Norihiko Takeuchi

The Strategic HRM Configuration for Competitive Advantage: Evidence from Japanese Firms in China and Taiwan

The purpose of the present study was to identify the pattern of HRM practices that would lead to an improvement in business performance in Chinese- and Taiwanese-based Japanese affiliates in the light of a configurational perspective, following the current debate in the field of strategic human resource management (SHRM). In particular, a set of working hypotheses regarding the structural relationship among HRM practices for producing enhanced business results was drawn from the organizational learning theoretical framework that emphasizes a linkage between the process of learning and firm performance. Our conceptual model and specific hypotheses were examined using a sample of 286 Japanese affiliates operating in Mainland China and Taiwan. The results provided basic support for the configurational hypothesis in predicting the financial aspect of an affiliates performance. It is argued that the findings of the study have several important implications for the untested relationships between high commitment work practices (HCWPs) and high performance work systems (HPWSs) from a Japanese management perspective. In addition, the manner in which each HRM technique can be used by Japanese overseas affiliates to enhance their learning and adaptive capabilities is discussed.

How Japanese manufacturing firms align their human resource policies with business strategies: testing a contingency performance prediction in a Japanese context

This study examines the interaction effects of business-level strategy and HRM policies upon performance among Japanese manufacturers, in response to the current debate around the contingency fit proposition in the field of strategic human resource management (SHRM). Specifically, it was hypothesized that the three generic strategic types (cost reduction, differentiation (innovation), and quality enhancement) would moderate the relationship between particular HRM policies and the performance of Japanese manufacturing firms. The results, based on a sample of 312 Japanese manufacturers operating in the domestic environment, reveal the existence of links between appropriate strategy and HRM policies in predicting performance, providing strong support for the proposition of contingency fit from SHRM theory. The findings are used to discuss how Japanese manufacturers can align their HRM policies with business strategies to increase manufacturing performance. Limitations of the study and directions for future research are also considered.

Performance implications for the relationships among top management leadership, organizational culture, and appraisal practice: testing two theory-based models of organizational learning theory in Japan

The purpose of this study was to examine the interrelationships among top management leadership, organizational culture and human resource (HR) practices, and their associative effects on organizational performance. Based on the theory of organizational learning, we developed and tested two different causal models: (1) a feed-forward learning flow model in which supportive leadership by top management would create a community culture and HR practices within organizations; and (2) a feedback learning flow model in which a community culture would support the practice of supportive leadership by top management and HR practices within a firm. Our structural equation modelling (SEM) results for a sample of 225 Japanese small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Japan supported the second model, in which the dominance of a community culture within the firm is an antecedent of top managements supportive leadership, which in turn necessitates a performance-based appraisal practice and eventually leads to better organizational performance in terms of objective indicators of turnover and absenteeism rates and workforce productivity. The findings are used to discuss the role of top management leadership in a particular organizational culture from the organizational learning perspective. Limitations and directions for future research are also discussed.

Managerial skill utilization: work environment, gender, and training incentive

Past studies have demonstrated that a supportive work environment can positively influence managerial skill utilization. Adopting the instrumentality-expressiveness perspective, the present study extended the past research by illustrating the moderating effect of gender on this relationship. It found that the relationship between the work environment and managerial skill utilization is stronger among female managers than among male managers and further, that this interactive effect is more pronounced in a low incentive situation than in a high incentive situation in terms of reaching a high level of training performance. The theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed.

A lifespan perspective for understanding career self-management and satisfaction: The role of developmental human resource practices and organizational support

The contemporary career literature or ‘new career’ theory emphasizes the importance of individual agentic career management processes in which individuals manage their careers to achieve career satisfaction by flexibly adjusting to the dynamic environment. There is limited research, however, on how individuals strategize their careers as they age, by utilizing or balancing organizational career management factors, including developmental human resource (HR) practices and organizational support. This study, therefore, documents how age, career self-management and organizational career management factors interactively influence career satisfaction, integrating conservation of resources (COR) and socioemotional selectivity (SES) theories. Using time-lagged data collected from 364 Japanese employees, the results supported the predicted three-way interaction effects. For young employees, the positive relationship between career self-management and satisfaction was stronger when developmental HR practices and organizational support were high, and thus a synergistic effect was salient. For middle-aged employees, the positive relationship was stronger when these factors were low, and thus a compensatory effect was manifested. Interestingly, middle-aged employees who perceived a lack of developmental practices or support showed marked improvements in career satisfaction by engaging in career self-management behaviors. We discuss the changing nature of career management strategies across an individual’s lifespan from both vocational and managerial viewpoints.

