Field Of Human Resource Development Research Articles

EXAMINING HIGHER EDUCATION-COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS THROUGH HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT: IMPLICATIONS FOR INNOVATION AND TECHNOLOGY MANAGEMENT

Higher education and community partnerships have transitioned from casual relationships to more of a mandate with the advancements in technology and globalization. The result of this large-scale change has led to an increase in these efforts, but the relationships are still emerging. Using survey research and the human resource development (HRD) perspective, we explore higher education and community partnerships, assesses their challenges, and discusses potential contributions of such partnerships in community development. This article contributes to our understanding of how these partnerships interact and what strategies the field of HRD may offer to advance such collaborative efforts.

Book Review: Ruchita Beri (Ed.), India and Africa Enhancing Mutual Agreement

Ruchita Beri (Ed.), India and Africa Enhancing Mutual Agreement, IDSA, Pentagon Press, New Delhi, 2013, ₹ 795, pp.163, ISBN-978-81-8274-751-7.

Status of Knowledge Based Economy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: An Analysis

This paper highlights on the emerging issues that compelled Saudi Arabia in transforming its economy to a knowledge-based one. It discusses the pillars of a knowledge-based economy i.e. the institutional model; education; research and development (R&D); and information and communication technology (ICT) adopted by the World Bank Institute framework to analyze the status of a knowledge-based economy in Saudi Arabia. The primary objective of this article is to understand the status of the knowledgebased economy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Secondary data was collected for writing the paper. The nine developmental plans of Saudi Arabia (Ministry of Economy and Planning), Ministry of Education reports, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology reports, and Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) reports are some of the important sources of data. The government of Saudi Arabia has laid the foundation for transforming its economy to a knowledge-based one but more is required especially in the field of human resource development and innovation to expedite the easiness of the transforming process.

Psychological capital and the intent to pursue employment with developed and emerging market multinational corporations

The entrance of emerging market multinational corporations (EMNCs) into developed markets and their subsequent demand for western talent is an important new research topic in the field of human resource development (HRD). Upon entering developed markets, EMNCs will find themselves competing with a host of well-established western firms for the same limited pool of talent. Due to possible liability of origin issues, EMNCs may be perceived as less attractive employers. Human resource development professionals tasked with helping these newly arrived firms to recruit necessary talent will find the ability to identify those individuals most likely to pursue employment with an EMNC highly beneficial. In pursuit of this goal, five hypotheses were tested on 703 American and European respondents. Specifically, we examined the interaction between the level of psychological capital of western job seekers and their intent to pursue employment in order to identify possible predispositions for finding EMNCs as attractive employers.

Invited Reaction: Further Observations on the Relationship Between Work Engagement and Performance

The topic of engagement has developed into a current trend in emerging and explorative research within the field of Human Resource Development. The maturation and swiftness at which the construct is emerging is a testament to the serious research scholars are undertaking, as well as the popularity of the construct in practice throughout a myriad of organizations. This article is a reaction to the preceding article (Kim, Kolb, and Kim, 2013), which seeks to investigate the relation between work engagement and performance utilizing a review of empirical literature. This reaction considers the findings espoused by Kim et al (2013) and suggests further thematic observations on the reported conclusions. Several recommendations for research and practice are suggested for further consideration.

Examining tournament theory in academe: implications for the field of human resource development

In a unique approach to applying theory to practice based on concepts of participant observation, this paper discusses and analyses potential applications of tournament theory to the academe with specific implications to the field of human resource development (HRD). For purposes of this paper, tournament theory, originally intended to explain large compensation packages given to CEOs and other executives, provides analysis and predictions for academe and specifically to the field of HRD, where predictions are not very optimistic for those entering the field as academics. The paper argues that tournaments in academe are becoming more complex and more difficult to compete and win, thus making it much more difficult to advance in the academe.

