Human Resource Strategy: Formulation, Implementation, and Impact

What is Human Resource Strategy? How are human resource strategies formulated and how can we explain the variance between what is espoused and what is actually implemented? What impact – if any – does human resource strategy have on the organization’s “bottom line,” and how can this impact be explained? Is there one best HR strategy for all firms, or is the impact of HR strategy on performance contingent on some set of organizational, technological or environmental factors?

Human Resource Strategy, third edition, provides an overview of the academic and practitioner responses to these and other questions. Applying an integrative framework, the authors review over thirty years’ worth of empirical and theoretical research in an attempt to reconcile often-conflicting conceptual models and equivocal empirical findings. The book supports students in applying theory to practice and presents much of the relevant research in the context of the critical strategic decisions that executives are often forced to make with regard to human resource investments and deployments. As a result, often-complex theoretical models and scientific findings are presented such that they are not only understandable but also highly relevant to non-research-oriented practitioners. This new edition includes new chapters on innovations in HR strategies and diversity and introduces more practical examples. This book is an ideal resource for students and practitioners alike.

Michal Biron, School of Business Administration, University of Haifa (Israel). Michal’s research is connected to three main topics, namely employee wellbeing (burnout, employee–supervisor relations, and teamwork), employee development (job crafting, knowledge transfer, and talent management), and the work–nonwork interface (work from home and work–life balance).

Corine Boon is Professor of Human Resource Management and People Analytics at the University of Amsterdam Business School and is the Director of the Amsterdam People Analytics Centre (APAC). Her work focuses on strategic HRM, people analytics, and person-environment fit.

Elaine Farndale is Professor of Human Resource Management and Director of the School of Labor and Employment Relations at Penn State University (USA), where she is also Founder and Director of the Center for International Human Resource Studies. Elaine’s research and teaching encompass the broad field of international strategic human resource management (including cross-national comparative HRM and HRM in multinational corporations).

Peter A. Bamberger is the Domberger Professor of Management at the Coller School of Management, and Research Director of Cornell University’s Smithers Institute. His research examines compensation strategy, interpersonal behavior in teams, and employee wellbeing.