Knowledge Management for Business Processes: Employees ...

Knowledge Management for Business Processes: Employees’ Recruitment and Human Resources’ Selection: A Combined Literature Review and a Case Study Miltiadis Chalikias1, Grigorios Kyriakopoulos2,∗, Michalis Skordoulis3, and Michalis Koniordos4 1

Laboratory of Applied Economic Statistics and Operations Research, Department of Business Administration, School of Business and Economics, Technological Institute of Piraeus, 250 Thivon & Petrou Ralli Av., 12244 Egaleo, Greece [email protected] 2 School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Electric Power Division, Photometry Laboratory, National Technical University of Athens, 9 Heroon Polytechniou St., 15780 Athens, Greece [email protected], [email protected] 3 Laboratory of Management Information Systems and New Technologies, Department of Business Administration, School of Business and Economics, Technological Institute of Piraeus, 250 Thivon & Petrou Ralli Av., 12244 Egaleo, Greece [email protected] 4 Department of Business Administration, School of Business and Economics, Technological Institute of Piraeus, 250 Thivon & Petrou Ralli Av., 12244 Egaleo, Greece [email protected]

Abstract. Nowadays many businesses have been focused on the recruitment and selection of the appropriate employees, in order to deploy their entrepreneurial activities. Besides, on the employees’ behalf, the increased competitiveness in a worldwide level of analysis necessitates that all employees to be facilitated with advanced capabilities throughout the organizational hierarchy. In effect, these businesses adopt and develop contemporary processes for their employees’ recruitment and selection, in order to ensure increased productivity and effectiveness in a liquefied economic environment. The development of appropriate schemes of selection and recruitment, in line to the ongoing and in-field investment of education, skills and training, are determining factors to the prosperity of manufacturing industry. The ultimate goals of knowledge management in a strategic, innovative, and operational level of decision making is the achievement of greater awareness of the interactive role of science, engineering, and technology towards businesses’ success, as well as the development of flexible organizational structures that encourage entrepreneurial creativity, structural flexibility, and managerial change. In the present study, the determining parameters of employees’ recruitment and human resources’ selection are presented in a literature ∗

Corresponding author.

A. Kravets et al. (Eds.): JCKBSE 2014, CCIS 466, pp. 503–518, 2014. © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2014

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M. Chalikias et al. overview, while the inclusion of a Case Study –being based on an innovativeoriented pharmaceutical company– reveal this company’s prominent role of indentifying new markets and opportunities that might emerge and then choosing to respond to these long-term visions by activating its competitive advantages in a Management-Technology-Strategy tripartite pattern, rather than being forced into action by competitors. Keywords: Business processes, employment, human resources selection, knowledge management, recruitment, review.

1

Introduction

Employees’ performance is an utmost importance factor that reflects the strategic procedures’ achievement, the development of competitive advantages over the competitors, as well as the overall prosperity of a company (Bowen and Ostroff, 2004; Wright et al., 2001). Employees’ performance is associated with two parameters, the worker capabilities and his/her effort while working. Capabilities are related to selection and learning, either through already educated employees or as the accumulated result of ongoing work and lifelong education. In parallel, workers’ effort is the combined result of businesses practice and incentives’ provision towards the workforce (Wright et al., 1995). These practices are in accordance to wages, goals’ determination, workplace specifications, as well as the communication paths between the employees and their employers. Nevertheless, the precondition of the above practices is that employees have obtained the relevant capabilities in order to implement them within their everyday working tasks (Gatewood et al., 2008). Human Resource Management (HRM) refers to all necessary policies and procedures that a company adopts in order to manipulate its workforce in an optimum level. The main characteristics of an integrated Human Resources Management are the following: acquaintance, belonging, motives, and human resources development (HRD) (DeCenzo and Robbins, 1988). Storey et.al. (1989) classified HRM into five characteristics, namely: selection, performance, evaluation, rewards, and human resources development, while Beer et.al. (1985) pointed out the critical role of employees within the HRM context. Huselid (1995) stated that HRM practices contribute to the development of competitive advantages, which are aligned with the competitive strategies of a company. This study revealed the integrated approach of HRM with issues such as company turnover, company assets, as well as the Tobin Q index; the latter correlates the business worth with its assets. Finally, employees’ selection is a prevalent factor to a company’s prosperity, since it forms the substrate of effective motivation for its employees and ensures that all employees are capable to complete their working tasks (Gatewood et al., 2008).

