Human Resource Management
P_BHRMANA
Minor: Social and Organisational Psychology
FGB, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
2025 - 2026
J.Y.M
, Index
Lecture 1 - Introduction to HRM Week 2 HRM..................................................................... 2
Lecture 2 - SEMCO Week 2 HRM.......................................................................................... 6
Lecture 2.1 - Introducing Semco Week 2 HRM.................................................................... 7
Lecture 2.2 - Semo HR strategy scan Week 2 HRM.......................................................... 10
Lecture 3.1 - HRM and performance Week 3 HRM............................................................ 11
Lecture 3.2 - High Performance Work Systems Week 3................................................... 13
Lecture 4.1 - Metrics and measurement Week 3 HRM...................................................... 16
Lecture 4.2 - Implementation strategy Week 3.................................................................. 20
Lecture 5 - Mutual gains & Occupational health psychology week 4 HRM.................... 22
Lecture 6 - Selective recruitment and selection week 4 HRM..........................................28
Lecture 7 - Performance management & Compensation week 5 HRM........................... 32
Lecture 8 - Human resource roles week 5 HRM................................................................ 39
Lecture 9 - International HRM & Diversity management week 6 HRM............................ 44
Lecture 10 - Talent management & employee participation week 6 HRM.......................49
2
,Lecture 1 - Introduction to HRM Week 2 HRM
Goals:
- Know what (strategic) HRM refers to and be able to describe important areas in the
field of HRM.
- Be able to describe different types of contracts that are a part of the employment
relationship.
- Understand the difference between a best-practice approach and a best-fit approach
to HRM.
- Know what different types of fit we distinguish and understand how they relate to an
organisation’s HR strategy and practices.
What is (strategic) HRM?
HRM: “involves management decisions related to policies and practices that together shape
the employment relationship and are aimed at achieving individual, organisational and
societal goals”
Employment relationship: relationship between employee and their organisation/ employer.
1. Legal contract: Legal rights and obligations both parties have (eg. number of
holidays).
2. Economic/transactional contract: Agreements about the effort and reward (eg. hours
or KPI’s).
3. Psychological contract: All mutual expectations that have not been formally written
down (eg. promotion within a certain amount of time).
4. Sociological contract: All the relationships and networks that an employee has within
the organisation.
Goals:
- Individual goals: Eg. reach a certain level within the organisation or to have a certain
income.
- Organisational goals: Eg. Effectiveness, efficiency, delivering certain products or
services.
- Societal goals: Eg. VU: Developing the new workforce in the Netherlands and
beyond.
SHRM: “in addition pays extra attention to the organisational context”, i.e. the alignment of
HRM (practices) with:
- business strategy: What the business is trying to achieve in the shorter and longer
term.
- external context: Market, legal context, norms and values of the society in which the
organisation operates.
- business systems: How things are auto operated, the systems that an organisation
uses to run.
- each other → how the systems work together and are aligned with each other.
MHRM: Micro HRM → individual policies and practices that an organisation is trying to use
or develop or make decisions about, rather than the whole of all the different policies they
are involved in.
3
, IHRM: International HRM → HRM in an international context.
Example: Organisation that wants to become more diverse:
- HRM: try to design practices and policies and make decisions about that within the
organisation.
- SHRM: focus on the context, look at how it fits with the business strategy, what are
the opponents doing. What are the normative requirements in the context you
operate, what are the expectations of people from outside the organisation. Look at
the systems you have in place and how the policies and practices will fit with that.
- MHRM: focus on an individual HRM practice, for example: training or recruitment.
- IHRM: Questions like, how do we do this in the different countries we operate in.
Types of fit
→ (between practices and context)
Strategic (vertical) fit: fit between HR policies and practices & strategy and the overall
business strategy (market context).
Internal (horizontal) fit: fit between individual HR policies and practice.
- Eg.: How do recruitment policies fit with reward policies?
Organisational fit: fit between HR strategy, policies and practice & other organisational
systems.
- Eg.: IT systems.
Environmental or institutional fit: fit between the HR strategy and with legislation, norms and
management fashions (institutional context).
Best practices versus best fit
Best practice approach: identify the very best way to do things within your organisation.
- You look around and search for the best practices that are possible within an
organisation and implement them into yours.
- Pfeffer’s seven best practices
1. Employment security: Provides a sense of stability for employees, which can
lead to greater engagement and productivity.
2. Selective hiring: Focuses on hiring high-performing individuals to ensure the
quality of the workforce.
3. Self-managed teams and decentralization: Gives teams autonomy in
decision-making, which can improve efficiency and morale.
4. High compensation contingent on performance: Rewards employees based
on the organisation's performance, creating a strong incentive for success.
5. Extensive training: Invests in employees by providing training in relevant
skills, which improves their capabilities and value to the company.
6. Reduced status distinctions: Creates a more egalitarian environment by
minimizing visible differences in status, such as through office arrangements,
dress, and wage differences across levels.
7. Extensive sharing of information: Provides employees with financial and
performance information, fostering a sense of ownership and alignment with
the company's goals.
