Noreen Heraty

The emergence of strategic human resource development

Focuses on the emergence of human resource development. Traces the emergence of HRD in the training and development literature. Also examines the extent to which a strategic approach to training and development is practised in industry. Concludes by examining the implications of a move towards a more strategic approach to training and development.

Human resource development literature: current issues, priorities and dilemmas

Reviews the state of current HRD literature in terms of definitional issues, alternative models, dominant justifications and biases. Articulates the view that the literature is fragmented, multifaceted, and reflects a diverse range of perspectives and models.

Line managers and human resource development

Focuses on the line manager as a key stakeholder in the human resource development process. Considers the general trend towards devolvement of human resource activities to line specialists. Examines issues involved in devolving training and development to the line, with specific emphasis on the potential difficulties. Recent empirical evidence is represented. Concludes that the shape of things to come, at least for the foreseeable future, will be a sharing of responsibilities between the specialist and the line.

The high‐performance organization:

Using a quasi‐experimental design, reports the findings of a study on the impact of high‐performance work teams on job characteristics, employee satisfaction, organization culture and quality. A naturally occurring control (n = 50) and experimental group (n = 50) were identified in one research site and questionnaires were distributed to both groups prior to and eight months into the high‐performance intervention. The results reveal a significant improvement in work variety, autonomy, satisfaction with feedback on performance, satisfaction with work allocation and suggestion/idea input. With respect to organization culture and beliefs, it was found that seven of the ten dimensions measured improved significantly. Finally, some quality gains were witnessed with only minimal extra resources.

Conceptualizing the Behavioral Barriers to CSR and CS in Organizations: A Typology of HRD Interventions

A considerable body of research exists on corporate social responsibility (CSR) and corporate sustainability (CS). However, there is significantly less on the influence of employees on the adoption of CSR and CS initiatives. Given the centrality of employees as stakeholders in CSR/CS adoption, it is important to understand how barriers at individual, organizational, and institutional levels of analysis influence the adoption of CSR/CS initiatives. An understanding of these barriers will illuminate the potential contribution of human resource development (HRD) to their removal. HRD has a major role to play in changing employee behavior and organizational values and there are significant affinities between HRD and CSR/CS concerning behavior and change. This article discusses a typology of HRD interventions that may be used to address barriers to the implementation of CSR/CS initiatives.

Human resource development in Ireland: organizational level evidence

The ability of the Irish economy to continue growing depends not only on demand, but also on supply conditions. While these have remained favourable up to now, there are signs of increasing skill shortages and ongoing pressure on economic infrastructure. It has been established that human resources development (HRD) is vital to maintaining Ireland’s competitiveness internationally. This paper seeks to document the nature of HRD at organizational level in Ireland. Following a brief sketch of the Irish context, we draw on a nationally representative survey of HRD practices and present data on where responsibilities for HRD policy decisions lie, the extent of and the approaches to the identification of HRD needs, HRD coverage and delivery, and the nature of longer‐term developmental activities. Variations between firms of different size, between sectors, between firms of different origin, and between unionized and non‐union environments are, where appropriate, highlighted.

In search of good fit: policy and practice in recruitment and selection in Ireland

Reviews contemporary thinking on recruitment and selection in organisations. Draws upon data from a 1992 and a 1995 survey to explore the nature of current recruitment and selection practices in Ireland with particular reference to managerial jobs. Policy decisions on recruitment are examined, recruitment methods are reviewed, and the influence of ownership, size, unionisation and sector on the methods chosen is presented. Selection techniques employed are identified and the situations in which they are most likely to be utilised are highlighted.

Management development in Ireland: the new organizational wealth?

Drawing upon survey data, we assess the current state of management development in Ireland and we identify policy, practice and structural contingencies that help to explain variations in the volume of management development activity undertaken at organizational level. The data show that the level of management development, as measured by the number of days per annum, has increased in recent years with 70 percent of managers in our sample now receiving between one and five days training per year. The mean number of days per annum in Ireland now stands at 4.5. With respect to those factors that appear to affect the level of management development activity, preliminary analysis points to the importance of policy and practice variables over structural ones. Materially, in the human resource domain, our data suggest that organizations with actual policies on personnel/human resource strategy and on management development have higher levels of management development activity and, given the recent tightening in the labor market, many were promulgating their use of developmental interventions as an aid to recruitment/retention. The existence of formal career plans and succession plans, the relative emphasis on the analysis of human resource development needs and the filling of senior and middle management posts via the internal labor market all emerged as predictors of higher levels of management development. Organizations using international experience schemes also ran a significantly higher number of days of management development interventions. In the structural characteristics domain, the data indicate that management development in indigenous companies is at similar levels to internationally owned enterprises in our sample. Here structural explanations such as total employment, sector and unionization did not emerge as being statistically significant.

Complexities and challenges in the work‐family interface

Purpose – The purpose of this brief paper is to introduce the papers in this special issue of Journal of Managerial Psychology, focused on “Complexities and challenges in the work‐family interface”.Design/methodology/approach – The paper first introduces the theme of the special issue, and a brief outline of each paper contained in it is given.Findings – There is concern that progress in the work‐family research area has been somewhat restricted and may have failed to take sufficient account of the complexity of work‐family issues.Originality/value – The literature on the work‐family interface is complex, and theory in the field is uncertain and under‐developed. The papers in this special issue should further understanding of the challenges and complexities underscoring the work‐family interface.

The Training and Development Function: Its Search for Power and Influence in Organizations

Reviews some of the literature on power and influence as it relates to the training and development function. Highlights a number of difficulties that confront the training and development function in using power and influence successfully in organizations. Empirical evidence is presented on how Irish training specialists perceive the power of the training and development function. Concludes that a number of strategies are outlined for use by the training and development function in order to develop power and use it effectively.