Joaquín Camps

A model of high performance work practices and turnover intentions

– This paper aims to clarify the relationship between human resource practices and staff retention by selecting three high performance work practices (precursors) and one outcome variable (turnover intentions), and trying to demonstrate the mediator role of employee commitment and job satisfaction in this relationship., – The proposed model has been analyzed with a sample of 198 employees and a structural equation modeling methodology., – Salary strategies and job enrichment strategies were positively related to job satisfaction. Job enrichment strategies and job stability strategies were positively related to employee commitment. Employee commitment was negatively related to turnover intentions. The relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intentions was mediated by employee commitment, – One limitation of the findings is the use of self‐report questionnaires to collect data on all measures. Another potential limitation concerns the measurement of some latent factors with only two observable variables., – Turnover continues to be a serious problem for businesses. The proposed model suggests the use of specific practices that develop satisfaction and commitment as an intermediate step to low turnover intentions., – A sample of 198 workers was used as the source of information. This information offers clear advantages over the more widely used samples from managerial directors or statistical data gathered in human resource practices, as in this case. The perceptions of those people on whom these measures are directly carried out are readily accessible.

A Matter of Learning: How Human Resources Affect Organizational Performance

Recently, a number of studies have tried to examine the processes that explain the influence of high performance work systems (HPWS) on company performance, in an attempt to understand which variables mediate this relationship and to what extent they do so. The importance of the organizational learning capability (OLC) construct has traditionally been outlined as being essential for a companys survival and effective performance. Thus, it seems important to establish whether HPWS can be considered an antecedent of OLC, and consequently to confirm whether OLC acts as a mediating variable in the HPWS–company performance linkage. Bearing in mind that HPWS represent a ‘bundle’ of mutually reinforcing, overlapping and synergistic individual human resource practices, this positive connection between HPWS and OLC seems reasonable. We tested our hypotheses by applying a structural equation methodology to a sample of 163 Spanish companies. Our findings show that the effects of HPWS on organizational performance are mediated by OLC.

High involvement work practices and firm performance

During the past two decades the chain of three links organizational strategy – human resources practices – organizational performance has been deeply analysed. However, the mediator role of organizational structure in the first link of this chain remains relatively uninvestigated. In this article we analyse a model of relationships among organizational strategy, organizational structure, human resources practices, and organizational performance. Through a structural equation methodology applied to a sample of 183 Spanish companies, we will try to confirm that organizations with differentiation strategies are more likely to implement high involvement work practices. As a novelty we will introduce organizational structure as a mediator of this relationship. For that we will use the construct control mechanisms (centralization, formalization and socialization). Further, we will analyse the effect on firm performance of these proposed relationships among differentiation strategy, control mechanisms and high involvement work practices.

Joint ventures or non equity-alliances? Evidence from Italian firms

This paper investigates the factors affecting the choice between joint ventures and non-equity alliances, when firms enter foreign markets. The authors compiled a database of Italian firms with 879 observations to test possible effects of firm specific characteristics, host country institutional characteristics and cultural distance on alliance mode choice. Using both transaction cost analysis and the resource based view, their findings demonstrate the crucial role played by firm size as well as by institutional and political features of host countries. The results concerning the role of functional activities involved and the industrial sector are mixed. Overall, the analysis shows that it is necessary to develop a more integrated approach to understand this complex choice made by firms when expanding abroad.

Organic vs. Mechanistic Structures: Construction and Validation of a Scale of Measurement

This paper aims to create and validate a scale that will serve to measure the construct “organic structure”, currently of great utility for the competitive analysis of firms. On the basis of the literature, eight dimensions, corresponding to the parameters technical system, formalization, centralization, structural complexity, planning and control systems, training, information flows, and culture, form this construct. To verify the reliability and the validity of this measuring instrument we used a sample of 150 large Spanish firms.

Towards a methodology to assess organizational learning capability: A study among faculty members

Purpose - The present study aims to revalidate a measurement scale for organizational learning capability in the context of university faculty members. This is a particularly relevant context because it deals with knowledge-intensive services. Following Chiva Design/methodology/approach - Data were collected from the Instituto Tecnologico de Costa Rica, a leading university in Costa Rica. The survey was addressed to faculty members. A total of 795 valid questionnaires were obtained. Using confirmatory factor analysis, the construct measurement model was tested and the scale was validated. Findings - The results show the internal consistency and the satisfactory factorial structure of the scale within the context of knowledge-intensive services. Originality/value - This validation of organizational learning capability measurement instruments has considered cultural differences (Spain vs Costa Rica), sectorial differences (industrial vs services), and the different educational background distribution of the sample. Another contribution of our study is the consideration of the non-independence of observations through the complex Mplus method, since the samples in human resource research are affected by multilevel influences.

The Process of Fit Between the Contingency Factors of the Environment and the Structural Design Parameters

Abstract This paper, using a sample of 150 Spanish companies of large size, aim to corroborate the postulates determined by the contingency models regarding the relationships between the organisational environment and structural design parameters. Our basic aim is to establish the different relative importance of each of the elements characterising the environment to the design parameters. The results obtained show that the first relation to be clearly observed is that between level of complexity of the environment and the degree of organicity of the structure. However, such an evident relationship is not observed between the degree of dynamism of the environment and the level of organicity. As for the relation between degree of hostility of the environment and the design parameters analysed, the contingent hypotheses that predict that the degree of centralisation of the structure increases with the hostility of the environment are confirmed.