Showing papers in "Human Resource Management in 2014"
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors examined the relationship between employee perceptions of high-commitment human resource management (HRM), task proficiency, work engagement, and organizational commitment, and found that the relationship was fully mediated by work engagement.
Abstract: 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.
163 citations
TL;DR: This paper found that 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.
Abstract: 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. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
141 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore the linkages and potential gaps between intended, implemented, and perceived HR practices, highlighting an organization's ability to leverage its resources as playing a crucial moderating role in implementing intended HR practices.
Abstract: 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 © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc
121 citations
TL;DR: For instance, the authors presented an overview of past, current, and future challenges of the HRM process approach and reviewed the contributions that have been selected against a competitive field for this special issue.
Abstract: 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
120 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigated the impact of a human resource management (HRM) system, which integrates both content and process of human resource practices, on organizational performance, through collective employee reactions.
Abstract: 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 performance relationship) and HRM process moderates the HRM content (i.e., employee reactions relationship), the study has several theoretical and practice implications.
112 citations
TL;DR: This article investigated the relationship 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).
Abstract: 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
107 citations
TL;DR: The authors 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.
Abstract: 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. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
107 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared the effect of printed recruitment advertisements and recruitment websites on applicant attraction and showed how these recruitment activities interact with one another, and found that websites have a significantly stronger impact on applicants' attraction than printed advertisements.
Abstract: 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.
97 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors investigated 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.
Abstract: 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. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
88 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examine the HRM practices of Chinese MNCs and the extent to which these are shaped by the institutional factors that are specific to industries, focusing on the Chinese operations in the South/Southeast Asian and African regions because Chinese firms tend to have various competitive advantages in these regions.
Abstract: 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
79 citations
TL;DR: This article found that personal, psychological, and role complexity antecedents were related to the participants' level of global mindset, and the practical implications of these findings for effective international human resource management.
Abstract: 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. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
TL;DR: Wang et al. as discussed by the authors explored 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.
Abstract: 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. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors extend knowledge of the performance consequences of workgroup diversity climate and introduce workgroup discrimination as a behavioral mediator that explains the positive effects of diversity climate on workgroup performance.
Abstract: The present study extends knowledge of the performance consequences of workgroup diversity climate. Building upon Kopelman, Brief, and Guzzo's () 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 pra
TL;DR: In this article, the authors conducted an interview-based study to understand which strategies people with disabilities engage in to manage their careers proactively, including 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.
Abstract: 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
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored 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.
Abstract: 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. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
TL;DR: In this article, the role of quality of working life (QWL) in the relationship between high-performance work systems (HPWSs) and employee in-role performance and extra-role behavior was examined.
Abstract: This article examines the role of quality of working life (QWL) in the relationships 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
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore how HR systems can foster the development and maintenance of five types of ethical climates in a firm's history and culture by integrating the resource-based view of the firm.
Abstract: 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.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify 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.
Abstract: 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
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify 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.
Abstract: 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
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify five key HR roles in Indian IT services MNCs, namely strategic business partner, guardian of culture, builder of global workforce and capabilities, champion of processes, and facilitator of employee development.
Abstract: 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.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors analyzed variations in the international human resource management (IHRM) approaches of Russian multinational enterprises (MNEs) in the context of developed and developing countries.
Abstract: 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 refl ect 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 fi nd 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.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explore evidence of professional human resource management (HRM) role tensions, the factors that affect HRM role tension, and consider the impact on management perceptions when role tensions exist.
Abstract: 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. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored 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.
Abstract: 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. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
TL;DR: In this paper, it was predicted that stressbuffering effects of different types of identifications (distal versus proximal) would be revealed when the identification type and employee adjustment outcome type were congruent.
Abstract: 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.
TL;DR: This article explored the relationship between employee perceptions of relative deprivation during a merger and acquisition (M&A) process and their turnover intention and found 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.
Abstract: 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
TL;DR: 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, has not paid enough attention to emerging market multinational enterprises as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: 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.
TL;DR: This paper explored how country-of-origin effect manifested in Chinese MNCs' preparation for managing host country labor relations, an important area of human resource management (HRM), and argued that the major mechanism through which the country of origin effect plays out is the mind-set of managers, rather than formally established corporate control instruments.
Abstract: 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
TL;DR: This paper explored the career attitudes of 2,267 United Arab Emirates citizens prior to their entry into the labor market and found that the social contract and resulting expectations toward state employment have strong implications for willingness to work in the private sector.
Abstract: Following four decades of unprecedented economic, social, and cultural change, the United Arab Emirates 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 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
TL;DR: This paper explored 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.
Abstract: 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.
TL;DR: This article examined how an organizational work-family culture affects the attitudes of working mothers and found that career expectations mediated the effect of organizational work family culture on affective commitment while work family conflict did not, concluding that working mothers were no less committed to their organization and were even more committed than their peers early in their careers.
Abstract: 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