South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
Understanding employees’ attitude towards the practice of exclusive talent management (ETM) has become increasingly important for ethical concerns. Despite its significant importance, this study is one of its kind, which first aims to examine the positive and negative attitude arising from the practice of ETM and also checks for the difference between the talented and non-talented employees. Based on social exchange and signalling theories, past studies have conceptually proposed that there may exist a difference in talented and non-talented employees because of their perception of justice and support, as this practice follows workforce discrimination in the organisation. Second, this article also aims to analyse how perceived justice and perceived support affect the attitude of employees towards ETM practices. Data was collected through the questionnaire method by applying convenience sampling technique, and responses of 735 employees were collected across 15 luxury hotels in New Delhi. Structural equation modelling and mediation analysis were conducted in AMOS to test various relationships. The findings suggest that ETM practices significantly affect both positive and negative attitude of employees. Also, talented employees perceive higher levels of positive attitude than non-talented employees, whereas no significant difference was found in their perception of negative attitude. Further, it was proposed that the differences in the attitude of the employees are because of their perception of justice and support towards ETM practices. It was found that perceived justice mediates the relationship of ETM with both positive and negative attitudes, but perceived support only mediates the relationship of ETM practices and the negative attitude.
Category Archives: South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management
People Analytics Enabling HR Strategic Partnership: A Review
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
For more than two decades, academicians and practitioners have been theorising the role of people analytics in enhancing the efficiency, effectiveness and impact of the human resource (HR) management function, thereby prescribing people analytics as an enabler of HR strategic partnership. The objective of this study is to identify and synthesise existing literature on people analytics and its conceptualised efficacy. This is done with a view to assess how and why people analytics enhances HR as a field and elevates it to a function of strategic significance. The study uses the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) framework for systematic literature review to address the research objective. A total of 90 articles on the subject are identified majorly from Scopus. The analysis of this literature reveals four significant themes underscoring the role people analytics can play in enabling HR as a field and function. These include the following: (a) application of people analytics leads to greater vertical, horizontal and external alignment of the HR function; (b) people analytics facilitates better integration of HR management with the organisation’s strategic planning process; (c) people analytics aids the demonstration of causal links between HR management and business performance; and finally (d) people analytics endows the field with scientific rigour, consistency and resulting credibility. The study contributes to the existing knowledge on people analytics and HR strategy linkage by building a foundation and offering specific propositions for empirical enquiry relating the two. The significance of the study also emanates from its focus on the efficacy of people analytics which is being viewed as an HR approach with immense potential.
For more than two decades, academicians and practitioners have been theorising the role of people analytics in enhancing the efficiency, effectiveness and impact of the human resource (HR) management function, thereby prescribing people analytics as an enabler of HR strategic partnership. The objective of this study is to identify and synthesise existing literature on people analytics and its conceptualised efficacy. This is done with a view to assess how and why people analytics enhances HR as a field and elevates it to a function of strategic significance. The study uses the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) framework for systematic literature review to address the research objective. A total of 90 articles on the subject are identified majorly from Scopus. The analysis of this literature reveals four significant themes underscoring the role people analytics can play in enabling HR as a field and function. These include the following: (a) application of people analytics leads to greater vertical, horizontal and external alignment of the HR function; (b) people analytics facilitates better integration of HR management with the organisation’s strategic planning process; (c) people analytics aids the demonstration of causal links between HR management and business performance; and finally (d) people analytics endows the field with scientific rigour, consistency and resulting credibility. The study contributes to the existing knowledge on people analytics and HR strategy linkage by building a foundation and offering specific propositions for empirical enquiry relating the two. The significance of the study also emanates from its focus on the efficacy of people analytics which is being viewed as an HR approach with immense potential.
Exploring an HR Practitioner’s Perspective on Human Capital Development and Its Evolvement in the COVID-19 Context
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance Company Limited ((in short, Kotak Life) is one of India’s fastest-growing insurance companies in India. It is well regarded as a reputed, admired and sustainable company that believes in and practices the value of being ‘people-friendly’. Hence, the company invests significant time, effort and money in developing its employees. In this interview, we explore an HR practitioner’s perspective on human capital development and its evolvement in the COVID-19 context in India. Specifically, we interviewed the Senior Vice President Human Resources and Head Organisation Capability and Development and, DE&I of Kotak Life to understand the human capital development process at Kotak Life Insurance. Given that this interview was conducted during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India, we also explored how the human capital development process was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and, thus, appropriately modified through the medium of digitalisation.