4
P_BHRMANA
Minor: Social and Organisational Psychology
FGB, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
2025 - 2026
J.Y.M
, Index
Lecture 1 - Introduction to HRM Week 2 HRM..................................................................... 2
Lecture 2 - SEMCO Week 2 HRM.......................................................................................... 6
Lecture 2.1 - Introducing Semco Week 2 HRM.................................................................... 7
Lecture 2.2 - Semo HR strategy scan Week 2 HRM.......................................................... 10
Lecture 3.1 - HRM and performance Week 3 HRM............................................................ 11
Lecture 3.2 - High Performance Work Systems Week 3................................................... 13
Lecture 4.1 - Metrics and measurement Week 3 HRM...................................................... 16
Lecture 4.2 - Implementation strategy Week 3.................................................................. 20
Lecture 5 - Mutual gains & Occupational health psychology week 4 HRM.................... 22
Lecture 6 - Selective recruitment and selection week 4 HRM..........................................28
Lecture 7 - Performance management & Compensation week 5 HRM........................... 32
Lecture 8 - Human resource roles week 5 HRM................................................................ 39
Lecture 9 - International HRM & Diversity management week 6 HRM............................ 44
Lecture 10 - Talent management & employee participation week 6 HRM.......................49
2
,Lecture 1 - Introduction to HRM Week 2 HRM
Goals:
- Know what (strategic) HRM refers to and be able to describe important areas in the
field of HRM.
- Be able to describe different types of contracts that are a part of the employment
relationship.
- Understand the difference between a best-practice approach and a best-fit approach
to HRM.
- Know what different types of fit we distinguish and understand how they relate to an
organisation’s HR strategy and practices.
What is (strategic) HRM?
HRM: “involves management decisions related to policies and practices that together shape
the employment relationship and are aimed at achieving individual, organisational and
societal goals”
Employment relationship: relationship between employee and their organisation/ employer.
1. Legal contract: Legal rights and obligations both parties have (eg. number of
holidays).
2. Economic/transactional contract: Agreements about the effort and reward (eg. hours
or KPI’s).
3. Psychological contract: All mutual expectations that have not been formally written
down (eg. promotion within a certain amount of time).
4. Sociological contract: All the relationships and networks that an employee has within
the organisation.
Goals:
- Individual goals: Eg. reach a certain level within the organisation or to have a certain
income.
- Organisational goals: Eg. Effectiveness, efficiency, delivering certain products or
services.
- Societal goals: Eg. VU: Developing the new workforce in the Netherlands and
beyond.
SHRM: “in addition pays extra attention to the organisational context”, i.e. the alignment of
HRM (practices) with:
- business strategy: What the business is trying to achieve in the shorter and longer
term.
- external context: Market, legal context, norms and values of the society in which the
organisation operates.
- business systems: How things are auto operated, the systems that an organisation
uses to run.
- each other → how the systems work together and are aligned with each other.
MHRM: Micro HRM → individual policies and practices that an organisation is trying to use
or develop or make decisions about, rather than the whole of all the different policies they
are involved in.
3
, IHRM: International HRM → HRM in an international context.
Example: Organisation that wants to become more diverse:
- HRM: try to design practices and policies and make decisions about that within the
organisation.
- SHRM: focus on the context, look at how it fits with the business strategy, what are
the opponents doing. What are the normative requirements in the context you
operate, what are the expectations of people from outside the organisation. Look at
the systems you have in place and how the policies and practices will fit with that.
- MHRM: focus on an individual HRM practice, for example: training or recruitment.
- IHRM: Questions like, how do we do this in the different countries we operate in.
Types of fit
→ (between practices and context)
Strategic (vertical) fit: fit between HR policies and practices & strategy and the overall
business strategy (market context).
Internal (horizontal) fit: fit between individual HR policies and practice.
- Eg.: How do recruitment policies fit with reward policies?
Organisational fit: fit between HR strategy, policies and practice & other organisational
systems.
- Eg.: IT systems.
Environmental or institutional fit: fit between the HR strategy and with legislation, norms and
management fashions (institutional context).
Best practices versus best fit
Best practice approach: identify the very best way to do things within your organisation.
- You look around and search for the best practices that are possible within an
organisation and implement them into yours.
- Pfeffer’s seven best practices
1. Employment security: Provides a sense of stability for employees, which can
lead to greater engagement and productivity.
2. Selective hiring: Focuses on hiring high-performing individuals to ensure the
quality of the workforce.
3. Self-managed teams and decentralization: Gives teams autonomy in
decision-making, which can improve efficiency and morale.
4. High compensation contingent on performance: Rewards employees based
on the organisation's performance, creating a strong incentive for success.
5. Extensive training: Invests in employees by providing training in relevant
skills, which improves their capabilities and value to the company.
6. Reduced status distinctions: Creates a more egalitarian environment by
minimizing visible differences in status, such as through office arrangements,
dress, and wage differences across levels.
7. Extensive sharing of information: Provides employees with financial and
performance information, fostering a sense of ownership and alignment with
the company's goals.
4
