Employee Relations: An International Journal

Stokes, Peter; Adla, Ludivine; Gallego-Roquelaure, Virginie; Defélix, Christian

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-02-2021-487

Al-Ajlouni, Mohammed Iqbal

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-09-2019-0369

Reviewing Human Resource Management (HRM) and innovation literature, an identified gap exists in the mechanism in which the association between HRM and innovation is happen. To respond, the current study has suggested a moderated mediated mechanism to explain the link between HRM, through its new High Performance Work Systems (HPWS) and organisational innovation, as employee engagement mediates the relationship between HPWS and employee creativity. Then later one has subsequent influence on organisational innovation; moreover, the model also considers the moderating role of employee perspective-taking between HPWS and employee engagement.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative-deductive causal method, along with a cross-sectional approach was adopted, and SMEs in Jordan were the focus for the present study, through targeting employees in Research and Development centres. Data were collected through a self-administered questionnaire answered by 272 employees and Structural Equation Modelling using SMART-PLS was used for the statistical analysis.FindingsThe results confirmed that employee engagement fully mediated the relationship between HPWS and employee creativity and accounted for 69.5% of the variance; additionally, perspective-taking as a moderator of the relationship between HPWS and employee engagement was confirmed. Moreover, employee creativity significantly predicted organisational innovation to moderate levels.Originality/valueThe study suggested a unique mechanism for the link between HPWS and organisational innovation, contributing to the suggested gap that could have numerous variables acting as mediators or moderators which require further investigation to explore other possible mechanisms.

Knezović, Emil; Drkić, Amina

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-03-2020-0124

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the determinants of innovative work behavior (IWB) by examining the moderating role of transformational leadership in the context of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).Design/methodology/approachThe study surveyed 371 employees from SMEs in Bosnia and Herzegovina by adopting convenience sampling. Hierarchical regression was used to test the hypotheses.FindingsThe findings supported the authors’ assumptions that IWB determinants such as psychological empowerment, participation in the decision-making process and organizational justice are positively related to IWB. Besides, transformational leadership moderates the relationship between organizational justice and IWB.Research limitations/implicationsThe data for this study was collected by using convenience sampling as well as a cross-sectional survey method, which limits the generalization of results.Practical implicationsTo spur the IWB among the employees in SMEs, an organization has to create an environment where psychological empowerment is high, employees have a chance to participate in the decision-making process and organizational rules and procedures are fair. In the case of organizational justice, the relationship shall be stronger if transformational leadership is present.Originality/valueIn SMEs, transformational leadership plays an important role. To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first study that demonstrates the moderating effect of transformational leadership on the relationship between one specific IWB determinant and IWB.

Hoang, Giang; Wilson-Evered, Elisabeth; Lockstone-Binney, Leonie

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-07-2019-0279

Innovation is ever more critical for sustainable business performance in the contemporary, global economic and social context. Small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are arguably well positioned to innovate through their potential for rapid adjustment. Although leadership and organizational climate have been identified as playing a key role in innovation, little is known about whether such influences play out in SMEs. The aim of this study is to explore how leaders shape the organizational climate of their firms to enhance innovation.Design/methodology/approachThe article presents findings from semi-structured interviews conducted with 20 CEOs of SMEs in the Vietnamese tourism sector.FindingsThe findings indicate that SME leaders in the tourism sector influenced an organizational climate that provided for autonomy and supported innovation through a number of leadership approaches. They also used daily interaction-based practices to drive the innovative behaviors of employees and developed reward systems to encourage innovation in their organizations.Research limitations/implicationsThis study explored leaders' approaches toward developing an organizational climate to stimulate innovation in tourism SMEs. Where leaders share frequent communication and knowledge with their subordinates, they perceive a climate for innovation developments, which stimulates innovation in tourism SMEs.Practical implicationsThe study provides implications for managers to improve creativity and innovation in firms through the development of reward and incentive systems along with leadership and team development programs.Originality/valueThis study describes how different leader approaches affect innovation through orientating the organizational climate and business processes within their firms toward encouraging staff to initiate and try out new ideas.

