What knowledge, skills and attitudes should strategic HRM students acquire? A Delphi study

Much work has been done to identify competencies that HR practitioners need for a strategic HR role. However, little attention has been paid to the knowledge, skills and attitudes (KSAs) required of graduates entering the strategic HRM (SHRM) field. This study focuses on this area of neglect by employing the Delphi method to address the question: What core KSAs should SHRM students acquire? Three sequential questionnaires were administered to elicit opinions of leading academics and senior HR practitioners on KSAs that are important and to build consensus on the core KSAs. These provide a framework to inform the design of curricula for undergraduate and postgraduate SHRM units that, with further workplace learning, will assist aspiring practitioners develop the KSAs to enact strategic HR roles.

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