Beyond the enterprise: Broadening the horizons of international HRM
Guest Editors: Rick Delbridge, Marco Hauptmeier and Sukanya Sen Gupta (Cardiff Business School, Cardiff University)
The study of International Human Resource Management (IHRM) has focused mainly on the policies, practices and strategies of Human Resource practitioners in individual multinational firms. The goal of this special issue is to move beyond this narrow focus at the enterprise level and situate HRM within wider economic, organizational, political and institutional contexts. HRM differs across countries but to date the comparative literature has tended to focus on cultural issues. Research that systematically analyzes socio-economic, institutional and societal contexts and their impact on HRM remains underdeveloped and there is a significant opportunity for work which draws on theory from adjacent fields – e.g. the varieties of capitalism literature, theories of cross-national organization and research in comparative political studies and economic geography all offer potentially useful frameworks. Companies are socially embedded on different levels; local economies, regional districts, national institutions, international networks and transnational regulation are all aspects of the social, organizational and economic structures in which companies are situated. Opening up the research agenda of IHRM to this wider social and economic environment also points to the role of actors beyond the company in shaping HRM including charities and NGOs, European Works Councils, the European Union and the International Labour Organization. The market and regulatory context is also being re-shaped through developments such as NAFTA. These social and economic actors and contexts create opportunities and constraints for companies with implications for HRM.
We invite papers that situate HRM within the wider social-economic context, from the local to the transnational level, as well as research that has an explicitly comparative focus. This special issue is intended to promote such situated or comparative approaches to exploring and explaining new perspectives and evidence in the study of International and Comparative Human Resource Management. In particular, we invite papers that address the following questions:
- How to conceptualize IHRM in the new global economy? What are the key issues, concepts, processes and models that define IHRM in the contemporary business context?
- How can building on sociological approaches – including the literature on new institutionalism, social embeddedness and the socio-economics of markets – assist in the development IHRM research?
- What are the implications of international corporate networks for HR practices, including out-sourcing and international divisions of labour?
- What factors shape the construction of ideas, ideology, identities and policies and practices in the transnational workplace?
- What are the roles of professional bodies and trade unions in the development of contemporary employment relationships? What insights may be drawn from international comparisons?
- How do institutional arrangements shape HR policies and practices in the globalized economy?
- In what way do codes of corporate governance and their variations across institutional, industry, socio-economic contexts shape HRM practices?
- What are the international variations in conceptions of corporate social responsibility and business ethics that inform HR practices?
- What is the influence of new international actors such as NGOs, European Works Councils, consumer rights, environmental and shareholder activist groups and charities in shaping HR practices and policies across borders?
- How do the regulations and policies of transnational governmental organizations (such as the European Union) mould HRM in local contexts?
We welcome conceptual and empirical papers that make clear contributions to thinking about pertinent issues in the field of IHRM within the broader socio-cultural, institutional and economic contexts. Regardless of the specific methods utilized, a strong emphasis on theory development must be evident. Papers that have the potential to stimulate future debates and research on HRM and employment relations will be particularly welcome.
Contributors should note:
- This call is open and competitive, and the submitted papers will be blind reviewed in the normal way.
- Submitted papers must be based on original material not under consideration by any other journal or outlet.
- For empirical papers based on data sets from which multiple papers have been generated, the editors must be provided with copies of all other papers based on the same data.
- The editors will select five papers to be included in the special issue, but other papers submitted in this process may be published in other issues of the journal.
The deadline for submissions is 31 May 2009. The special issue is intended for publication in late 2010 / early 2011.
Papers to be considered for this special issue should be submitted online via www.humanrelationsjournal.org. Please direct questions about the submission process, or any administrative matter, to Claire Castle, Managing Editor, at humanrelationsjournal@tavinstitute.org.
The guest editors of this special issue are very happy to discuss initial ideas for papers, and can be contacted directly:
Rick Delbridge
delbridger@cardiff.ac.uk
Marco Hauptmeier
hauptmeierm@cardiff.ac.uk
Sukanya Sengupta
senguptas@cardiff.ac.uk
