Human resource development and performance

Posted on by Miha Škerlavaj

Tomislav Hernaus (University of Zagreb), Matej Černe (University of Ljubljana, School of Economics and Business), and myself just published a research article The interplay between relational job design and cross‐training in predicting employee job/task citizenship performance in the journal Human Resource Development Quarterly (top 3 in the field of industrial relations and labor). Above all, we were interested how human resource managers and leaders in general can utilize modern approaches towards training and job design to improve employee performance. Welcome to read and comment.

Abstract: Drawing on a relational perspective to human resource development and management (HRD/M), a multilevel and multisource field study has been conducted examining how HRM practices of job interaction requirements/task interdependence and HRD practice of cross‐training interplay in order to enhance employees’ job/task citizenship performance (JCP). A two‐level research model from a sample of 43 organizations and 535 nested individuals demonstrates that socially enriched jobs (interactive and interdependent), when supplemented with organizational (system‐wide) cross‐training opportunities, increase extra efforts among employees to complete activities which are not part of their in‐role requirements. Thus, by applying a 1‐2‐1 moderation analysis, we offer new knowledge about social and cognitive aspects of human behavior above and beyond the traditional focus on narrowly defined job/task performance. In addition, we explicate how mutual understanding across job positions may practically contribute to achieving superior individual‐level JCP when relational architecture of the workplace is designed.

HRMJ – knowledge hiding and innovative work behavior

Posted on by Miha Škerlavaj

In our recent study published at the Human Resource Management Journal and special issue on HRM and innovation, we show that job design (task interdependence and autonomy) and mastery climates can reduce the negative association between knowledge hiding and innovative work behavior.

This study investigates the multilevel interplay among team-level, job-related, and individual characteristics in stimulating employees’ innovative work behavior (IWB) based on the theoretical frameworks of achievement goal theory (AGT) and job characteristics theory (JCT). A multilevel two-source study of 240 employees and their 34 direct supervisors in two medium-sized Slovenian companies revealed significant two- and three–way interactions, where a mastery climate, task interdependence, and decision autonomy moderated the relationship between knowledge hiding and IWB. When employees hide knowledge, a team mastery climate only facilitates high levels of IWB if accompanied by either high task interdependence or high decision autonomy. In the absence of one of these job characteristics, knowledge hiding prevents higher levels of IWB
even in the case of strong team mastery climate. The results suggest that multiple job design antecedents are necessary to neutralize the negative influence of knowledge hiding on micro-innovation processes within organizations.

Job crafting – where does it come from and what can leaders do about it?

Posted on by Miha Škerlavaj

Job crafting HRM 2016

Welcome to read and comment our recent research piece on autonomy, job crafting, and leadership – Sut I Wong, Miha Škerlavaj and Matej Černe (2016): Build Coalitions to Fit: Autonomy Expectations, Competence Mobilization, and Job Crafting, Human Resource Management.

Job crafting offers several beneficial organizational outcomes, yet little is known about what makes employees engage in it. In particular, the role of leaders in influencing their subordinates to engage in job crafting has been insufficiently studied. Drawing on role theory, we suggest that the congruence of leader-subordinate autonomy expectations nurtures subordinates’ experiences of having their competences adequately utilized in their jobs. This experience, which involves the competence mobilization of their work roles, subsequently fosters subordinates’ engagement in job-crafting behavior. A two-stage field study of 145 leader-subordinate dyads using cross-level polynomial regression and response surface analysis supported the (in)congruence hypotheses. The results also demonstrated that subordinates’ perceived competence mobilization mediates the relationship between autonomy expectation (in)congruence and job crafting. In addition, leader coalition as a moderator strengthens the effect of perceived competence mobilization as a psychological condition for job crafting. Implications for practice and future research are discussed.

Zavzetost zaposlenih: Oblikovanje delovnih mest in povezav med zaposlenimi

Posted on by Miha Škerlavaj

Zavzetost zaposlenih je izjemno zanimiv organizacijski pojav, saj je močno povezana z boljšimi rezultati poslovanja in kot takšna v osrčju delovanja managerjev. Z Leo Pfajfar sva pripravila strokovni prispevek, ki kaže kako je mogoče s kombinacijo dveh managerskih orodij vplivati na večjo zavzetost zaposlenih. Celotna objava je na razpolago v HRM reviji: PFAJFAR, Lea, ŠKERLAVAJ, Miha. Zavzetost zaposlenih za delo: spodbudimo jo z ustreznim oblikovanjem delovnih mest in povezav med zaposlenimi. HRM (Ljubl.), jun. 2013, letn. 11, št. 53, str. 28-33, povzetek pa spodaj:

Ni dovolj, da v podjetjih zagotavljamo prijetno organizacijsko klimo in skrbimo zgolj za zadovoljstvo zaposlenih. Zadovoljstvo zaposlenih je namreč potreben, ne pa tudi zadosten pogoj za uspešnost organizacij saj je lahko povezano tudi z dejavniki, ki niso koristni z vidika organizacije. V času krize zmagujejo podjetja, ki svojo konkurenčno prednost povečujejo s pomočjo za delo zavzetih zaposlenih. Podjetja z bolj zavzetimi zaposleni imajo lahko kar do 50% večjo produktivnost, zato pa tudi večjo rast prihodkov in dobičkonosnosti (Harter et al., 2002; Towers, 2003). Žal pa raziskave kažejo tudi to, da je več kot 50% zaposlenih nezavzetih za delo (Blacksmith & Harter, 2011). Raziskava, ki smo jo opravili v slovenskem IT podjetju z nekaj več kot 200 zaposlenimi, je pokazala, da zavzetost zaposlenega za delo lahko spodbudimo s pravilno oblikovanim delovnim mestom in s spodbujanjem deljenja nasvetov med zaposlenimi (Pfajfar, 2012).