The Relationship between HRM Practices and Innovation: Perceptions of Employees in the Telecommunications Industry in Jordan

Abstract

The purpose of this research is to provide a better understanding of the relationship between human resource management (HRM) practices and innovation. This research responds to calls in the literature on HRM and innovation to consider a wider number of HRM practices that have previously been neglected and are likely to produce a positive impact on innovation awareness and commitment (Shipton et al., 2006; Zhao et al., 2012). Therefore, the research is concerned with a wide number of HRM practices and their impact on innovation awareness and commitment. The underpinning rationale is that while previous studies have revealed that HRM practices can be significant for innovation, these studies are not inclusive, and the research is still scant and in its early stages as there has been a lack of consideration of a comprehensive range of HRM practices (Shipton et al., 2006). In simple terms, previous studies have looked at the relationship between HRM practices and innovation based on a limited number of practices and at the macro or inter-organisational level. Therefore, the fundamental contribution of this thesis is the shift in perspective. While previous research has looked at a limited number of HRM practices that largely appear to be borrowed from high-performance work systems (HPWs), this thesis considers a wider range of practices that can impact on innovation at the intra-organisational level – more specifically, to study employees’ perceptions of HRM practices that may promote innovation awareness and commitment. Innovation awareness and commitment refers to the extent to which the organisation is engaged in innovation. Degree of innovativeness and the open innovation approach are studied in this research, to determine whether HRM practices can impact on radical or incremental open innovation. Additionally, departmental differences are considered in this thesis: that is whether employees in different departments have different perceptions of the extent to which HRM practices promote innovation’. To this end, the data set was obtained from two research phases. A quantitative survey was distributed to 280 employees in a Jordanian telecommunications company. Findings from the first phase of the research indicated a number of new HRM practices that were not recognised by previous studies. This research found a positive impact of HRM practices in promoting innovation, as perceived by employees. HPWs, HRM hygiene factors, motivation and communication were perceived by employees to promote innovation in their organisation. The results show that the relationship between HRM practices and innovation is perceived by employees to promote the origins of innovation, specifically open innovation and radical innovation. No support was found for expectations and sharing information to promote innovation. Phase two of the research consisted of semi-structured interviews conducted with senior managers and employees in the same company that participated in phase one. In phase two of the research, the interviews provided better insights and explanations of the results and findings from the survey questionnaire. The results from phase two confirmed the findings from the statistical analysis, and a distinctive finding was the differences between managers’ and employees’ perceptions of HRM practices. Employees identified or perceived practices that are related to their performance and that enable them to develop their levels of motivation and commitment. Managers identified practices that work in the favour of the organisation, with less focus on employee needs. This was clear when comparing which practices and indications were mentioned by managers and employees. It is worth mentioning here that, given the relatively close conceptualisation in the literature that innovation is a form of organisational performance, this thesis does not intend to rebrand ‘performance’ as ‘innovation’ per se. This is especially in this research as it seeks to understand the relationship between HRM practices and innovation by looking at employees’ perceptions of HRM practices that may promote innovation and cause their company to be perceived as an innovative workplace. This research is probably the first attempt to study the role of a comprehensive list of HRM practices in influencing innovation by considering employees’ perceptions of HRM practices that may promote innovation. Moreover, the intra-organisational level was considered, along with departments, degree of innovativeness (radical-incremental innovation) and types of innovation approach (open vs closed).