Kotak Mahindra Life Insurance Company Limited ((in short, Kotak Life) is one of India’s fastest-growing insurance companies in India. It is well regarded as a reputed, admired and sustainable company that believes in and practices the value of being ‘people-friendly’. Hence, the company invests significant time, effort and money in developing its employees. In this interview, we explore an HR practitioner’s perspective on human capital development and its evolvement in the COVID-19 context in India. Specifically, we interviewed the Senior Vice President Human Resources and Head Organisation Capability and Development and, DE&I of Kotak Life to understand the human capital development process at Kotak Life Insurance. Given that this interview was conducted during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in India, we also explored how the human capital development process was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and, thus, appropriately modified through the medium of digitalisation.
How Ambidextrous Human Resource System Affect Employee Creativity? A Study in the Pakistani Context
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Volume 10, Issue 1, Page 36-63, June 2023.
Strategic human resource management scholars have devoted substantial research to determine the relationship between human resource management (HRM) and creativity. It has focused primarily on HRM architecture at the macro level: exploring the effect of the HRM system on performance related to capacity building, skills and competencies. In framing that HRM architecture, this macro focus informs organisations about how to promote creativity. However, literature on how a creativity-targeted HRM system, for instance, the ambidextrous HR system, influences employees’ perceptions and experiences to be more creative at the individual level is still limited. The multilevel perspective on how the HRM system can potentially promote the creativity of employees is still limited. The multilevel data from 100 HR heads and 400 faculty employees of public and private sector universities show that the top-down effect of the ambidextrous HR system on employee creativity is partially mediated by ambidextrous learning and organisation-based self-esteem. Based on the findings, the study offers practical and theoretical implications.
Strategic human resource management scholars have devoted substantial research to determine the relationship between human resource management (HRM) and creativity. It has focused primarily on HRM architecture at the macro level: exploring the effect of the HRM system on performance related to capacity building, skills and competencies. In framing that HRM architecture, this macro focus informs organisations about how to promote creativity. However, literature on how a creativity-targeted HRM system, for instance, the ambidextrous HR system, influences employees’ perceptions and experiences to be more creative at the individual level is still limited. The multilevel perspective on how the HRM system can potentially promote the creativity of employees is still limited. The multilevel data from 100 HR heads and 400 faculty employees of public and private sector universities show that the top-down effect of the ambidextrous HR system on employee creativity is partially mediated by ambidextrous learning and organisation-based self-esteem. Based on the findings, the study offers practical and theoretical implications.
Career Satisfaction in Maximising Professionals of Indian IT Industry: Mediating Roles of Contrasting Responses Based on Counterfactual Reasoning
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
This study conceptualises career maximisation and its consequences in the Indian Information Technology (IT) workforce, a globally significant non-Western talent pool. It examined how maximising tendency in career decision-making (MT-CD) mediated career satisfaction through two contrasting responses based on counterfactual reasoning―career regret (dysfunctional) and career adaptability (functional). The study comprised of two parts. In Study 1, scales for MT-CD and career regret were developed and initially validated using a 172 respondents’ dataset. In Study 2, data from 434 respondents were analysed for psychometric evaluation and further validation of scales along with determining hypothesised relationships. Two dimensions of MT-CD were identified―‘state of internal career ambiguity’ and ‘striving for career excellence’. Both attributes produced career regret (an aggregated measure of ‘corporate regrets’, ‘career choice regrets’ and ‘developmental regrets’ dimensions), decreasing career satisfaction. Only ‘striving for career excellence’ led to career adaptability, which subsequently increased career satisfaction. Altogether, career regret competed with career adaptability, supressing its positive indirect effect on maximising ITPs’ career satisfaction. This study expands the current empirical research on career maximisation into non-Western contexts, adding unique knowledge to the Indian IT workforce’s vocational literature.
This study conceptualises career maximisation and its consequences in the Indian Information Technology (IT) workforce, a globally significant non-Western talent pool. It examined how maximising tendency in career decision-making (MT-CD) mediated career satisfaction through two contrasting responses based on counterfactual reasoning―career regret (dysfunctional) and career adaptability (functional). The study comprised of two parts. In Study 1, scales for MT-CD and career regret were developed and initially validated using a 172 respondents’ dataset. In Study 2, data from 434 respondents were analysed for psychometric evaluation and further validation of scales along with determining hypothesised relationships. Two dimensions of MT-CD were identified―‘state of internal career ambiguity’ and ‘striving for career excellence’. Both attributes produced career regret (an aggregated measure of ‘corporate regrets’, ‘career choice regrets’ and ‘developmental regrets’ dimensions), decreasing career satisfaction. Only ‘striving for career excellence’ led to career adaptability, which subsequently increased career satisfaction. Altogether, career regret competed with career adaptability, supressing its positive indirect effect on maximising ITPs’ career satisfaction. This study expands the current empirical research on career maximisation into non-Western contexts, adding unique knowledge to the Indian IT workforce’s vocational literature.
