Evidence Based HRM

Evidence based HRM: What (do) we know about people in workplaces? is an authoritative, practical text on using scientific and local evidence for doing Human Resource Management. It explains how making informed decisions about people in workplaces will benefit organizational performance, assure fit with the organizational context, as well as benefit employee wellbeing. The book provides a quick reference to the core theories and the key research evidence that inform present day HRM knowledge.

Students like the book, because it:

- Supports them in ‘doing HRM’ in a thorough but hands-on manner. The text provides a workflow for the diagnosis of HRM issues in organizations. Many MBA-, HRM-, employment relations- and management students at (advanced) undergraduate and - Master’s level used the book to advise organizations about a diverse range of personnel related issues
- Raises awareness about stakeholder interests (employees, finance, customers, management, industry) in HRM issues
- Provides them with an overview of relevant HRM theories and a quick reference to the research evidence for these theories. The book learns them to evaluate the research evidence for HRM interventions.
- Provides practical cases and study questions to help understand and apply evidence based HRM
- Learns them to reflect critically on the nature of personnel problems and on information needed before jumping to a solution.
- It shows them that with some effort, the gap between science and practice can be bridged.

Outline of the book:

The aim of the book is to provide an introduction into to the core theories that inform human resource management (HRM) research, in order to facilitate the understanding of contemporary research evidence for effective human resource management activities

Part 1 – Evidence Based HRM describes the problem of bounded rationality of management decisions, and provides a decision making flowchart for dealing with bounded rationality using different types of evidence from research and practice before designing an HRM policy, practice or intervention.

Part 2 – The business case for HRM includes chapters on HRM and performance (e.g. the RBV, human capital, social capital and social exchange theory, employee performance); on Knowledge management (individual and organizational knowledge and learning, and knowledge storage and retrieval); and on Performance under conditions of change (e.g. planned change and dynamic capabilities theory, and consequences of change for careers).

Part 3 – HRM in context explores labor market and psychological theories related to staffing in the chapter War for talent (e.g. transaction costs and the ILM, psychological contracts); how employees exert influence over HRM in the chapter The power of workers (industrial relations and employee involvement theories).The chapter Diversity and inclusion describes the moral, legal and psychological perspectives on diversity management.

Part 4 – The employee perspective introduces the topic Decent work, the contribution of HRM to worker’s potential to live a physically, mentally and socially healthy life, building on stress theories and ethical HRM.

The structure of each chapter is the same: First an overview of the key theories, then an overview of the research evidence for these theories, and finally a selection of effective HR practices that align with the theories and their research evidence.

Each part concludes with a case study and study questions that refer back to the theories of the chapters. This helps in understanding the practical relevance of HRM theory.