Missing in Action: Strategic Human Resource Management in German Nonprofits

Introduction Human service nonprofits provide labor-intensive services and, as such, employees are a major factor in determining organizational success (Maelicke, 2004). Thus, nonprofits involved in human services are highly dependent on the quality, motivation, and satisfaction of their employees for the delivery of their services (Akingbola, 2006). Job satisfaction is influenced by many endogenous factors at the workplace, such as relations with co-workers, supervisors, and clients compensation and appropriateness of wages (Glisson & Durick, 1988). Other, often underrated factors in employees' job satisfaction is their perception of human resource (HR) practices (Nishii, Lepak, & Schneider, 2008) and their evaluation of the extent to which the job fulfills their own needs and values (Locke, 1976). Research shows that the way an organization manages its human resources significantly influences Given the competitive climate in human services, it is increasingly important for nonprofits to understand their employees' perceptions of their organization's HR practices in order to implement a human resource management (HRM) that best fulfill the needs of the organization and its workforce. Even though the theoretical link between performance and employee perceptions of HR practices may be clear (Kuvaas, 2008; Truss, 2001), in practice however, organizations often either lack information on their employees' perceptions or do not incorporate this information in their HR practices (Nishii et al., 2008). This is especially true for nonprofit organizations, where little is known about how employees perceive and evaluate HR practices. Theoretically the question remains, what discourages nonprofit organizations from implementing HR practices that create job satisfaction and commitment to the organization? Are there internal or external barriers in implementing such HR practices? Are the employee perceptions of HR practices in an organization shared by HR managers? Is there a gap between the realities of what is feasible with what is desirable in effective HR practices? This research focuses on HR practices as perceived by employees and HR managers in free welfare associations (FWAs) in Germany, the main provider of social and health care services (Zimmer et al., 2004). 3 Our aim is to understand what impedes the implementation of HR practices in FWAs that could potentially improve recruitment and retention, and increase job satisfaction. Thus, we examine what is 'missing in action' in understanding the interplay of how managers and employees perceive HR practices and the barriers for implementing strategic HR practices. This line of inquiry will add to the current knowledge base on strategic …