that compare Chinese multinational corporations (MNCs) in different industries and their human
resource management (HRM) remain limited. This study fills this research gap by examining the
HRM practices of Chinese MNCs and the extent to which these are shaped by the institutional
factors that are specific to industries. It focuses on the Chinese operations in the South/Southeast
Asian and African regions because Chinese firms tend to have various competitive advantages in
these regions. The article draws on a number of theoretical perspectives, particularly the political
economy and institutional perspectives, to make sense of the different contexts under which
Chinese MNCs invest and operate. It argues that in examining Chinese MNCs, it is important
to contemplate the role of the government and a wider range of institutional actors in order to
understand how the dynamic interactions of these actors may shape the HRM of these firms with
broader economic and social impacts.
(continued)
EMPLOYMENT IN CHINESE MNES: APPRAISING THE DRAGON’S GIFT TO SUB-SAHARAN AFRICA TERENCE JACKSON 897
China’s international engagement is changing geopolitical dynamics to an extent that Western
governments appear concerned. Negative reports of this engagement in Africa abound, not least
in the area of employment relations and human resource management. Yet currently there is a
lack of serious management research and theory development in this area, leaving international
HR managers to rely on anecdotal information. The way Chinese management engages with
African workforces may be quite different from Western managers’. The current work suggests that
understanding this engagement should be informed by China’s recent anti-imperialist involvement
in Africa, its commercial motivation coupled with its political-seeking motive, the values such
as paternalism that modify Western influences on Chinese HRM that are brought to Africa, and
possible synergies with African values. Yet the current work identifies from the current published
evidence a disparity between China’s professed strategic level of engagement and what happens
at the organizational level, indicating that many Chinese organizations may be contributing
to employment, but not to upskilling of workers, mutual learning, or engagement with local
communities.
GLOBAL HR ROLES AND FACTORS INFLUENCING THEIR DEVELOPMENT: EVIDENCE FROM EMERGING INDIAN IT SERVICES MULTINATIONALS MOHAN THITE, PAWAN BUDHWAR, AND ADRIAN WILKINSON 921
The rapid growth of emerging markets’ multinational companies (MNCs) is a recent phenomenon
and, as such, their nature and structure of key management processes, functions, and roles
need further examination. While an abundance of low-cost labor is often the starting point of
competitive advantage for many of the emerging markets’ MNCs, it is the optimum configuration
of people, processes, and technology that defines how they leverage their intangible resources.
Based on case studies of four Indian IT services MNCs, involving 51 in-depth interviews of
business and human resource (HR) leaders at the corporate and subsidiary levels, we identify
five key HR roles—namely, strategic business partner, guardian of culture, builder of global
workforce and capabilities, champion of processes, and facilitator of employee development. The
analysis also highlights that the HR function in Indian IT service MNCs faces several challenges in
consolidating the early gains of internationalization, such as lack of decentralized decision making,
developing a global mind-set, localization of the workforce, and developing a global leadership
pipeline. Based on our exploratory findings, we propose a framework outlining the global HR roles
pursued by emerging IT services MNCs, the factors influencing them, and the challenges facing
their HR function for future research.
CHINESE MNCs’ PREPARATION FOR HOST-COUNTRY LABOR RELATIONS: AN EXPLORATION OF COUNTRY-OF-ORIGIN EFFECT JUDITH SHUQIN ZHU, CHERRIE JIUHUA ZHU, AND HELEN DE CIERI 947
Numerous studies have demonstrated the existence of the country-of-origin effect and how
this effect interacts with other factors in shaping multinational corporations’ (MNCs’) practices.
However, there has been little investigation of different forms of country-of-origin effect, the
mechanisms through which this effect occurs, or country-of-origin effect on MNCs from emerging
markets. This study explores how country-of-origin effect manifests in Chinese MNCs’ preparation
for managing host country labor relations, an important area of human resource management
(HRM). Based on a study of 21 Chinese MNCs, we argue that country-of-origin effect in relation
to Chinese MNCs mainly manifests in two implicit forms, including transfer of management
ethos and competitive disadvantage generated from the home base, rather than in the form of
direct practice transfer as commonly suggested in the current literature. The major mechanism
through which country-of-origin effect plays out is the mind-set of managers, rather than formally
established corporate control instruments.
RESEARCH NOTE THE JANUS FACES OF IHRM IN RUSSIAN MNEs TATIANA ANDREEVA, MARION FESTING, DANA B. MINBAEVA, AND MARAL MURATBEKOVA-TOURON 967
This article analyzes variations in the international human resource management (IHRM)
approaches of Russian multinational enterprises (MNEs) in the contexts of developed and
developing countries. The data were gathered through interviews conducted at the headquarters of
Russian MNEs and at their subsidiaries in developed and developing countries. The results indicate
that Russian MNEs adopt HRM practices of Western origin. However, these MNEs differ radically in
their choices of IHRM approaches. Many of these differences depend on the countries these MNEs
target in their international expansion. In developing countries that belong to Commonwealth
of Independent States (CIS, regional block of countries that were former Soviet republics), the
IHRM approaches adopted by Russian MNEs typically reflect a feeling of superiority. However, in
developed countries and in non-CIS developing countries, Russian MNEs actively promote a mix of
global best practices and local HRM practices. We do not find any instances of the reverse transfer
of management practices from subsidiaries in developed countries to the MNEs’ headquarters or
any examples of cross-pollination among subsidiaries.
EMPLOYEE PRODUCTIVITY, EMPLOYMENT GROWTH, AND THE CROSS-BORDER ACQUISITIONS BY EMERGING MARKET FIRMS ALI ATAULLAH, HANG LE, AND AMANDEEP S. SAHOTA 987
We examine the impact of the cross-border acquisitions made by firms from emerging markets
on employee productivity and employment growth. The literature suggests that cross-border
acquisitions enable emerging market firms to obtain new skills and knowledge-intensive assets,
which, in turn, may increase productivity. However, our empirical analysis suggests that cross-
border acquisitions reduce employee productivity and have a limited impact on employment
growth. Moreover, we find that cross-border acquisitions in less-developed countries and in
culturally distinct countries reduce productivity. Overall, our findings cast doubt on the idea that
cross-border acquisitions enable emerging market firms to improve the productivity of one of their
most important resources—namely, their human capital.
CASE STUDY RECONSIDERING THE ROLE OF HR IN M&As: WHAT CAN BE LEARNED FROM PRACTICE SILVIA BAGDADLI, JAMES C. HAYTON, AND OSVALDO PERFIDO 1005
Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) offer an important tool for rapid organizational growth,
acquisition of new knowledge and capabilities, and entry into new markets at home or abroad.
Although the importance of the involvement of the human resource management function
has been widely extolled, evidence for the level of involvement remains limited. A significant
gap in our understanding is created by the observation that not all M&As are motivated by
the same objectives. We explore the significance of different forms of M&A for the scope and
intensity of involvement of the human resource management function by examining a set of
three cases of different M&As conducted by a single firm in Italy. The cases provide evidence
that we should expect HR functional involvement to vary across the type of M&A. We offer a
conceptual framework with testable propositions for scholars interested in further exploring these
relationships.
VOLUME CONTENTS AND AUTHOR INDEX
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