Prospecções para desenvolvimento de políticas públicas de formação de profissionais de saúde a partir da análise do cenário brasileiro de competências

Quando se refere à Saúde Coletiva, a literatura aponta para a necessidade de profissionais que sejam capazes de atuar em diferentes contextos. Nesta perspectiva, o tema “competência” emerge do contexto administrativo para a saúde, de maneira a promover debates no campo de desenvolvimento de recursos humanos e formação profissional. Este artigo tem por objetivo apresentar um panorama do cenário brasileiro sobre competências profissionais em saúde para melhor entendimento do constructo em nível nacional e propor futuras prospecções. O estudo utilizou dados do Diretório de Grupos de Pesquisa do Conselho Nacional de Pesquisa (CNPq), da base de dados do Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia do Ministério da Saúde (Sistema Pesquisa em Saúde), do Banco de Teses e de Dissertações da Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) e SciELO. Observou-se desigualdade na distribuição de pesquisadores e produção científica pouco incentivada. Indica-se, assim, a necessidade de maiores esforços gerenciais no campo de saúde para a construção do tema.

University Students’ Employability Skills Model Based on Chinese Employer Perspective

The employability and the employability skills of the university students in China are now being the most important capacity which the employers pay the highest attention to. The aim of this research was to identify the university students’ employability skills and college students’ employability skills framework to reinforce the employability research and the field of human resource development (HRD) in the Chinese context. From the perspective of the employers, using the methods of interview and questionnaire, this paper studied the contents of the students’ employability skills which the Chinese employers recognized and got the model of university students’ employability skills. The results showed that college student’s personal characteristics perceived by the service industry employers and the manufacture industry employers major focused on honesty, independence, self-confidence, adaptability, and enthusiasm. Basic knowledge which perceived by the service industry employers and the manufacture industry employers centralized political knowledge, and economic knowledge. Interpersonal relationship, teamwork, strain capacity, problem handling capacity, leadership, information technology software applications, and presentation skills were the abilities at present and in the next five years that both industry employers thought very important skills and abilities. The conclusions can be got that the employability skills perceived by Chinese employers whether in service industry or in manufacture industry include personal qualities, basic knowledge, skills and abilities. The employability skills framework perceived by employers at present in service industry and in manufacture industry is slightly different. On the contrary, it is surprising that the employability skills at present and in the next 5 years perceived by service industry employers or manufacture industry employers have a significant difference alternatively. Suggestions on managerial implications and future research directions are put forward respectively.

The Role of Demographics as Predictors of Successful Performance of Sales Professionals in Business-to-Business Sales Organizations

The purpose of this study was to examine the impact demographic variables of gender and sales experience have on the performance of business-to-business (B2B) sales professionals. If a deeper understanding can be established of how gender and sales experience variables relate to B2B sales performance, human resource development (HRD) and human performance improvement (HPI) professionals can use these indicators during the hiring and selection process. This article reports findings of the study and offers implications to the field of HRD and HPI.

The Relationship Between Work Engagement and Performance

Engagement has been defined in a variety of ways. Engagement in the workplace generally is viewed as a positive, fulfilling, affective-motivational state of work-related well-being. Due to its structural relationship between antecedents (e.g., job resources and personal resources) and consequences (e.g., performance and turnover intention), work engagement has been receiving considerable attention from both scholars and practitioners in the fields of human resource development (HRD), organization development (OD), psychology, and business. In spite of this popularity, there is a scarcity of empirical research on work engagement in the academic literature. The relationship between work engagement and performance, in particular, is deserving of attention given our field’s focus on performance improvement. In this article, we review and analyze relevant research and then propose a research agenda to guide future research on this topic. Conclusions and implications for HRD and OD are discussed.

