Research has often called for studies that attempt to explain the complex causal chain known as the “black box” between human resource management (HRM) activities and individual-level outcomes. To explore the dynamics within the “black box,” this study investigates the influence of HRM activities (e.g., practices and processes) on individual-level outcomes, taking into consideration psychological empowerment as a mediating mechanism. Furthermore, to investigate how HRM activities affect individual-level outcomes, one must consider how HRM activities interrelate to create synergistic effects. Subsequently, this research contributes to the literature of strategic HRM research by investigating how and why systems of HRM activities influence individual-level outcomes.

The main topic of this master thesis is a company impacted by the current economic crisis and the role of the human resource management within the crisis. The thesis firstly provides theoretical basis, defines terms and explains associations. It focuses on the company and its goals, then on the economic cycle, recession and crisis and afterwards dedicates to the human resource management and human resource activities including the approach and procedures that are typical for the time of crisis. Then the focus is on the current economic crisis and its origin in the USA, impacts on the Slovak Republic where the analyzed company is located. Afterwards the thesis provides an introduction of the analyzed company and describes and analyzes the human resource management and hr activities in this company. The final part is dedicated to the complex evaluation of the hr area in this firm and of the approach and changes that were implemented as a reaction to the situation caused by the crisis. The thesis also suggests and recommends some steps and changes, that could help the company improve its situation.

It is widely acknowledged that discipline at work is a neglected area of study in the context of contemporary employee relations. Within the workplace the handling of discipline is largely prescribed by formal rules that are captured in policies, applied through procedures and then interpreted by the actors who facilitate this process. This thesis argues that an empirical understanding of the disciplinary process can only be achieved if it includes an appreciation of the nature of the relationship that is established during the disciplinary process and that this is crucial for us to develop a full understanding of the dynamics that take place within this activity and between these functions. It contends that throughout the process of disciplinary handling there exists a highly contested terrain (Edwards, 1979) that is constantly contended by the various actors that play out this vital role in relation to aspects of power, control and consent.

I en värld som ständigt förändras och utvecklas kan det finnas ett pågående tryck hos organisationer att behålla värdefull kunskap men även att identifiera var kunskap saknas och åtgärda detta. Arbetet med detta hos organisationer kallas ofta för ”kompetensförsörjning”. Syftet med denna studie är att identifiera hur arbetet med kompetensförsörjning i vissa fall kan se ut för HR-medarbetare och chefer i en offentlig verksamhet. Studien är kvalitativ och innehåller tidigare forskning gällande Human Resources och kompetensförsörjning . I studien har fyra halvstrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med fyra respondenter som alla arbetar med HR inom offentlig sektor. Därefter har data blivit tematisk analyserat för att ge form till de olika teman som återfinns i resultatet. Resultatet påvisar att både HR-medarbetare och chefer är delaktiga i arbetet med kompetensförsörjning, men att cheferna ofta tilldelas utvalda ansvarsområden och att HR-medarbetare har det övergripande ansvaret och fungerar som en specialistfunktion. Slutsatsen påvisar att både HRmedarbetare och chefers olika kunskaper är viktiga beståndsdelar i kompetensförsörjningen men även att det finns alternativa arbetssätt som skulle vara önskvärda om tid och möjlighet funnits.

This thesis integrates theory and practice of team coaching into a holistic framework relevant to professional coaches and professional coach educators. I adopt an autoethnographic approach, exploring team coaching via three fieldwork sites; two sites where I am the team coach and thirdly a discussion group of professional coaches. Fieldwork data is collated chronologically and implicit knowledge is surfaced through story telling as a mechanism of sense making to answer the question: What is going on when I am coaching a team? In analysing and interpreting my stories, I take a postmodernist theoretical perspective, adopting a deconstructive approach which seeks to elucidate multiple ways of knowing and seeing. The resulting framework draws on four metaphors. Team as machine that follows a functionalist model of effectiveness that can be managed through behaviours and process. Team as family, which illuminates the interwoven nature of individual relationships and suggests strategies to create safe, mutually respectful collaborative behaviours. Team as living system represents the experience of teams thriving within a dynamic interrelated environment. Finally, the team and coach in Wonderland depicts a coaching assignment as analogous to following the White Rabbit into Wonderland. In a strange environment we may feel uncertain and vulnerable, however, curiosity enables us to remain open to possibilities. Each metaphorical perspective offers a ‘mode of awareness’ from which to operate as a coach. The framework develops our understanding of team coaching by bringing together diverse theoretical streams to inform what is going on in a new and accessible way as the metaphorical devices encapsulate complex ideas with simplicity. I contribute to team coaching practice as professional coaches can use the metaphorical language allied with theory to plan and reflect upon coaching assignments, consider relevant coaching approaches and engage in supervision. A shared language of metaphors provides researchers and practitioners with a new way to describe team coaching, creating a foundation on which to progress development in the future. In addition, the framework provides the basis for a coach development curriculum. I distinguish between team coaching and other team-based interventions and highlight how dyadic coaching practices may be applied within the team context to enable professionals from a variety of backgrounds to engage with the framework. Finally, I offer a transparent insight into a different way of investigating professional coaching practice describing how autoethnography allows us to tell practice stories in ways that are both evocative, insightful and open to analysis.

For both large and small companies involved in the internationalisation of world-wide markets, the successful management of expatriate assignment is an important part of overseas commercial activities.This investigation was concerned with expatriate management in fifty, multinational and international organisations in Australia, Singapore and Malaysia to contribute to the enhancement of success and reduction of failure of expatriate assignments.Data was collected to heighten the awareness of practitioners and academics to the value of dealing differently with expatriates. In forecasting the value of expatriates and the importance of global trade in the future, it was shown that the most successful companies are those able to identify and select an ample number of appropriate international managers. Where suitable candidates for relocation are not selected, higher than normal turnover occurs.The unique Australasian models developed and tested in this thesis are a direct response to the results of current research and encourage current practice to be less static. resulting in the rate of expatriate failure being reduced substantially.