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Features of Employees’ Recruitment

Employees’ recruitment is based on the HRM processes which predict current and future needs of workforce that should be satisfied with existing employees (internal recruitment) or as a new job position offered. The processes of employees’ recruitment are the sources of recruitment, the employees who participate in the recruitment, the content of the recruitment (such as sources of information), as well as the development of the recruitment. Indicatively, according to Gatewood et al. (2008), sources of information affect the data collection and manipulation within a company. Indeed, it is commonly accepted the fact that advertisements and recruitment agencies are less contingent regarding the employees’ qualification, while other more credible sources involve the internal processes of controlling the workforce, such as the recruitment of employees among University graduates or according to sources that are based on the reports of existing employees. Employees are exposed to both positive and negative aspects of HRM/HRD (Breaugh and Starke, 2000). Rynes and Cable (2003) investigated the employees’ involvement to HRM/HRD in line to demographic characteristics, the personality, the specialization and the specification of recruitment agencies, in order to reveal whether these features could affect the employees’ behavior towards a job’s description and offer package. Chapman et al. (2005) signified that businesses should proceed in employees’ hiring on the ground of their positive interpersonal behavior. The development of the recruitment is sparsely studied in the relevant literature. Particularly, Arvey et al. (1975) and Rynes et al. (1991) denoted that the development of recruitment is positively related to the accelerated pace of response to candidates during each recruiting step, whether they are eligible or not to the job offered. This prompt response of the business implies that either the business is credible, thus it is a worthy workplace for the candidate, or that the candidate has impressed the recruitment personnel thus s/he has good chance to be hired. The content of the recruitment should be overly positive to a job applicant, implying wages’ advantage, credible and supportive colleagues, cozy working environ-ment, hierarchy ranking opportunities, rewards, and working challenges. Contrarily, the above features should offer an illusive environment, while an employee could not meet these expectations. Wanous (1980) suggested a realistic job preview in order that candidates should balance out both the positive and the negative aspects of their job offered. This accrued information results in an auto-selection process, balancing out the confrontation of the negative aspects in a manageable manner. Therefore, candidates who remain active in the job offer consist the “human pool” which matches to the demands and specifications of the job offered (Wanous, 1973). These realistic job previews should be incorporated within all steps of recruitment (Rynes and Cable, 2003), while it is also observed that job applicants are badly affected towards the negative aspects of a job company and its hosting company, preferring to work in a company that adopts traditional ways of recruitment (Bretz and Judge, 1998). Subsequently, the realistic job preview shows a weak positive association with job satisfaction and a weak negative association with the company turnover

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(Buckley et al., 1997). Therefore, balanced information regarding the job offers and the company itself prerequisites the appropriate treatment of job applicants. The potential decision of a job applicant to either keep his/her interest to a company or to express indifference, should be based on his anticipation and affection to this company (Gatewood et al., 1993). Even in the initial steps of the recruitment process, detailed information about the company are welcome and positively appreciated from the job applicants (Rynes and Cable, 2003), while other applicants value the quantity and the specification of information in line to the company notable brand name and status (Barber and Roehling, 1993). 2.1

