This paper introduces a radically different conceptualization of human capital resources that runs counter to the individual-level approaches that have dominated human capital theory for the last 50 ...years. We leverage insights from economics, strategy, human resources, and psychology to develop an integrated and holistic framework that defines the structure, function, levels, and combinations of human capital resources. This multidisciplinary framework redefines human capital resources as individual or unit-level capacities based on individual knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) that are accessible for unit-relevant purposes. The framework and definition offer three broad contributions. First, multidisciplinary communication is facilitated by providing precise definitions and distinctions between individual differences, KSAOs, human capital, human capital resources, and strategic human capital resources. Second, given that human capital resources originate in individuals’ KSAOs, multiple distinct types of human capital resources exist at individual and collective levels, and these types are much more diverse than the historical generic-specific distinction. Third, the multiple types of human capital resources may be combined within and across levels, via processes of emergence and complementarity. Consequently, the locus of competitive advantage has less to do with whether human capital resources are generic or specific but instead occurs because nearly all human capital resource combinations are complex, are firm-specific, and lack strategic (or efficient) factor markets. Overall, the proposed multidisciplinary framework opens new avenues for future research that challenge the prevailing literature’s treatment of human capital resources.
The Journal of Management editorial team challenged us to consider how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted and altered the employer–employee relationship. In this guest editorial, we take stock of the ...pandemic-related lessons learned for human resources research and practice. We highlight three insights that many organizations made as the result of pandemic-related changes and describe how these lessons are likely to alter the employee–employer landscape for the foreseeable future. The lessons are (a) understanding that organizational communication practices should be authentic, continuous, and two-way in nature; (b) accepting that the virtual workforce brings unique challenges that do not yet have solutions; and (c) recognizing that success for stakeholders beyond just investors will require continual attention and intention. We also highlight needs and opportunities for future research that will inform theory and practice and lead to the betterment of organizations and society.
The impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID‐19) pandemic is unprecedented. At an organisational level, the crisis has been hugely disruptive, complex and fraught with ambiguity for leaders. The ...crisis is fundamentally a human one, making human resource (HR) leaders central in enabling organisations to manage through and ultimately exit the crisis successfully. We apply a paradox lens to understand the HR leadership challenges posed by the COVID‐19 crisis. We argue that how the HR function responds to the challenges of the crisis and its role in mapping the exit route from the crisis are likely to shape the trajectory of the function for decades to come. The pandemic creates an unprecedented opportunity to elevate the status of the HR function in organisations where it has struggled to gain status and to reinforce the influence of the function in those where it already enjoys legitimacy. The value of this is likely to be reflected in more sustainable performance through the alignment of people and purpose and balancing the short and long term objectives of the organisation.
We develop a theory of collective turnover that emphasizes its microfoundation origins and unit-level consequences. Collective turnover is the quantity and quality of depletion of employee knowledge, ...skills, abilities, and other characteristics (KSAOs) from the unit, meaning that it is the collective loss of unit KSAOs. We ground our theory of collective turnover within the nomological network of human capital resources and resource-based theory. We then use this framework to examine the dynamic relationships between collective turnover and human capital resources and their effects on unit performance. We also describe the moderating impact of context (climate and environmental complexity) and time. Thus, we present context-emergent turnover (CET) theory.
The authors examined relationships among collective efficacy, group potency, and group performance. Meta-analytic results (based on 6,128 groups, 31,019 individuals, 118 correlations adjusted for ...dependence, and 96 studies) reveal that collective efficacy was significantly related to group performance (.35). In the proposed nested 2-level model, collective efficacy assessment (aggregation and group discussion) was tested as the 1st-level moderator. It showed significantly different average correlations with group performance (.32 vs. .45), but the group discussion assessment was homogeneous, whereas the aggregation assessment was heterogeneous. Consequently, there was no 2nd-level moderation for the group discussion, and heterogeneity in the aggregation group was accounted for by the 2nd-level moderator, task interdependence (high, moderate, and low levels were significant; the higher the level, the stronger the relationship). The 2nd and 3rd meta-analyses indicated that group potency was related to group performance (.29) and to collective efficacy (.65). When tested in a structural equation modeling analysis based on meta-analytic findings, collective efficacy fully mediated the relationship between group potency and group performance. The authors suggest future research and convert their findings to a probability of success index to help facilitate practice.
The value of human capital resources (HCR) is widely recognized, but relatively little is known about their creation. Research conceptualizes HCR emergence as enabled through shared states that form ...in response to environmental conditions. Although this view implies that social interactions play a role in creating HCR, theory currently fails to clarify how social interactions act as key facilitators of the emergence process. This limitation persists partly because the structure and content of the social interactions are unaccounted for, making it impossible to fully understand and predict when HCR will be generated through the HCR emergence process. To address this deficiency, we draw from social capital literature to develop HCR emergence theory. This theory brings needed precision to theoretical perspectives on HCR emergence by proposing how unique features of social interactions influence the creation of HCR through the emergence process.
Although both downsizing and voluntary turnover have been topics of great interest in the organizational literature, little research addresses the topics' possible relationship. Using ...organization-level data from multiple industries, we first investigate whether downsizing predicts voluntary turnover rates. Second, to support our causal model, we examine whether aggregated levels of organizational commitment mediate this relationship. Third, we test whether the downsizing--turnover rate relationship is (1) mitigated by HR practices that either embed employees in their organization or convey procedural fairness and (2) strengthened by HR practices that enhance career development. Results support the hypothesized main, mediated, and moderated effects.
Meta-analytic results show that board gender diversity is modestly associated with firm performance, but there is notable heterogeneity among findings. Board gender diversity allows access to women’s ...perspectives, potentially helping boards, but diversity can also trigger biases that exclude women directors, such that boards do not integrate meaningful perspectives. Addressing this problem, we leverage the categorization-elaboration model, contact theory, and critical mass theory to build new theory as to how men directors can serve as allies to women directors to better leverage diverse perspectives. We empirically test how considerations that reduce out-group categorization and bias against women moderate the board gender diversity-firm performance relationship. Our results show that gender diverse boards perform better with more formal contact among men and women director colleagues, and that gender diverse boards with more men directors who only have prior experience working with token-women, perform worse. Our work helps explain how and why board gender diversity can improve or detract from firm performance. This extends the literature by illustrating the important consequences that occur when firms do (or do not) have men directors who are likely to be allies of gender diversity.
Scholarly interest in leveraging resource-based theory to explore the unit-level human capital resource (HCR) is undergoing a paradigmatic shift in the strategy and strategic human resource ...management (HRM) literatures. As they undertake this next generation of research, scholars will be informed by a rigorous examination of prior unit-level HCR research. To this end, we present a systematic and multidisciplinary review of scholarship that invokes resource-based theorizing in examining the unit’s HCR. We reviewed 156 articles published in the strategy and strategic HRM literatures that conceptualize HC as a unit-level resource. This review suggests that a multidimensional typology of the unit-level HCR has emerged. In particular, research has examined the HCR’s type, context, and antecedents. We build on our review of this multidimensional typology to propose a multilevel conceptual integration of current and future unit-level HCR research in the strategy and strategic HRM domains. Current scholarly work in these two areas suggests that these two literatures are converging, and the multidimensional HCR typology suggested by our review informs this convergence. We conclude with a discussion of future research domains that will advance the multilevel theoretical integration we propose.
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