Minding the Gap from the Practitioners’ Side. How Much Value does HRM Research add to Practice?

Abstract

It is a widespread view that HRM research published in top journals does not resonate well with the needs and interests of practitioners. There have been strong arguments from academics pointing to practitioners’ not paying enough attention towards the findings and theorizations produced by researchers. On the other hand, a persisting critique of the minimal relevance and applicability of academic management research has been voiced by practitioners. In this symposium we address the issue of the academic-practitioner gap from the practitioner's perspective. However, the goal is not a call for a more applied “check-list” HR-technical work or readymade universalist practical solutions. The quest is to further analytical, rigorous and theory-based HRM research which takes the problems and realities of the practitioners we study seriously. The five papers presented suggest the contribution of research findings that have the potential to make HR practitioners more aware of the complex nature of problems and their potential ‘solutions’, and that this in turn has an impact on the way practitioners do their job. Thus, we see the 'gap' as a precondition for any productive relationship between academia and practice, value is created through respecting differences in viewpoints of what and how research should be done and engaging in collaborative efforts. Employee Engagement: Do Practitioners Care what Academics Have to Say - And Should They? Presenter: Katie Bailey; U. of Sussex What Contribution does Academic Management Research Make toward Better Practice? Presenter: Bruce E Kaufman; Georgia State U. The Divide: Too Much Narrow