Are new organisations at the cutting edge of employment relations innovation?

Author:

Peetz David,Muurlink Olav,Townsend Keith,Wilkinson Adrian,Brabant Madeleine

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore differences in the degree of innovation in employment relations (ER) between emerging and established firms, Design/methodology/approach A large national telephone survey (N=1,416) of both emerging (<5 years) and established firms was conducted. Findings Emerging firms were more casualised, less unionised, and experiencing higher levels of market expansion and unpredictability. Despite these differences, younger firms showed otherwise remarkable similarity to older firms across a range of ER practices, and both categories showed a reliance on business networks, rather formal training, for ER knowledge. While introducing ER changes more rapidly than older (and larger) firms, they were converging towards a suite of ER practices similar to that adopted by older firms. The results suggest that, if anything, established firms may have been engaged in greater innovation in more unusual ER practices. Research limitations/implications Only managers were surveyed. The data are cross-sectional rather than longitudinal. As the study was undertaken in only one country, replication in other settings would be desirable. Originality/value The results raise major doubts about the notion that new firms represent the cutting edge of innovation, and highlights the degree to which newer firms match or mimic older firms’ ER architecture.

Publisher

Emerald

Subject

Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management,Applied Psychology

Reference67 articles.

1. It’s a small world: managing human resources in small businesses;International Journal of Human Resource Management,1996

2. Greenfield sites: purpose, potential and pitfalls;Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources,2001

3. What’s so special about small firms? Developing an integrated approach to analyzing small firm industrial relations;Work, Employment and Society,2001

Cited by 2 articles. 订阅此论文施引文献 订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3