Playing the HR field

PurposeThe aim of the article is to provide the text of an interview with Dr R. Wayne PaceDesign/methodology/approachGareth Bell interviews R. Wayne Pace, founding president of the Academy of Human Resource Development, and author of Human Resource Development: the Field.FindingsFew people have been as prolific in the field of human resource development as Dr R. Wayne Pace. He is author of over 30 books and 100 articles, specializing in human resource development, organizational change, and organizational communication. He has also served as corporate advisor to training and development consultancies QuickKnowledge, Anchor Point Institute, and STS International.Originality/valueThe article provides an interview with one of the most respected figures in the field of human resource development, who gives his views on the challenges HR practitioners are faced with today.

The need for curiosity‐driven scholarship in the field of human resource development

The need for curiosity‐driven scholarship in the field of human resource development

Creating a Flexible Organizational Culture to Attract and Retain Talented Workers Across Generations

The Problem One of the most important emerging issues in the field of human resource development is how to effectively help organizations deal with the shifting demographics in the workforce. The largest generational cohort is nearing retirement, which will result in a loss of talent, experience, and expertise. The newest generation entering the workforce is substantively different. The next 20 years will likely see a shift to new ways of working, reflecting the values of the younger generation. The Solution Organizational cultures that will be able to retain employees across generations need to be developed. Each generation seems to be alike in one crucial area: their desire for workplace flexibility. Middle managers need to be incented and trained to accept a culture where they maintain accountability without power and control. The Stakeholders Human resource development practitioners and researchers have a role in developing interventions to change organizational culture to be more flexible, thereby potentially increasing retention of valued workers across the generations.

European Social Fund in Portugal: a complex question for human resource development

PurposeThis article aims to review the application of the funds awarded by the European Social Fund (ESF) to Portugal, since 1986, from a human resource development (HRD) perspective.Design/methodology/approachSeveral variables are analyzed: investment, absorption, people, impact of investment, evolution of skills, main programs, supply and demand for training and the role of the state.FindingsThe main conclusion of the paper is that, even if the ESF was extremely important in quantitative terms in Portugal, its qualitative implications were modest.Research limitations/implicationsThe Portuguese ESF case should be compared with other national cases in the European Union and elsewhere. The ESF patterns should be compared with other cases of international support made by multinationals, non‐governmental organizations or bodies like the World Bank or the United Nations.Practical implicationsEuropean monetary stability and integration has to be based on social stability and integration. The ESF consequences in the “national” HRD markets may be far‐reaching, effectively defining the main elements of the HRD market. Great attention should be paid to positive impacts while defining the priorities of the ESF intervention.Social implicationsThe ESF was responsible for the funding of a very considerable part of the Portuguese training market. Precisely because of that huge importance, quality is a very important issue.Originality/valueThe article is an attempt to analyze and evaluate 20 years of intervention in the HRD field with an international dimension in a relatively poor and struggling country in European terms.

Recovered alcoholics and career development: Implications for human resource development

AbstractThis article presents three issues regarding alcoholism, recovery, and career development. First, alcoholism is a disease that creates health and wellness problems for those it afflicts. It also impacts individual and workplace productivity. Second, alcoholism has a persistent stigmatization. As a result, those alcoholics who are in recovery face challenging choices around self‐disclosure. Disclosure of one's identity as a recovering alcoholic could be perceived as risky, since it could be seen as a negative. Third, because of such risk, and because of the paucity of research within the field of human resource development around alcoholism and recovery, there is a gap in the literature regarding these issues.

A review of the Ninth International Conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (Asia Chapter) in Shanghai, China: workplace learning and sustainable development for individual, organization and society

This paper provides a review of the Ninth International Conference of the Academy of Human Resource Development (Asia Chapter) that took place in Shanghai, China on 11–14 November 2010. In addition to providing a brief review of the pre-conference workshops and keynote addresses, this paper presents the outcomes of the conference using four main themes: (1) corporate training; (2) the development of key personnel; (3) career development and work-life balance; and (4) organizational learning and learning organization. In conclusion, the authors share their thoughts on the contributions of international conferences to the field of human resource development.

