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Rhetoric, facts and self‐fulfilling prophecies: exploring practitioners’ perceptions of progress in implementing HRM
Author(s) -
Caldwell Raymond
Publication year - 2004
Publication title -
industrial relations journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.525
H-Index - 3
eISSN - 1468-2338
pISSN - 0019-8692
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-2338.2004.00309.x
Subject(s) - perception , rhetoric , sample (material) , public relations , function (biology) , psychology , survey data collection , business , political science , linguistics , philosophy , chemistry , chromatography , neuroscience , evolutionary biology , biology , statistics , mathematics
Although the virtues of ‘HRM’ are widely espoused by its proponents, evidence of its widespread uptake by UK companies has invariably been disappointing. Why? A survey using questionnaires completed by 98 personnel and HR practitioners in a sample of 350 major UK companies was used to explore perceptions of ‘progress’ in implementing HRM, and this was followed‐up by interviews of 24 survey respondents. While the survey and interview evidence clearly indicate that progress towards HRM is a profoundly contradictory and unfinished process, it also raises serious questions about the ability of the HR function and role to facilitate, oversee or lead processes of implementation.