Bhatti, Sabeen Hussain; Zakariya, Ramsha; Vrontis, Demetris; Santoro, Gabriele; Christofi, Michael

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-10-2019-0403

This article aims to explore the relationship among high performance work systems (HPWS), innovation, and knowledge sharing in project-based organizations.Design/methodology/approachUsing the ability, motivation, and opportunity (AMO) framework under the theory of HPWS, our article hypothesizes that the AMO enhancing practices of project-based organizations lead to better innovation performance of their employees through the mediating role of knowledge sharing. Time-lagged data of AMO practices and knowledge sharing practices were collected from the employees of these organizations over three weeks. Furthermore, the innovation performance data were collected from the supervisors of these employees over an additional three-week period.FindingsOur results confirm the initial hypothesis of the causal relationship of two of the AMO HRM practices, that is, ability and motivation with innovation performance with the mediation of knowledge sharing, while the third hypothesis of opportunity enhancing HRM practice was not accepted.Originality/valueThis research has implications for both theory and practice and it can help the project managers of these organizations to better design HRM practices in order to improve the creativity and innovation performance of their employees. Accordingly, this is one of the first studies dealing with the effectiveness of HRM on AMO, and the key role of knowledge sharing.

Singh, Nishant; Bamel, Umesh; Vohra, Veena

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-04-2020-0150

This study is aimed at examining the mediating effect of meaningful work (MFW) between human resource practices (HRP) i.e. staffing, training, participation, performance-based evaluation, and reward with innovative work behavior (IWB) of Indian small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) employees.Design/methodology/approachThis is a cross-sectional study with data of 199 respondents collected from the Indian SME sector. The mediation path was analyzed using multiple hierarchical regression analysis and processes.FindingsResults of the study indicate that human resource practices, i.e. staffing, training and participatory decision making, are positively related to IWB; MFW mediates the relationships between these human resource practices and IWB. Interestingly, performance-based evaluation and reward are not found to be related positively to IWB in SMEs.Originality/valueThe study adds value to SME literature on how SMEs may promote innovation amongst their employees. In addition, the findings of the present study add to human resource management (HRM) literature regarding practices in Indian SMEs.

Buisson, Marie-Laure; Gastaldi, Lise; Geffroy, Bénédicte; Lonceint, Romain; Krohmer, Cathy

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-04-2020-0176

Innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are key economic actors, but they are fragile. Their innovation trajectory requires an evolution in their competencies as their strategy evolves, and this is a particularly critical concern when they are engaged in both exploration and exploitation activities and want to develop organisational ambidexterity. In turn, this brings challenges for human resource management (HRM): some research studies have identified “mobilising” practices for innovation, but few authors have taken a dynamic approach. This study aims to fill this double-theoretical gap by answering the following two questions: how does HRM respond to the challenges associated with the search for ambidexterity in an innovative SME's trajectory? What HRM practices are mobilised in the innovation trajectory of SMEs?Design/methodology/approachThe authors carried out two longitudinal case studies concerning innovative SMEs in the medical equipment sector, which are now over 10 years old and seeking to stabilise an ambidextrous way of operating. The authors conducted 37 semi-structured interviews in 2018–2019 and collected public and internal documents. For each case, the authors identified sequences (Bidart et al., 2013) displaying a certain homogeneity in terms of innovation strategy. The authors then performed a cross-case analysis.FindingsThese case studies produced two main results. First, the trajectory of innovative SMEs consisted of sequences during which competency needs and HRM practices evolved. Despite their similar modes of ambidexterity, the two SMEs have mobilised different human resource (HR) practices. Second, the HRM practices implemented struggle to support the firm at key turning points in the innovation trajectories and can even hinder such changes in direction.Originality/valueThe originality of this work lies in two major dimensions. First, the authors choose to explore innovation and the search for ambidexterity, two themes that are traditionally studied in large firms, in the setting of SMEs. Second, the authors choose a longitudinal method to explore the evolution over time in modes of ambidexterity and HRM, along these SMEs' innovation trajectory. This is a departure from more traditional approaches seeking to identify which HR practices, or configurations of practices, are best able to foster ambidexterity and innovation. It leads the authors to show, in a contingent, dynamic perspective, the importance of the Human Resources Foundation’s (HRF's) positioning and attitude in supporting diversified SMEs’ innovation trajectories. This requires allocation of the necessary resources to the function, which needs time and resources to reflect on how to build the ambidextrous HRM that is essential for the firm's survival.