Using collaborative action learning projects to increase the impact of management development

This article aims to contribute to the field of human resource development by exploring the conditions that influence the organizational impact of action learning projects. Many organizations use such projects as an integral part of their management development programs. Past research on action learning projects has shown how balancing action and learning improves the organizational impact of management development, but we argue that the concern with such a balance is not enough. We argue that certain organizational conditions are likely to mediate this balance. Based on empirical material from a case study of one off‐site management development program, we identify three organizational conditions that seem to enhance organizational impact: clear reasons for enrolling managers on a development program, support from the manager's local superior throughout the process of the action learning project and local participation in the project work on the part of the manager's employer. These findings have practical implications for providers of management development programs as well as for organizations exploring ways of enhancing the impact of their investment in management learning and development. In terms of theory, the lack of organizational impact of action learning projects can be seen as part of the wider ‘transfer problem’ in training and development, and the results of the present study are consistent with the literature, which shows factors in the work environment to be important in facilitating or preventing transfer.

Human resource development in the knowledge based and services driven economy

PurposeIn July 2009 the Universidade Lusíada de Famalicão organized the International Conference on Managing Services in the Knowledge Economy 2009 (MSKE 2009).http://clegi.fam.ulusiada.pt/MSKE2009/. MSKE 2009 was an interesting forum which gathered 60 specialists from 20 countries in different areas such as knowledge management, intellectual capital, human resource development, social policy, law and international economics. In the human resource development field, five relevant contributions were selected to compose the current issue. The purpose of this introductory paper is to review the literature on the role of human resource development (HRD) in the current knowledge based and services driven economy.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews the importance of knowledge as a crucial economic factor and the importance of services as the main area of economic business. It shows how HRD relates to services and knowledge.FindingsStarting at the time of the Agricultural Revolution when human resources (HR) were marginally considered, the paper ends in the globalized and technologic advanced world of 2010 in which HR are a decisive production factor and are analyzed by different very important scientific perspectives. Crucially, in the present new order of the world, services are the main economic sector in advanced countries. The important role of HRD as a factor of success in a world dominated by services and knowledge is explained. The major open questions and controversies related to HRD are enumerated.Research limitations/implicationsQuite a number of open questions remain in the HRD field. Those questions relate to individuals, educational system, organizations, and to society as a whole. Those questions are analyzed in detail in this introduction. The current special issue includes papers dealing with five separate topics related to the open questions: academic curricula needed for the service sector; role of universities and workplace work‐related arrangements of the educational system; intellectual capital management; career advancement; career aspirations.Originality/valueThe paper introduces the special issue of theJournal of European Industrial Trainingon “HRD in the knowledge based and services driven economy”.

Social Ecology and Worksite Training and Development: Introducing the Social in Instructional System Design

Human resource development (HRD) is recognized as an interdisciplinary field covering the breadth of behavioral and social sciences. However, since its inception, instructional systems design (ISD), a methodology widely used in the HRD field, has been based on a narrow range of behavioral science. Grounded in general system’s theory, the ISD framework has primarily been presented as asocial in orientation and application, drawing primarily on individual theories of learning. This manuscript considers the emergence and history of current ISD technologies, and presents a social ecological framework to facilitate the integration of behavioral and social science theory into the ISD process. Research and training initiatives using the social ecological framework are discussed as are implication for HRD research and practice.

The Role of Reflective Practices in Building Social Capital in Organizations From an HRD Perspective

Social capital has been receiving increasing attention in the field of human resource development (HRD). However, little is known as to how social capital has been formed or has grown over time with HRD interventions. There is limited research and discussion on how reflective practices play a role in the development of social capital as individuals reflect together in interactive social contexts such as networking activities. This article looks at how reflective practices can inform organizational social capital building. This article reviews relevant social capital and reflective practices literatures. An integrative model of institutional social capital and reflective practices is introduced to help explain how the two areas can be interrelated. The article suggests future efforts to integrate research and practice to better develop social capital in organizations.