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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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