This paper focuses on three main themes. Firstly, what is Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) and the rhetoric surrounding it? Secondly, does the reality match the rhetoric? Thirdly, is the model that has been adopted by the private sector an appropriate model for the Australian public sector to be using? HR has been criticised for being an administrative function that is regulatory and compliance based, adding little value to an organisation. SHRM provides a strategic focus, involving the partnering of HR and line areas to provide value added people services. SHRM has been described by some theorists (Ulrich, Rothwell et al) as the only way of the future for the HR function. The model/s of SHRM that have been adopted by the private sector are now being promoted by the Public Service and Merit Protection Commission as the way forward for HR in the Australian Public Service. This paper discusses the appropriateness of the SHRM model/s for the public sector by examining what is happening in the HR area in three Commonwealth Government departments: Health and Aged Care, Transport and Regional Services and Family and Community Services. It examines the dilemmas for the HR functions as they try to move to an SHRM approach in these organisations, and suggests models that are appropriate to the public sector context.

<p>Många multinationella företag (MNC) ställs inför problemet hur de skall kunna implementera sina strategier i alla sina dotterbolag då det kan finnas både stora kulturella och legala skillnader mellan olika länder. Ett område som detta märks tydligt på är human resource management (HRM) då företaget måste anpassa sig till både den lokala arbetsmarknadens regler och lagar samt MNC:ts övergripande strategi. För att kunna hantera det här problemet finns det flera lösningar och ett vanligt sätt är att föra över mer eller mindre beslutanderätt till dotterbolaget.</p><p>Den här uppsatsen undersöker vilken autonomi ett svenskt dotterbolag till ett amerikanskt läkemedelsbolag har när det gäller HRM. För att kunna undersöka det har vi gått igenom aktuell forskning inom området för att se vad som finns skrivet om liknande fall utomlands. Därefter har vi gjort en fallstudie med två kvalitativa intervjuer på Merck Sharp & Dohmes (MSD) svenska dotterbolag. Utifrån vår teori har vi sedan analyserat intervjusvaren och kommit fram till att MSD Sverige har en begränsad autonomi när det gäller HRM. Generellt gäller att MSD Sverige har att röra sig inom de ramar som moderbolaget sätter upp i form av policys och andra regler. Vi generaliserar även mot vår teori och kan med relativt stor säkerhet säga att dessa förhållanden även gäller andra amerikanska dotterbolag i Sverige. Avslutningsvis ger vi förslag på intressanta ämnen för framtida forskning.</p>

Sweden is entering a time characterized by a shortfall of qualified labour. Thus companies will have to hold on to, and develop their most valued employees since it is getting harder to find competent replacements. By finding and developing Talents, companies will improve their position in the market and perhaps even create a competitive advantage. The academic discipline concerning locating, assessing, developing and retaining Talents is called Talent Management. Purpose To identify how the most desirable employers in Sweden work with Talent Management, and implications following its practises. Method The selection was made based on the response of a pre-study of 30 large Swedish companies recognised for their employment practises. Nine oral interviews, with a number of HR professionals at the corporations, were performed to investigate how they utilise Talent Management to create more value from human resources. The thesis takes a multiple case study approach investigating the utilization of Talent Management practises in Sweden. Conclusion The Swedish dialect of Talent Management correlates with the frame presented by theory. Swedish firms are mostly locating Talents internally but are willing to use outsourcing for some recruitments. Talents’ competencies are more important than their credentials. Within the frame of their job description, Talents are encouraged to find creative solutions to solve their tasks. Swedish firms are increasingly using assessment and clear feedback as foundation for the individual development plans. Within the individual development plans there is on-the-job training, job rotation and mentors. This is also a part of the retention process which focuses on recognition, relocation and career management. Implications of the work with Talent Management in Sweden are; since the companies investigated employed, or were about to employ, Talent Management processes, it seems that they are well prepared for the future war for Talents and will better cope with the gap occurring when baby boomers retire. Thus, firms adapting to Talent Management, and sees the strategic importance of it, can gain a competitive advantage against others not concerned with these practises.

The purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of how Cross-Cultural Training (CCT) can contribute job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is one of the crucial lessons for hotel human resource management. There are many factors studied in the past literatures affecting job satisfaction, such as the compensation system, the promotion opportunities, organizational culture, and so on; however, the purpose of this research is to evaluate Cross Cultural Training, as the factor, to study how the job satisfaction will be affected. This study takes one international hotel located in Taipei as the object to analyze how job satisfaction can be affected and contributed. The results are found as follows: 1¡B Regarding the design of CCT, it is proved that ¡§On-the-job Training¡¨ is the most appropriate design to conduct CCT to increase job satisfaction. Most of the interviewees are with the opinion that ¡§learning by doing¡¨ is the most efficient and effective way to be trained. 2¡B Regarding the duration of CCT, it is found that ¡§One month¡¨ is the best duration to conduct CCT; however, it is also distinguished that the duration of CCT depends much on the demand in different departments. 3¡B Regarding the strategy method of CCT, it is found that the responses from the interviewees are quite concordant, which are mainly focused on ¡§Simulations¡¨, ¡§Expositive Instructions¡¨, and ¡§Behavior Modification¡¨. 4¡B Regarding the profit of CCT, all interviewees agree that CCT is profitable since it will limit inefficiency and increase job satisfaction.