Attractiveness and Goals in the Recruitment Procedure

Breaugh and Starke (2000) have described a model of employees’ selection according to which a company should recruit its workforce by determining its goals. Subsequently, it is important for this company to draw his strategy in order to implement these goals, while the following steps of recruitment that should be accomplished are: sources, employees/job applicants, content of recruitment (incorporates known information), and development of recruitment. Conclusively, the results of the recruitment process are the number of job applicants, their cognitive and capabilities’ level, the diversity of their expertise and the final number of successful applicants. According to Chapman et al. (2005) the recruitment procedure incorporates the organizational activities, such as the selection of the collecting pool and the job advertisement, all of which affect the plethora of the specifically-qualified job applicants as well as their decision to accept of refuse a job offer. Rynes (1991) denoted the interlinking features between selection and recruitment, since selection specifications of a company play a dominant role to the sources of recruitment, regarding the legislative protection of equal opportunities and the collective bargaining. According to Gatewood et al. (2008), recruitment has three main goals: • • •

The accruing of an appropriate number of job applicants (at least ten candidates per job offer), while keeping the recruitment process in affordable cost. The need of the company to comply with its legislative and social responsibilities, regarding the demographic composition of its workforce. The increased possibilities of the appropriate applicant selection, eliminating the number of candidates with insufficient capabilities/qualifications throughout the steps of recruitment.

Koch and McGrath (1996) examined the association between the HRD design, recruitment, selection practices and the job productivity. These authors concluded that the productive workforce should be proven a valuable strategic advantage, since companies which developed effective processes to attract their workforce should obtain a competitive and incomparable “pool of trustworthy talents”.


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Sources of Employees’ Recruitment

There is a distinct role of external and internal source of employees’ recruitment that resides to the fact that the nature of data collection is distinct in both cases. In the external recruitment there are little previously known data, while the internal recruitment refers to existing employees who have already some level of affiliation with their company’s function. Therefore, the audit of external to the company applicants prerequisites the practices of interviewing and examinations, whereas the relevant evaluation of the existing employees to a new job offer within the same company should be achieved through the discussion, re-evaluation, and matching of their qualifications to the upper ranking positions within the company’s hierarchy (Gatewood et al., 2008). Numerous studies have been devoted to the selection processes of appropriate job applicants. These studies have shown that in a long term basis, a combination of internal and external sources of recruitment enables to companies to survive and even developed in a continuously liquefied economic environment. The main internal sources of recruitment information are (Gatewood et al., 2008): • • • • •

Table of the company announcements, periodical issues, newspapers, intranet. Workforce databases. Employees’ recommendations. Internal jobs’ shift. Prior employees and walk-ins.

The main external sources of recruitment information are (Gatewood et al., 2008): • • • • • •

Job agencies. Employees’ databases. Internet facilities. Unions and professional bodies. Press advertisements. Colleges and educational centers from secondary education.

A wide range of studies have investigated the different traits of the aforementioned sources of recruitment information, leading to contradicting outcomes. Collins και Stevens (2002) postulated the interactive role of the recruitment sources, especially affecting the perceptions of job applicants regarding the decisive role of job specifications’ and the company status. Horwitz et al. (2003) studied the most and the least effective strategies that compound the administrative tool of companies in Singapore towards the recruitment, job package offer as well as the last longing employment of specialized employees. According to Horwitz et al. (2003), the most popular strategies of recruitment are: • • •

The targeted advertisement. The internal development of the employees’ talents. The involvement of professionals to find and hire the appropriate employees (“headhunters”).

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• •

The attractiveness of Internet facilities. Career plans that are designed to workforce relocation.

Nevertheless, the aforementioned strategies do not guaranty their effectiveness. Contrarily, the following strategies, being positioned in a ranking hierarchy, are capable to attract job applicants to more viable manner (Horwitz et al., 2003): • • • • •

The competitive package offer. The internal development and promote of the talents among the existing employees. The notable status of the employer. The direct initiatives to attract competitive and ambitious job applicants. The targeted advertisement.

The least effective strategies to attract job applicants, are positioned in the following hierarchy ranking (Horwitz et al., 2003): • • • • •

The job attractiveness through Internet. Advertisements. Professional “headhunters”. The recruitment reports. Interviews conducted from University students.

