E-HR and international HRM: a critical perspective on the discursive framing of e-HR
33
Citation
153
Reference
10
Related Paper
Citation Trend
Abstract:
In the current global economic climate, international HRM is facing unprecedented pressure to become more innovative, effective and efficient. New discourses are emerging around the application of information technology, with 'e-HR' (electronic-enablement of Human Resources), self-service portals and promises of improved services couched as various HR 'value propositions'. This study explores these issues through our engagement with the emergent stream of 'critical' HRM, the broader study of organizational discourse and ethical management theories. We have found that while there is growing research into the take-up of e-HR applications, there is a dearth of investigation into the impact of e-HR on the people involved; in particular, the (re)structuring of social relations between HR functions and line managers in the move away from face-to-face HR support services, to more technology-mediated 'self-service' relationships. We undertake a close reading of personal narratives from a multinational organization, deploying a critical discourse lens to examine different dimensions of e-HR and raise questions about the strong technocratic framing of the international language of people management, shaping line manager enactment of e-HR duties. We argue for a more reflexive stance in the conceptualization e-HR, and conclude with a discussion about the theoretical and practical implications of our study, limitations and suggestions for future research.Keywords:
Framing (construction)
Reflexivity
Line management
Technocracy
This paper explores line manager responsibility for human resource management (HRM) and human resource development (HRD) in an international hotel organisation. The results identify a strong support system for line managers in relation to training and good relations with HR specialists. However, less evident is senior management support coupled with barriers in relation to philosophical understanding, time and work pressures, which are acting as inhibitors to line management’s commitment to HRM and HRD.
Line management
Training and Development
Line (geometry)
Cite
Citations (2)
Line management
Cite
Citations (0)
The rapid change in the economic environment has not resulted in the development of sophisticated human resource management practices in the UK construction industry. There are similarities between personnel practice in construction and 'hard' models of HRM, particularly in relation to manual workers, but non-manual employment resembles more the conditions where 'soft' HRM might be expected. Focusing on the HRM levers developed by John Storey, HRM practices are examined in relation to the role of personnel departments, line management responsibility, performance management, and values and beliefs of personnel managers. The survey results suggest few signs of fundamental or far-reaching innovation in human resource management practice in the construction industry despite the changing shape of construction companies. There are some, though limited, signs of change in respect to expectations of training and employee development in the future.
Line management
Training and Development
Cite
Citations (127)
Although line managers have always been involved in managing human resources (HR), it is within human resource management (HRM) that their involvement has been placed centre‐stage as a core element of an HR approach. This article reports findings from 40 interviews with line managers on their experiences in handling HR work that has been devolved to them, from a study of three different UK work organisations. The study finds that significant organisational benefits and costs exist from involving the line in HR work. The article concludes that participation of both line and HR managers in HRM needs to be re‐assessed, as line involvement in HRM is a problematic initiative for organisations to adopt.
Line management
Line (geometry)
Cite
Citations (245)
Abstract ‘Who does HRM and how?’ identifies who does Human Resource Management (HRM) and how. The practice of HRM is not something that resides solely in the hands of those who design HRM policies, namely senior managers and HR staff/departments. Whatever policies are designed by those at the top, others further down the ranks must implement them, even where there is an HR department to provide support and advice. Indeed, line managers implement HRM and the lived experience of HRM for most staff is provided by their line managers. It is also important to consider the gap between intended, actual, and perceived HR practices and not simply assume they are the same.
Line management
Cite
Citations (0)
Although contextual factors act to encourage the devolvement of human resource management to line managers, recent research indicates that there is substantial potential for human resource specialists and line managers to share more effectively responsibility for their organization's human resource activities in business partnerships. The foundation for this is arguably commonality in opinions on the principles and practices of human resource activities. However, line managers and human resource specialists often have dissonant opinions on human resource management. This paper explores line manager and human resource specialists' perspectives on line manager involvement in human resource management, theoretically and empirically. The primary work comprises a survey of the views of line managers and human resource specialists on devolving a range of human resource activities to line managers in a case organization, Hilton International's UK hotels. Differences between line managers' and human resource specialists' perspectives are found in five aspects: understanding and ownership of the company's service and HR strategy; line manager involvement in and rankings of HR activities; HR specialists' support of line managers; barriers to line managers' involvement in HR activities; and the competence of line managers in HR activities. Importantly, it is found that where there are divergent views across line managers and their HR specialist in their hotel there is poor hotel business performance and, conversely, convergent views are evident in the effectively performing hotels. These findings may have resonance for other organizations in devolving human resource management to the line and developing human resource business partnerships for business performance. It is proposed that three types of line manager buy-in are central to their active involvement in HR, namely: conceptual understanding of the rationale for their involvement; implementation effectiveness through HR role clarity and capability; and affective commitment in believing in the value of their involvement in HR.
Line management
Cite
Citations (91)
Abstract Human resource management ( HRM ) is about all those activities associated with the management of people in firms. The aim of this article is to provide an overview of the HRM approach. This is done by showing the central role for top and line management and by showing how HRM can help fulfill business objectives. On the basis of the three main phases of employment management (the entry, performance, and exit of employees), some current challenges of managing people in an international context are highlighted.
Line management
Resource Management
Cite
Citations (31)
In this article, we explore one of the key underlying mechanisms that mediates the human resource management (HRM)–performance link, namely, the (effective) HRM implementation by line managers. In particular, the purpose of our study is to compare middle and first-line managers’ experiences of their human resource (HR) role and the factors explaining effective HRM implementation at each managerial level. By employing survey data of two Belgian federal government organizations, we examine the effect of a number of organizational, individual and interpersonal factors on the effectiveness of line managers in HRM implementation. Results indicate that both middle and first-line managers’ HRM implementation effectiveness is related to organizational support, autonomous motivation, and coworker support. For the group of first-line managers, specifically, age and local office position are important in the execution of their HR tasks. For the group of middle managers, however, personnel red tape, length of service, and supervisory experience contribute to their HRM implementation effectiveness. As a result, an organization’s HR department can create the internal organizational conditions necessary to facilitate successful HRM implementation by the line. At the same time, it is worth adapting the approach according to the different managerial levels.
Line management
Middle management
Performance appraisal
Cite
Citations (26)
Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore different levels of line manager perspectives, namely strategic and first‐line on their role in human resource management (HRM) and human resource development (HRD), and to identify enablers of and barriers to devolving HR to line managers. Design/methodology/approach Using a deductive approach, case study data was collected from 76 hotels, owned by Hilton UK, via self‐administered questionnaires to strategic and first‐line managers. Descriptive statistics were used to analyse the quantitative results, prior to significance tests being conducted in SPSS to identify differences in means based on managerial positions. Findings A number of points of divergence in opinions are revealed, implying that there is potential for the case organisation to secure greater engagement of its first‐line managers in HR roles. Reducing the workloads and short‐term job pressures of these managers, together with capitalising on the good relations with the hotel HR specialists are means to develop greater engagement. Importantly, improving all line managers’ understanding of the organisational basis of their involvement in HR may bolster their performance in HR activities. Originality/value This paper offers a fusion of two theoretical perspectives (HRM and HRD), in addition to identifying differences in perceptions of two different levels of line managers.
Line management
Value (mathematics)
Divergence (linguistics)
Talent Management
Line (geometry)
Cite
Citations (79)