Human Resource Management and Performance: Still Searching for Some Answers David E. Guest,
doi: 10.1111/j.1748-8583.2010.00164.x
Human resource management and performance: still searching for some answers
David E. Guest, King’s College, London
Human Resource Management Journal, Vol 21, no 1, 2011, pages 3–13
Over the past 20 years, there has been a considerable expansion in theory and research about human resource management and performance. This paper reviews progress by identifying a series of phases in the development of relevant theory and research. It then sets out a number of challenges for the future on issues of theory, management processes and research methodology. The main conclusion from the review is that after over two decades of extensive research, we are still unable to answer core questions about the relationship between human resource management and performance. This is largely attributed to the limited amount of research that is longitudinal and has been able to address the linkages between HRM and performance and to study the management of HR implementation. Contact: David E. Guest, Department of Management, King’s College, London, 150 Stamford
Street, London SE1 9NH, UK. Email: david.guest@kcl.ac.uk hrmj_164 3..13
INTRODUCTION
W
hen the Human Resource Management Journal was launched in 1990, it was able to capture a rising wave of interest in human resource management and in particular the relationship between human resource management (HRM) and performance. The following decade provided the initial sound evidence about a positive association between HRM and firm performance (see, e.g. Arthur, 1994; Huselid, 1995;
Delery and Doty, 1996). A decade later, the number of studies had grown to such an extent that two major reviews of the research (Boselie et al., 2005; Combs et al., 2006) confirmed that the large majority of published studies demonstrated an association between HRM and performance; but both also emphasised that their analysis provided evidence of an association rather than causation.
Human resource management and performance: still searching for some answers
David E. Guest, King’s College, London
Human Resource Management Journal, Vol 21, no 1, 2011, pages 3–13
Over the past 20 years, there has been a considerable expansion in theory and research about human resource management and performance. This paper reviews progress by identifying a series of phases in the development of relevant theory and research. It then sets out a number of challenges for the future on issues of theory, management processes and research methodology. The main conclusion from the review is that after over two decades of extensive research, we are still unable to answer core questions about the relationship between human resource management and performance. This is largely attributed to the limited amount of research that is longitudinal and has been able to address the linkages between HRM and performance and to study the management of HR implementation. Contact: David E. Guest, Department of Management, King’s College, London, 150 Stamford
Street, London SE1 9NH, UK. Email: david.guest@kcl.ac.uk hrmj_164 3..13
INTRODUCTION
W
hen the Human Resource Management Journal was launched in 1990, it was able to capture a rising wave of interest in human resource management and in particular the relationship between human resource management (HRM) and performance. The following decade provided the initial sound evidence about a positive association between HRM and firm performance (see, e.g. Arthur, 1994; Huselid, 1995;
Delery and Doty, 1996). A decade later, the number of studies had grown to such an extent that two major reviews of the research (Boselie et al., 2005; Combs et al., 2006) confirmed that the large majority of published studies demonstrated an association between HRM and performance; but both also emphasised that their analysis provided evidence of an association rather than causation.
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