Role of Social Support in Lessening Expatriate Turnover Intention
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
Research has long recognised that employee withdrawal cognition is a critical issue for organisations due to the direct and indirect costs associated with that. Drawing upon social support theory, we examine the influence of three distinct types of support expatriates can receive, that is, organisation, co-workers and partner, on an expatriate’s turnover intention. Furthermore, we investigate if the effects of support types differ depending on the expatriate’s employment status. This study is based upon positivism research philosophy, and the research approach is deductive. Moreover, we used the survey method as the research strategy and used hierarchical linear regression to analyse the data. Results of a time-lagged (two-wave) study of 167 expatriates show that perceived organisational support (POS), co-worker support and partner support are negatively related to expatriates’ turnover intention. Moreover, results show that expatriates’ employment status interacts with POS and co-worker support in predicting turnover intention, implying that social support is more pronounced with expatriates with fewer resources. Thus, the present study enhances our understanding of the effects of different support types on expatriates’ turnover intention and elucidates the role of individual-level boundary conditions. The results of this study emphasize that social support is a stronger predictor of expatriate turnover intent, in particular, individuals with fewer resources. We suggest that managers of the companies should make a serious effort in creating a supportive culture and positive employee relationships.
Research has long recognised that employee withdrawal cognition is a critical issue for organisations due to the direct and indirect costs associated with that. Drawing upon social support theory, we examine the influence of three distinct types of support expatriates can receive, that is, organisation, co-workers and partner, on an expatriate’s turnover intention. Furthermore, we investigate if the effects of support types differ depending on the expatriate’s employment status. This study is based upon positivism research philosophy, and the research approach is deductive. Moreover, we used the survey method as the research strategy and used hierarchical linear regression to analyse the data. Results of a time-lagged (two-wave) study of 167 expatriates show that perceived organisational support (POS), co-worker support and partner support are negatively related to expatriates’ turnover intention. Moreover, results show that expatriates’ employment status interacts with POS and co-worker support in predicting turnover intention, implying that social support is more pronounced with expatriates with fewer resources. Thus, the present study enhances our understanding of the effects of different support types on expatriates’ turnover intention and elucidates the role of individual-level boundary conditions. The results of this study emphasize that social support is a stronger predictor of expatriate turnover intent, in particular, individuals with fewer resources. We suggest that managers of the companies should make a serious effort in creating a supportive culture and positive employee relationships.
Levelling Up Organisational Learning Through Gamification: Based on Evidence from Public Sector Organisations in India
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Volume 10, Issue 1, Page 64-84, June 2023.
The concept of sustainability brought into focus the need for research into how to measure and achieve sustainable growth. The triple bottom line framework and the resource-based view of the firm suggest the need for organisations to look beyond profits and take into consideration the needs and effectiveness of its workforce. Research suggests that an effective workforce can be achieved through constant learning and development. Organisations have also expressed the need for training techniques that are more effective than the traditional methods. Gamification has been proposed as one such technique, and in the current study, the researchers evaluate the effectiveness of gamification in organisational training. For the purpose of the current study, 120 participants were chosen from public sector organisations in India. This is primarily because the technology-enhanced training effectiveness model (TETEM) suggests that the effectiveness of gamification would depend on the culture of the organisation, and prior research has been based in privately owned firms. The findings are in line with the theory of gamified learning and suggest that participants of the gamified module reported higher levels of learning, reaction and learner motivation. Additionally, learner motivation was found to strengthen the impact of gamification on the learning and reaction.
The concept of sustainability brought into focus the need for research into how to measure and achieve sustainable growth. The triple bottom line framework and the resource-based view of the firm suggest the need for organisations to look beyond profits and take into consideration the needs and effectiveness of its workforce. Research suggests that an effective workforce can be achieved through constant learning and development. Organisations have also expressed the need for training techniques that are more effective than the traditional methods. Gamification has been proposed as one such technique, and in the current study, the researchers evaluate the effectiveness of gamification in organisational training. For the purpose of the current study, 120 participants were chosen from public sector organisations in India. This is primarily because the technology-enhanced training effectiveness model (TETEM) suggests that the effectiveness of gamification would depend on the culture of the organisation, and prior research has been based in privately owned firms. The findings are in line with the theory of gamified learning and suggest that participants of the gamified module reported higher levels of learning, reaction and learner motivation. Additionally, learner motivation was found to strengthen the impact of gamification on the learning and reaction.
How Fair Is My Job? The Effects of Organisational Justice on Job Involvement among Indian IT Workers during COVID-19
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
Organisational justice has attained considerable attention due to work-related uncertainties induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the uncertainty management theory of fairness at work, social exchange theory and norm reciprocity theory, this article investigates the mediating effects of work-related quality of life and job embeddedness on the relationship between organisational justice and job involvement during COVID-19. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire from five IT companies in India. Hayes’ PROCESS macro was used to test the parallel mediation effect in our study. The findings indicate that work-related quality of life and job embeddedness fully mediate the association between organisational justice and job involvement, and the point estimate of the differences between the two mediators confirms that work-related quality of life and job embeddedness are no different from each other, and they mediate the relationship between organisational justice and job involvement in parallel manner. The study highlights benefit that organisations may achieve from devising policies that capitalise on organisational fairness and facilitate working factors for better employee performance amid uncertain situations and shock events such as the current pandemic. The article also discusses other managerial implications to overcome the unwanted effects of employees’ work life uncertainties.
