The Diffusion of Human Resource Transformation in Scandinavia: A Supply-Side Perspective

Since the turn of the millennium, human resource transformation (HRT) has emerged as a popular management concept among organizations and consultants around the world. HRT has been presented as a recipe for how to transform the traditional personnel function and make personnel and HR work in more business-oriented, cost-effective, and value-creating ways. Through a comparative study of the actors that make up the so-called “management fashion arena” around HRT in the Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden, and Denmark), the study provides insight into how the national actors influence and shape the diffusion of popular management concepts. The study shows that there are both similarities and differences between how the supply side is configured in the three countries. For example, large consulting firms have played an influential role in all three countries, while the influence of actors such as business schools and professional organizations varies considerably between the countries. The findings also suggest that there are powerful alliances between actors involved in the diffusion of HRT. Overall, the study sheds light on the global diffusion and “travel” of a predominantly North American-based HR concept and its reception in Scandinavia.

New avenues for HRM roles: A systematic literature review on HRM in hybrid organizations

In recent decades, the emergence of hybrid organizational forms has placed new demands on the role of human resource management (HRM) contributing to organizational goals. Moreover, research emphasizes that the increasing hybridity of contexts, stakeholder requirements, and goals lead to organizational tensions that, if not properly addressed, can lead to organizational downfall. However, although organization and management research recognize the importance of elaborating HRM roles for hybrid contexts, drawing upon findings from the hybrid literature has been widely neglected. Thus, by mapping the research landscape regarding hybridity, this article provides insight into the configuration of organizational HRM roles and functions that contribute to the development of hybrid goals and are associated to the management of tensions. Significantly, this article introduces three specific HRM roles— hybrid strategist, capability adapter, and identification generator—as essential HRM roles for hybrid contexts.

Handling tensions in human resource management: Insights from paradox theory

We have two aims in this article. Our first aim is conceptual where we enrich tensions-focused human resource management (HRM) research with insights from paradox theory. The second aim is to provide guidance for how HR practitioners can handle tensions that never go away. We focus on HR practitioners because they play leading roles in managing employment practices and designing intended HRM practices. We elaborate on the issue of handling tensions and apply a set of response strategies suggested by paradox theory, including suppressing, opposing, splitting and adjusting. Finally, we illustrate these response strategies and their consequences using an example of hiring practices.