Black, Nicholas David

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-03-2020-0120

The purpose of this paper is to understand how micro-sized social enterprises can compensate their employees equitably, despite encountering resource scarcity and prioritising their social mission.Design/methodology/approachThe researcher interviewed the founders of micro-sized social enterprises from around the East Midlands and asked about the innovative human resource (HR) practices they used to compensate their employees. The eight interviews were semi-structured, in-depth and analysed thematically.FindingsThe findings and discussion demonstrate that the founders recognised the importance of compensating their employees equitably, but also acknowledged how paying them according to their contribution conflicted with prioritising their social mission as they never had sufficient resources to do everything. Alternatively, these founders used innovative HR practices to establish transactional relations, which primarily consisted of training, experience and references. This was perceived as equitable, despite paying their employees less than their contribution merited, as it allowed them to improve their future career prospects. These HR practices also benefitted these micro-social enterprises by increasing their human capital without increasing their costs.Originality/valueThe paper could be beneficial for academics and practitioners as it explores how the characteristics associated with being a micro-sized social enterprise impacted their HR practices.

Loufrani-Fedida, Sabrina; Aldebert, Bénédicte

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-04-2020-0173

This paper aims to improve the understanding of competence management in innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through a multilevel approach.Design/methodology/approachThis paper adopts a three-part structure to propose a conceptual and theoretical framework. It first explores the full scope of multilevel approaches to human resource management research, both in theory and in practice. It then reviews the literature on competence management in innovative SMEs, before demonstrating that the topic is a multilevel phenomenon. Finally, it reflects on the research and methodology implications, identifies limitations and provides suggestions for future research.FindingsThis literature review shows that competence management in innovative SMEs is a multilevel phenomenon. It outlines the research and methodology implications, identifies limitations and suggests future research directions.Originality/valueThe overarching contribution is to offer a literature review and a research agenda for a multilevel approach to competence management in the development of innovative SMEs.

Mear, Fred; Werner, Richard A.

2021 Employee Relations: An International Journal

doi: 10.1108/er-03-2020-0141

This paper contributes to the theory of the relationship between human resource management (HRM) and innovation at small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by conducting a conceptual analysis of the question why Germany boasts by far the highest number of “Hidden Champion” SMEs. This is done by case studies from the army and public financial management of aid disbursal in developing countries. Implications for HRM at SMEs are discussed.Design/methodology/approachConceptual analysis using case studies.FindingsContributing towards filling the gap concerning theoretical underpinnings of the link between HRM and innovation, we suggest that interdisciplinary work from relevant organisational case studies indicates that the concept of institutional design to provide motivational incentives may be relevant, especially concerning high performance systems with bundles of HRM practices. Specifically, the fundamental principle of subsidiarity is found to be important.Research limitations/implicationsThe research is broadly applicable to organisations of all kinds, as the diverse case studies indicate. We point towards tentative implications for the firms that account for the majority of the work force, namely SMEs, and among them the most successful ones, the so-called “Hidden Champions”.Practical implicationsHR managers can improve motivation, performance and innovation by decentralising decision-making as far as possible, while ensuring the overall organisational goals are well understood and shared, and resources are dedicated to train and educate staff. Additionally, the conception of rank-order competitions complements the institutional design.Social implicationsGreater productivity and material performance as well as greater job satisfaction via larger autonomy and decision-making power on the local level can be achieved by the application of subsidiarity as key HRM configuration. This can be employed at SMEs, as discussed, but also other organisations. Further, the principle of subsidiarity and the greater emphasis on staff training and education may help reduce inequality.Originality/valueOur paper contributes towards filling the gap in the literature on the link between HRM and innovation, by identifying the role of subsidiarity. We introduce an interdisciplinary perspective, with contributions from economics and psychology, among others. We also contribute to the history of HRM.