Chapter 1. Introduction: Issues in Analysing the Progress and Prospects of Theory and Research on Human Resource Management and Performance. (David Guest, Jaap Paauwe and Patrick Wright).

This chapter will analyse the emergence of HRM and performance in academic circles and as a policy issue for companies and at the national level. It will review key elements of progress in the theory and in the research and highlight the key debates. It will set out the aims, rationale, structure and key themes of the book..

Chapter 2. Human Resource Management in Its Context: An Institutional Perspective. (Jaap Paauwe and Paul Boselie).

This chapter will explore the ways in which and the extent to which context and in particular the national institutional context shapes human resource policy and practice and in turn shapes the scope for firms to gain competitive advantage by leveraging the link the between HRM and performance. It will focus in particular on the distinctive context of Europe, on the role of legislation and on the implications of more or less constrained environments. In doing so, it will address some comparative issues in the application of HRM..

Chapter 3. Business Strategy and Human Resource Management: Uneasy Bedfellows or Strategic Partners? (John Purcell).

Theory and research on HRM and performance has drawn heavily on the broader field of business strategy. There has been an extensive body of work exploring the relationship between business strategy and human resource strategy and the factors that might influence both. There has also been a strong stream of research exploring the relationship between various aspects of the strategic fit of HRM and its link to performance. This chapter will review the conceptual issues, highlight the research evidence and identify the key research challenges..

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Chapter 4. Strategic Human Resource Management and Organizational Behaviour: Exploring Variance as an Integrating Framework (Patrick Wright and De Niishi).

A second source of many of the ideas about the relationship between HRM and performance can be found in organizational behaviour. Operating at the individual and group level, this poses a different set of questions about the relationship between HRM and performance. In particular, it highlights employee attitudes and behaviour and some of the reasons why these may differ both across and within organizations. This chapter will review this perspective and the insights it provides on the HRM – performance relationship..

Chapter 5. An Assessment of Progress to Date and Research Priorities for the Future on Human Resource Management and Performance. (David Guest and Riccardo Peccei)..

The previous chapters highlight two core perspectives on HRM and performance. The aim of this chapter is to draw together the evidence across the range of perspectives to review progress in establishing the relationship between HRM and performance and to identify the most convincing arguments about how, why and under what circumstances there may be a link. It will explore what kinds of evidence are more or less convincing, what key gaps exist in our knowledge and draw out some of the implications for research, for policy and for practice..

Chapter 6. The Role of the Human Resource Function in Managing Human Capital, Learning and Performance (Scott Snell and Shad Morris).

There has been much discussion, stimulated in part by the work of Ulrich on Human Resource Champions, about the appropriate role for human resource specialists and the human resource function in managing the relationship between HRM and performance. This chapter outlines a distinctive perspective on the strategic and practical role of the HR function with respect to the development of human capital and supports this perspective with research evidence..

Chapter 7. Critical Perspectives on HRM and Performance: Their Implications for What’s Next for HRM (Anne Keegan)..

The theoretical and research work on HRM and performance has come in for criticism from some quarters. The aim of this chapter is to show how research inspired by what are broadly known as ‘critical management studies’ opens up prospects for innovative forms of research and analysis that draw attention to the broader social, ethical and political significance of current ways of modelling HRM and performance. These critical perspectives are important in balancing the overly managerial and business-focussed modelling of some writing on HRM and promoting a more employee-centred vision of what’s next for HRM.

Chapter 8. Research on Human Resources and Effectiveness: Some Methodological Challenges. (Barry Gerhart).

Research on the relationship between HRM and performance has faced a number of serious methodological challenges that, in the view of some, have undermined the case for the existence of any relationship. This chapter explores these methodological issues, assesses their significance and provides some direction on how they might best be addressed..

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Chapter 9. Conclusions: What’s Next for HRM? Challenges for Future Theory, Research and Practice of Human Resource Management (Jaap Paauwe, Patrick Wright and David Guest).

This chapter will review and integrate the material form the previous chapters and will use it to set out agendas for the development of theory, research and practice as it affects the HRM – performance relationship. It will highlight in particular some of the more challenging questions such as multi-level analysis, international applications and the role of cultural differences, concerns for worker well-being and the challenges of implementation of relevant policy and practice in organizations..

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Each chapter will be between 8,000 and 10,000 words in length with the exception of the first and last chapters which will be somewhat shorter. The overall length will therefore be approximately 75,000 words.