Wes Harry

Sustainability and HRM

In this introduction to ‘Sustainability and Human Resource Management: Developing sustainable business organizations’ we outline the content and structure of the book. In this book, our academic and practitioner authors explore the potential of sustainability as a new paradigm and Sustainable HRM as a concept for HRM. We wish to contribute to fruitful debates about the role of HRM in developing sustainable work and HRM systems and the role of HRM in supporting sustainable business organizations. Our goal with this book is to advance and bring together conceptual and empirical research as well as practitioners’ views on the meaning and motifs of sustainability for HRM, on how to design and evaluate sustainable HRM systems, and on enhancing our understanding for the complex, non-linear interrelationships, potential paradoxes and tensions between economic, ecological, social and human sustainability. In this introduction, we elucidate the conceptual underpinnings of sustainability and HRM embraced in this book, we critically review the historical roots and different areas dealing with sustainability and HRM, we summarize the limitations and gaps in prior research and finally, this introduction provides short summaries of the chapters in this volume.

Ethnocentric HRM Policies in the Asia Pacific Region: An Explanation of Host Country Resistance**

This paper considers the impact of ethnocentric policies, using as an example diversity policies, created by Multinational Companies (MNCs), Non Government Organisations (NGOs) and international agencies then imposed on a host country and its population. Examples of practices in the Asian Pacific region illustrate how the experience of colonialisation, war and migration have major impact on perceptions of the Host Country governments and nationals The paper discusses possible reasons for Host Country Nationals (HCNs) to resist foreign, apparently, ethnocentric policies. The resistance is often based on the experience of being colonised or the fragile social cohesiveness by the host nations. The motives of the MNC are often perceived to be to weaken the host nation and its organisations so as to be able to dominate the local economy as part of globalisation, taking little, if any, account of local needs and sensitivities. The imposition of ethnocentric policies shows that the parent organisations are not MULTInational but SINGLEnational Companies.

The Future of Sustainable HRM

We have sub-titled this chapter ‘concluding thoughts’ rather than ‘conclusions’ as we believe that the subject of sustainability and HRM (Sustainable HRM) is still in the early stages of development with much thought and study still necessary before academics and practitioners are likely to come anywhere near consensus which would justify the term ‘conclusions’. Within this volume we have deliberately sought a wide variety of issues and geographical locations within which to consider the issues of sustainability and people at work. By its nature the variety has produced a wide diversity of views. We consider this range of viewpoints a strength as we believe that there are many routes and many outcomes to the ways of ‘managing’ in a sustainable way. We do recognize, however, that the variety might leave the reader with an impression of too much uncertainty so within this chapter we will draw attention to the key debates and analyses.

The Relevance of the Vision of Sustainability to HRM Practice

This chapter considers the vision of sustainability for HRM and the changes likely to be involved in managing people and organizations in more sustainable ways. We consider the likely impact on organizations and individuals on the background of personal practical experience. The chapter offers critiques of those ways of managing which may harm the long term success or survival of an organization and the environment of which it is a part. At times the chapter engages in conjecture but this cannot be avoided for a topic which has only recently entered the realm of management thought. Hence this is a guide to issues rather than a manual on how HRM practitioners must tackle the issues of sustainability and its application within organizations. The chapter is divided into sections considering the role of HRM in developing sustainable organizations. We begin by examining the role of HRM in developing sustainable organizations. Next, we view the change of emphasis in HRM ways of working. Then we consider these within the themes of complexity, planning, resourcing, rewarding, learning and managing performance. The chapter also examines the possibility that others may take advantage of those organizations which aim to manage sustainably. In the concluding thoughts we reflect on the ways that HRM can add real value to organizations and societies in sustainable ways.

Sustainable HRM in Europe

In this chapter, the European research on Sustainable HRM is explored by considering the role of context in shaping HRM practices and strategies. The authors argue that in the European context HRM is more prone to long-term thinking, to a multiple stakeholder perspective and to extending the notion of organizational performance beyond the financial bottom line. The chapter discusses the idea of European HRM taking a leading role in developing and implementing sustainability strategies and practices in organizations and also in making HRM systems themselves sustainable.