Strategic human resource management: where have we come from and where should we be going?

Strategichumanresourcemanagement(SHRM)impliesaconcernwiththewaysinwhichHRM iscriticaltoorganizationaleffectiveness.Thisstraightforwardassertionisexaminedintheory andthroughresearchevidencetorevealhighlevelsofcomplexityinrelationtohow,whenand why the interconnection between HRM and organizational outcomes is achieved. The two dominant normative models of ‘best fit’ and ‘best practice’ are considered. The paper concludes that the HR strategies of firms are heavily shaped by contextual contingencies, includingnational,sectoralandorganizationalfactors.However,suchaconclusiondoesnot invalidate all ‘best-practice’ thinking. Although constrained in certain ways, underpinning principles of labour management still have relevance to practice as essential attributes of a firm’sabilityto competeinitschosenmarkets.Thepaper thenconsiderstheresource-based view (RBV) of the firm and asks whether this provides a better basis for the development of theory in SHRM and in understanding the contribution of HRM to the achievement of sustainedcompetitiveadvantage.WhilelimitstotheutilityofRBVinrespectofSHRMtheory are identified, important implications for research are signalled. Trends in the RBV literature are pushing all those interested in strategy towards studies of intellectual capital, learning processes and organizational adaptability. Researchers in HRM could, if they wished, play a centralroleinthesedevelopmentsbecausequestionsofhowtoattract,motivateanddevelop workerswithcriticalandscarceabilities,anddevelopeffectiveprocessesofworkorganization, mustbefundamentaltoanymodelofknowledge-basedcompetition.Greaterprogresswillbe madewhenorganizationsarestudiedinamuchmoreinterdisciplinaryorsystemicway.

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