HRM Outsourcing

HRM Outsourcing

Introduction

Within the past two decades a number of environmental shifts have resulted in emerging human resource (HR) practices in today's organizations, ones that few would have fathomed earlier. Numerous previous studies have shown about HRM activities control organizational performances throughout individual work related attitude, such as commitment, motivation, and satisfaction. Therefore, in order to remain competitive, there is a constant need to develop and implement improved HR practices. Experts suggested that high commitment HR practices including training and development are aimed at eliciting a strong bond of attachment to the organization. In more recent years organizations have sought desired outcomes from new approaches to the management and development of their human resources. One such practice drawing much attention from HR scholars and practitioners concerns outsourcing. In simple terms, outsourcing defined as turning over to another organization's employees to carry out tasks, previously performed by one's own employees. Human resource management (HRM) and human resource development (HRD) (Jones, 2001) functions have also started outsourcing core and non-core activities. Outsourcing within the HR function occurred later than outsourcing of information technology, sales and marketing, and facility operation and maintenance. The primary reason for this later adoption is that HR was often considered too sensitive to be outsourced (Martin, Reddington, 2008). Research has shown that 93 percent of HR departments outsource at least some of their work. Indeed, training and development is one functional area of HRM in which outsourcing is especially prevalent.

Discussion

Human capital theory argues that organizations should safeguard core competencies through investments in training and development. Echoing similar sentiments, it is asserted that competitive advantage is secured when organizations possess skills and capabilities that are unique and arduous to replicate or imitate by competitors. Supporting this notion, noted that moving training and development outside the purview of the ...