Organisational justice has attained considerable attention due to work-related uncertainties induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. Using the uncertainty management theory of fairness at work, social exchange theory and norm reciprocity theory, this article investigates the mediating effects of work-related quality of life and job embeddedness on the relationship between organisational justice and job involvement during COVID-19. Data were collected through a survey questionnaire from five IT companies in India. Hayes’ PROCESS macro was used to test the parallel mediation effect in our study. The findings indicate that work-related quality of life and job embeddedness fully mediate the association between organisational justice and job involvement, and the point estimate of the differences between the two mediators confirms that work-related quality of life and job embeddedness are no different from each other, and they mediate the relationship between organisational justice and job involvement in parallel manner. The study highlights benefit that organisations may achieve from devising policies that capitalise on organisational fairness and facilitate working factors for better employee performance amid uncertain situations and shock events such as the current pandemic. The article also discusses other managerial implications to overcome the unwanted effects of employees’ work life uncertainties.
Employee Gratitude: A Win-Win for the Employer and the Employee
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Ahead of Print.
Stress causes serious illnesses and damages employee well-being. The mutual gains human resource management (HRM) framework places HRM practices as the custodian of employee well-being in an organisation. This study presents a mutual gains HRM framework which has three components. First, employees can perceive that their organisation enacts HRM practices from two benevolent intentions (a) to help employees perform better and b) to improve their well-being. Second, these benevolent HRM attributions invoke gratitude among employees. Third, gratitude reduces employees’ perceived stress and improves their engagement levels. Fourth, gratitude mediates the relationship between both benevolent HRM attributions, employee stress and engagement levels. Purposive sampling technique was deployed for the collection of data using structured questionnaire from 294 respondents, working in the telecommunications sector of Pakistan. Measurement and structural model validity were tested through structural equation modelling (SEM) using Mplus 7.0. The findings confirmed theoretical connotations among the constructs. The study contributes to the literature by introducing a new HRM framework mediated by gratitude to reduce employee stress levels and improve their engagement.
Stress causes serious illnesses and damages employee well-being. The mutual gains human resource management (HRM) framework places HRM practices as the custodian of employee well-being in an organisation. This study presents a mutual gains HRM framework which has three components. First, employees can perceive that their organisation enacts HRM practices from two benevolent intentions (a) to help employees perform better and b) to improve their well-being. Second, these benevolent HRM attributions invoke gratitude among employees. Third, gratitude reduces employees’ perceived stress and improves their engagement levels. Fourth, gratitude mediates the relationship between both benevolent HRM attributions, employee stress and engagement levels. Purposive sampling technique was deployed for the collection of data using structured questionnaire from 294 respondents, working in the telecommunications sector of Pakistan. Measurement and structural model validity were tested through structural equation modelling (SEM) using Mplus 7.0. The findings confirmed theoretical connotations among the constructs. The study contributes to the literature by introducing a new HRM framework mediated by gratitude to reduce employee stress levels and improve their engagement.
Unfolding the Dimensions of HRD Activities in Pakistan: An Interview with Mr Jawaid Iqbal (CEO, Board of Director and Chairman)
South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management, Volume 10, Issue 1, Page 163-170, June 2023.
Human Resource Development (HRD) is a source of competitive advantage and a fundamental approach to achieve organisational objectives. Considering the lack of empirical pieces of evidence. A need was felt to unfold and understand the HRD dimensions adopted by the Pakistani organisations. An interview-based methodology was opted to obtain the required information. The interview’s key themes involved HRD; needs, strategies, role in managing workforce diversity, organisational development initiatives and concern for technology. The interview’s core purpose remained limited to unfold the HRD activities in line with the identified themes. The interview was concluded with challenges, future roles, and recommendations and competencies for HRD professionals in Pakistan with broader and generalised implications to the South Asian region.
Human Resource Development (HRD) is a source of competitive advantage and a fundamental approach to achieve organisational objectives. Considering the lack of empirical pieces of evidence. A need was felt to unfold and understand the HRD dimensions adopted by the Pakistani organisations. An interview-based methodology was opted to obtain the required information. The interview’s key themes involved HRD; needs, strategies, role in managing workforce diversity, organisational development initiatives and concern for technology. The interview’s core purpose remained limited to unfold the HRD activities in line with the identified themes. The interview was concluded with challenges, future roles, and recommendations and competencies for HRD professionals in Pakistan with broader and generalised implications to the South Asian region.