Bleak house or bright prospect?: HRM in Australian SMEs over 1998-2008
Article
Article Title | Bleak house or bright prospect?: HRM in Australian SMEs over 1998-2008 |
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ERA Journal ID | 22101 |
Article Category | Article |
Authors | Wiesner, Retha (Author) and Innes, Peter (Author) |
Journal Title | Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources |
Journal Citation | 48 (2), pp. 151-184 |
Number of Pages | 34 |
Year | 2010 |
Publisher | John Wiley & Sons |
Place of Publication | London, United Kingdom |
ISSN | 1032-3627 |
1038-4111 | |
1744-7941 | |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | https://doi.org/10.1177/1038411110368465 |
Web Address (URL) | http://apj.sagepub.com/content/48/2/151.short |
Abstract | The aim of this paper is to determine whether Australian small and medium enterprises (SMEs) could be described as 'bleak houses' or whether they have developed over the last decade into 'bright prospects' typified by human resource innovations. This study builds on empirical work (n = 1425) from ten years ago (1998), and re-examines the prospects of SMEs through the lens of human resource management (HRM) practices. Uniquely, the 2008 cross-sectional data provides for the large-scale tracking of strategic HRM practices. Specifically, 110 HRM practices over five traditional areas across 1230 SMEs are analysed. The prevalence, change, and patterning of HRM practices used by Australian SMEs in 2008 are investigated. It was found that SMEs need less of a make-over in relation to the adoption of HR practices, compared to a decade ago. From a practitioner viewpoint, the study provides cross-sectional benchmarking against the previous time-point, 1998, as well as extending that work with an examination of a more extensive range of new and emerging HRM practices. |
Keywords | Australia; human resource management; HRM; SMEs; small business |
ANZSRC Field of Research 2020 | 350799. Strategy, management and organisational behaviour not elsewhere classified |
520104. Industrial and organisational psychology (incl. human factors) | |
350503. Human resources management | |
Public Notes | Contact Dr Retha Wiesner at wiesner@usq.edu.au for any queries. |
Byline Affiliations | Australian Centre for Sustainable Business and Development |
University of the Sunshine Coast |
https://research.usq.edu.au/item/q0164/bleak-house-or-bright-prospect-hrm-in-australian-smes-over-1998-2008
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