The transfer of human resource (HR) management practices across national boundaries has become a key strategy for multinational companies to achieve competitive advantage in global markets. However, national differences are major factors complicating the process. The introduction of shared...

Purpose – Explores strategic and first‐line managers' perspectives on their role in human‐resource management and human‐resource development. Design/methodology/approach – Uses information collected from 76 hotels, owned by Hilton UK, via self‐administered questionnaires to strategic...

Purpose – This paper aims to trace the history of the BT‐Accenture e‐peopleserve joint venture, which provides HR services not only for BT but also for other clients. Design/methodology/approach – Examines the changes to HR at BT post‐privatization, the factors that gave rise to the...

Purpose – Focuses on the strategic role that human‐resource management should play to help to ensure organizational success. Design/methodology/approach – Warns managers against abdicating responsibility for leading their people, and HR specialists against empire building. Highlights how...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to outline the importance of human resources (HR) specialists being able to deal with both people issues and the strategic management of the organization. Design/methodology/approach – The paper draws on work carried out by the authors over the past two...

In today’s highly competitive business environment, all functions in an organization are increasingly expected to justify their existence by the contribution they make to that organization’s competitive advantage. This is especially true for administrative functions: traditional perceptions...

Getty Images believes that the Internet is the only way to reach a worldwide, disparate and multilingual employee group. Information technology is beginning to enable the company to deliver state‐of‐the‐art HR services. The company is a market leader in providing visual content primarily...

Companies introducing cellular manufacturing have concentrated on such technical issues as classification methods, the design of the workflow sequence and the physical arrangement of machinery for reducing set‐up times. The experience of one Australian manufacturer indicates, however, that the...

Reinsurance and financial‐services organization Swiss Re has repositioned its alternative risk resources after a radical reorganization. Strategic imperatives included establishing a new performance culture among its 500 associates, who mostly work in virtual teams as part of the new Swiss Re...

Any organization can only be as strong as the collective strengths of the individuals within the set‐up. As statements of the obvious go, that must rank pretty high. It follows, of course, that sustaining that strength through succession planning should be of prime importance to companies...