Articles from Lecture 1: The black-box debate
1. Jiang, K., Lepak, D., Hu, J. & Baer, J. (2012). How does human resource management influence
organizational outcomes? A meta-analytic investigation of mediating mechanisms.
Drawing on the AMO model, this meta-analysis examined the effects of three dimensions of HR
systems—skills-enhancing, motivation-enhancing, and opportunity-enhancing—on proximal
organizational outcomes (human capital and motivation) and distal organizational outcomes
(voluntary turnover, operational outcomes, and financial outcomes).
Traditional HRM research has focused on the impact of individual HR practices, the strategic
perspective on HRM research emphasizes bundles of HR practices, often referred to as HPWS, high-
involvement work systems, and high-commitment work systems, in examinations of the effects of
HRM on employee and organizational outcomes.
Becker and Huselid (1998) considered the relationship between HEM and organizational outcomes as
one of the essential pursuits of strategic HRM research. Drawing on Dyer and Reeves's (1995) work,
researchers in strategic HRM have categorized organizational outcomes into three primary groups
related to HRM:
HR outcomes refer to those most directly related to HRM in an organization, such as
employee skills and abilities, employee attitudes and behaviours, and turnover.
Operational outcomes are those related to the goals of an organizational operation, including
productivity, product quality, quality of service, and innovation.
Financial outcomes reflect the fulfilment of the economic goals of organizations.
Theories used:
The behavioural perspective on HRM: According to this perspective, organizations do not perform
themselves, but instead use HR practices to encourage productive behaviours from employees and
thus to achieve desirable operational and financial objectives.
Human capital theory: Emphasizes that human capital—the composition of employee skills,
knowledge, and abilities—is a central driver of organizational performance when the return on
investment in human capital exceeds labour costs.
The resource-based view (RBV) of the firm: Provides insights as to why human capital can help firms
to outpace competitors and proposes that organizations obtain a competitive advantage from
resources that are rare, valuable, inimitable, and non-substitutable (unique).
AMO model of HRM and suggested that employee performance is a function of three essential
components: ability, motivation, and opportunity to perform. HR systems designed to maximize
employee performance can be viewed as a composition of three dimensions intended to enhance
employee skills, motivation, and opportunity to contribute, respectively.
Lepak and colleagues (2006) suggested that HR practices have three primary dimensions:
1. Skill enhancing HR practices are designed to ensure appropriately skilled employees; they
include comprehensive recruitment, rigorous selection, and extensive training.
2. Motivation-enhancing HR practices are implemented to enhance employee motivation
(developmental performance management, competitive compensation, incentives and
rewards, extensive benefits, promotion and career development, and job security).
3. Opportunity-enhancing HR practices are designed to empower employees to use their skills
and motivation to achieve organizational objectives. Practices such as flexible job design,
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1. Jiang, K., Lepak, D., Hu, J. & Baer, J. (2012). How does human resource management influence
organizational outcomes? A meta-analytic investigation of mediating mechanisms.
Drawing on the AMO model, this meta-analysis examined the effects of three dimensions of HR
systems—skills-enhancing, motivation-enhancing, and opportunity-enhancing—on proximal
organizational outcomes (human capital and motivation) and distal organizational outcomes
(voluntary turnover, operational outcomes, and financial outcomes).
Traditional HRM research has focused on the impact of individual HR practices, the strategic
perspective on HRM research emphasizes bundles of HR practices, often referred to as HPWS, high-
involvement work systems, and high-commitment work systems, in examinations of the effects of
HRM on employee and organizational outcomes.
Becker and Huselid (1998) considered the relationship between HEM and organizational outcomes as
one of the essential pursuits of strategic HRM research. Drawing on Dyer and Reeves's (1995) work,
researchers in strategic HRM have categorized organizational outcomes into three primary groups
related to HRM:
HR outcomes refer to those most directly related to HRM in an organization, such as
employee skills and abilities, employee attitudes and behaviours, and turnover.
Operational outcomes are those related to the goals of an organizational operation, including
productivity, product quality, quality of service, and innovation.
Financial outcomes reflect the fulfilment of the economic goals of organizations.
Theories used:
The behavioural perspective on HRM: According to this perspective, organizations do not perform
themselves, but instead use HR practices to encourage productive behaviours from employees and
thus to achieve desirable operational and financial objectives.
Human capital theory: Emphasizes that human capital—the composition of employee skills,
knowledge, and abilities—is a central driver of organizational performance when the return on
investment in human capital exceeds labour costs.
The resource-based view (RBV) of the firm: Provides insights as to why human capital can help firms
to outpace competitors and proposes that organizations obtain a competitive advantage from
resources that are rare, valuable, inimitable, and non-substitutable (unique).
AMO model of HRM and suggested that employee performance is a function of three essential
components: ability, motivation, and opportunity to perform. HR systems designed to maximize
employee performance can be viewed as a composition of three dimensions intended to enhance
employee skills, motivation, and opportunity to contribute, respectively.
Lepak and colleagues (2006) suggested that HR practices have three primary dimensions:
1. Skill enhancing HR practices are designed to ensure appropriately skilled employees; they
include comprehensive recruitment, rigorous selection, and extensive training.
2. Motivation-enhancing HR practices are implemented to enhance employee motivation
(developmental performance management, competitive compensation, incentives and
rewards, extensive benefits, promotion and career development, and job security).
3. Opportunity-enhancing HR practices are designed to empower employees to use their skills
and motivation to achieve organizational objectives. Practices such as flexible job design,
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