Strategic human capital management in SMEs: An empirical study of entrepreneurial performance

How can human resource management (HRM) practices promote entrepreneurial performance in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)? This article discusses the association between human capital management (HCM) and other contemporary HRM practices and the ability of SMEs to be entrepreneurial. In a study of 99 SMEs, HRM practices that promote employee discretionary behavior, knowledge sharing, and organizational learning are found to be positively associated with entrepreneurial performance. Two contingencies are also identified for this relationship. First, the use of strategic HCM practices enhances the observed positive association. Second, these relationships are strongest for SMEs operating in high-technology industries. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

[1]  Jeffrey Pfeffer,et al.  Pitfalls on the road to measurement: The dangerous liaison of human resources with the ideas of accounting and finance , 1997 .

[2]  John W. Boudreau,et al.  Utility Analysis for Decisions in Human Resource Management , 1988 .

[3]  John E. Delery,et al.  Modes of theorizing in strategic human resource management: Tests of universalistic, contingency, and configurational performance predictions , 1996 .

[4]  J. F. Byrnes,et al.  Costing Human Resources: The Financial Impact of Behavior in Organizations , 1984 .

[5]  J. Cordery.  Multi‐skilling: A Discussion of Proposed Benefits of New Approaches to Labour Flexibility within Enterprises , 1989 .

[6]  Daniel M. Cable,et al.  Smaller but not necessarily weaker: How small businesses can overcome barriers to recruitment , 2002 .

[7]  R. Sanchez.  Strategic flexibility in product competition , 1995 .

[8]  W. Dennis,et al.  Raising Response Rates in Mail Surveys of Small Business Owners: Results of an Experiment , 2003 .

[9]  Wayne F. Cascio,et al.  Development and application of a new method for assessing job performance in behavioral/economic terms , 1986 .

[10]  Robert L. Heneman,et al.  Human resource management models for entrepreneurial opportunity: Existing knowledge and new directions , 2002 .

[11]  Linda A. Cyr,et al.  The Human Resource Executive Effect in Initial Public Offering Firms , 1999 .

[12]  R. Kanter.  The change masters : innovation and entrepreneurship in the American corporation , 1984 .

[13]  Robert L. Heneman,et al.  Human Resource Management Practices in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises: Unanswered Questions and Future Research Perspectives , 2000 .

[14]  Glenn M. McEvoy,et al.  Human Resource Management, TQM, and Firm Performance in Small and Medium-Size Enterprises , 2000 .

[15]  D. Teece,et al.  DYNAMIC CAPABILITIES AND STRATEGIC MANAGEMENT , 1997 .

[16]  Randall S. Schuler,et al.  Organizational Characteristics as Predictors of Personnel Practices. , 1989 .

[17]  David J. Miller,et al.  The Correlates of Entrepreneurship in Three Types of Firms , 1983 .

[18]  Jerome A. Katz,et al.  Introduction: Human resource management in entrepreneurial settings: Towards a relational approach , 2002 .

[19]  I. Nonaka.  A Dynamic Theory of Organizational Knowledge Creation , 1994 .

[20]  Shaker A. Zahra,et al.  Goverance, Ownership, and Corporate Entrepreneurship: The Moderating Impact of Industry Technological Opportunities , 1996 .

[21]  Douglas D. Moesel,et al.  The Market for Corporate Control and Firm Innovation , 1996 .

[22]  Wayne F. Cascio,et al.  Utility of the assessment center as a selection device. , 1979 .

[23]  H. E. Brogden,et al.  The Dollar Criterion—Applying the Cost Accounting Concept to Criterion Construction , 1950 .

[24]  Gregory G. Dess,et al.  Clarifying the Entrepreneurial Orientation Construct and Linking It To Performance , 1996 .

[25]  Mark A. Huselid.  The Impact of Human Resource Management Practices on Turnover, Productivity, and Corporate Financial Performance , 1995 .

[26]  R. Roslender.  Accounting for the Worth of Employees: Is the Discipline Finally Ready to Respond to the Challenge? , 1997 .

[27]  R. Kanter.  Supporting innovation and venture development in established companies , 1985 .

[28]  J. Barney.  Firm Resources and Sustained Competitive Advantage , 1991 .

[29]  Brian E. Becker,et al.  The HR Scorecard: Linking People, Strategy, and Performance , 2001 .

[30]  Allen C. Bluedorn,et al.  The relationship between corporate entrepreneurship and strategic management , 1999 .

[31]  Patrick M. Wright,et al.  Toward a Unifying Framework for Exploring Fit and Flexibility in Strategic Human Resource Management , 1998 .

[32]  Jac Fitz-enz,et al.  The ROI of human capital , 2009 .

[33]  S. Zahra.  Environment, corporate entrepreneurship, and financial performance: A taxonomic approach , 1993 .

[34]  Gaylen N. Chandler,et al.  Unraveling the Determinants and Consequences of an Innovation-Supportive Organizational Culture , 2000 .

[35]  Rüdiger Kabst,et al.  Functional flexibility: merely reacting or acting strategically? , 1998 .