Theoretical perspectives for strategic human resource management

Journal of Management, June, 1992 by Patrick M. Wright, Gary C. McMahan

Another example of the behavioral perspective can be found in Miles and Snow's (1984) description of the different types of behaviors necessary for strategies within the Miles and Snow (1978) organizational type framework. These authors compared the strategy types of defenders, prospectors, and analyzers with regard to the different types of HR practices required. The authors did not explicitly address the needed role behaviors that are associated with the different strategy types. However, similar to the behavioral perspective, they assumed that HR practices differ among strategy types due to the different behaviors and skills necessary to carry out the strategy.

It is important to note that these models do not focus on the knowledge, skills, and abilities of employees, focusing instead only on role behaviors. Schuler and Jackson (1987) stated "the rationale developed is based on what is needed from employees apart from the specific technical skills, knowledges and abilities (SKA's) required to perform a specific task" (208). Although not ignoring the relationship with the firm's external environment, the behavioral perspective focuses predominantly on the throughput transformation process. This is evidenced by the assumption that employee role behavior, in a generic sense, is the main mediator between strategy and the effective achievement of the strategy.

The research implications of this theoretical perspective rest primarily in three areas. First, this theory is quite specific regarding the hypothesized role behaviors required by different strategies; thus, the validity of these propositions can be tested. However, as yet, virtually no research has examined the validity of these hypothesized relationships.

Second, studies would do well to focus on the types of HR practices which are effective in eliciting these role behaviors. For example, if we assume that we can specify the most effective role behaviors, then research could focus on examining which particular HR practices are being used, and the effectiveness of these techniques for eliciting those behaviors. For example, Jackson, Schuler, and Rivero (1989) found that different organizational characteristics (including strategy) affect some HRM practices. Although their study was not exhaustive, it provides a model for future research in this area.

Finally, the assumption of the behavioral perspective is that strategies lead to HRM practices that elicit employee role behaviors that lead to a number of outcomes that provide benefits to the firm. Although firm performance seems to be the most obvious outcome of good HR practices, Walker and Bechet (1991) noted a number of additional outcomes of SHRM such as employee attitudes, accident rates, productivity, and labor costs. Once again, though this model seems to have some intuitive appeal, there is no empirical data demonstrating that employee role behaviors do lead to positive organizational outcomes. Thus, the entire model could be tested to demonstrate (a) different strategies are associated with different levels of firm performance, and (b) that the relationship between strategies and firm performance is either mediated or moderated by HRM practices and employee role behaviors.