Gender differences in career planning and success

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it attempts to examine how employees’ career planning (CP) interacts with the quality of leader-member exchange (LMX) to explain subjective career success. Second, the authors investigate how the pattern of such interactions differs between male and female employees. Design/methodology/approach – To increase the generalizability, the study tested hypotheses in two studies whose data were collected in different national settings. Study 1 was designed to analyze 144 Korean employees and Study 2 investigated 140 Japanese employees. Both groups of employees worked for privately owned firms. Findings – The authors found a three-way interaction effect between gender, CP, and LMX quality in predicting subjective career success. As hypothesized, the positive relationship between quality of LMX and subjective career success was stronger for males with high CP, whereas for females such a stronger relationship was found for women with low CP. Research limitation...

Strategic human resource management research in the Japanese context: Unique opportunities for theory advancement

Introduction Ralf Bebenroth and Toshihiro Kanai Part 1: Japanese HRM from an International Perspective 2. Taking Stock of the Research on Evolving Relationships between Japanese Human Resource: Management Practices and Firm Performance Sue Neila Bruning 3. Japanese Human Resource Management: Inspirations from Abroad and Current Trends of Change Markus Pudelko and Anne Will Harzing 4. Expatriation and Performance Ralf Bebenroth and Li Donghao 5. Human Resource Management and Employment Systems in Asia: Directions of Change and New Challenges Philippe Debroux 6. Demystifying the relationship between intercultural adjustment and effectiveness in international assignments: reflections on Japanese expatriate managers Beatriz Maria Braga and Edson Kubo 7. Global Talent Management and Learning for the Future: Pressing Concerns and Opportunities for Growth for Japanese Multinationals Mary Yoko Part 2: Japanese HRM from a Domestic Perspective 8. Strategic Human Resource Management Research in the Japanese Context: Unique Opportunities for Theory Advancement Sekiguchi, Tomoki, Takeuchi, Norihiko and Takeuchi, Tomokazu 9. Psychological Contract in Japanese Companies: An Explorative Study on Contents, Fulfillment, and Breach of Contracts Yasuhiro Hattori 10. Cognitive framework for performance appraisal: An empirical study of narrative evaluations in a Japanese auto-company Kiyoshi Takahashi 11. Diversification of Employment Categories in Japanese Firms and its Funcitonality: A study based on the Human Resource Portfolio System Mitsutoshi Hirano 12. Quantum Leap Experiences for Leadership Development: Stories and Lessons of Japanese Top and Middle Managers Toshihiro Kanai and Yoichi Furano

Understanding psychological processes of applicants’ job search

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, it empirically examines two theory-based models of applicants’ job search developed from planned happenstance theory (PHT) and theory of planned behavior (TPB). Second, it tests the cross-cultural compatibility of these models in Japan and Korea. Design/methodology/approach - The authors tested two theory-based job search models, PHT model and TPB model based on samples of college students from Japan ( Findings - The results indicated that the TPB model was a significantly better fitting to the data than the PHT model. Moreover, a multi-group test of the TPB model demonstrated that the TPB model was invariant between the Japanese and the Korean samples. Originality/value - Although there had been an important question among job search literatures regarding how important the planned behavior in the job search processes would be, the study gave an empirical support to the TPB job search model in contrast to the PHT model. Another contribution is that the study tested the Western-driven theories using Asian samples from Japan and Korea, constituting an important benchmark for further studies that attempt to test the generalizability of the TPB model, particularly in countries/areas that employ different employment systems.