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When East meets West: comparing the utilization of high‐performance work systems in Chinese and Irish professional service firms
Author(s) -
Fu Na,
Ma Qinhai,
Flood Patrick C,
Bosak Janine,
Liu Yang,
Zhang Yang
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
asia pacific journal of human resources
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.825
H-Index - 33
eISSN - 1744-7941
pISSN - 1038-4111
DOI - 10.1111/1744-7941.12094
Subject(s) - remuneration , work systems , context (archaeology) , service (business) , human resource management , work (physics) , operations management , business , knowledge management , marketing , computer science , engineering , finance , mechanical engineering , paleontology , biology
The aim of this study was to explore the differences and similarities in the utilization of high‐performance work systems ( HPWS ) in C hinese and I rish professional service firms ( PSFs ). Using data collected from 112 C hinese and 120 I rish accounting firms, we found that C hinese PSFs demonstrate higher scores in selective recruitment and contingent remuneration, while I rish PSFs show higher scores in performance management and training. C hinese and I rish PSFs employed similar levels of information sharing and participation and had similar scores on an overall HPWS index. Consistent results were found for the positive relationship between HPWS and organizational performance in both C hinese and I rish PSFs despite their different utilization of HPWS elements. This cross‐national study provides insights into the differences between eastern and western approaches in managing human resources in the professional service context and demonstrates the potential value of using HPWS to improve performance in PSFs .