It is noteworthy that Internet facilities obtained a dominant role to employees’ recruitment during the last years. The main web technique is the encouragement of a site visitor to submit his/her biographical data for future job offers through e-mailing (Cappeli, 2001). Therefore, this administrative tool to recruitment should express optimum benefits to both company and candidates, adopting the following suggestions (Foster, 2003): • • • •

The recruitment of employees who are aware of the company features. The development of a web site that aims to attract employees. The pick up of energetic and dynamic employees. The determination, but no stigmatization, of the lazy job applicants.

The electronic application for job offers is a relatively new path of recruitment, thus there are limited studies devoted to investigate the effectiveness of this approach (Chapman and Webster, 2003). Dineen et al. (2001) introduced a web site for an imaginative company, offering information for open positions as well as its social assets and responsibilities. The hosting web site provided also feedback regarding applicants’ suitability to their company. Dineen et al. (2003) concluded that this feedback affected the final decision of the job applicants to a final recruitment in this imaginary company. Avery (2003) developed a web site of an imaginary company, attempting to manipulate the demographic diversity to its workforce and exposing a variety of gender and cultural features of people. The white visitors expressed indifference to this gender spectrum of exposing features, whereas the coloured visitors were attracted from this diversified job advertisement only in terms of the explicit reference to the company’s executives.


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Conclusively, the electronic approach should be proven especially effective for a company in case that the relevant advertisement has extensively structured towards the job description and the accompanying information to a straightforward manner to appropriate job applicants (Anderson, 2003). The role of the electronic advertisement is to affect the job applicants’ decision, in a direct, trustworthy, and costless manner (Anderson, 2003).

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The Fundamental Role of Human Resources’ Selection in a Business

The organizational philosophy and its workforce features are determinant factors to employees’ selection, since companies are developing the recruitment paths by focusing on their philosophy. Thus, a credible recruitment process involves the determination of non-suitable job candidates, the interactive role of tasks and human traits, and the organizational adjustment to the surrounding society context (Collins, 2007). The selection process incorporates the actions of data collection and evaluation for each applicant, prior to a final decision to be drawn regarding his hiring or not. The steps of a HRD are the following (McConnell, 2008): job description, determination of ways for measurable/quantified-qualified performance, determination of employees’ capabilities, specializations, and cognitive capacities, and finally, the development of evaluation tools. A process of employees’ selection should incorporate detailed data from job applicants, not only regarding to their qualifications but also including the accomplishment of their aspirations, financial and ethical motives, as well as their personal goals in case of their hiring in a specific company. This detailed information are subjected to the evaluation of the overall recruitment effectiveness (Scroggins et al., 2008; Nye et.al.,2008; Gatewood et al., 2008). The necessary processes that accompany the appropriate data collection and employees’ selection are (Mathis and Jackson, 1999): • • • • • • • • •

Curriculum Vitae. Preliminary interview or written exams. Application Form for the job offered. Psychological tests. Interview for selection. Confirmation of the information gathered. Medical tests. Final decision. Feedback.

A plethora of jobs are relevant to the mental health condition of applicants and their personality integrity, thus psychological tests enable the appropriateness of applicants’ behavior as future employees (Scroggins et al., 2008; Nye et al., 2008). Breaugh (2009) and Wagenaar (2012) signified the meaningful contribution of medical data collection and the co-existence of ethical issues that are revealed due to these personal data registration. Finally, a new research direction upon the employees’

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selection addresses the issues of gender differences and the contradicting roles of maternity and work for women (Ellett et al., 2009; Chzhen and Mumford, 2011).

4

The Case Study

4.1

Introduction to the Case Study

The Case Study explores the main features and the entrepreneurial orientation of a pharmaceutical company that operates in Athens, Greece. This company has a lengthy experience, lasting over 40 years, and know-how in conventional and generic drugs accompanying by an extended collaboration net in the main European pharmaceutical companies. In parallel, the examined company offers a vertically integrated production and service that is client-oriented in a wider global context; supporting the whole Life Cycle Analysis of its products from the design up to the brand launch in the market. These products are distributed in the main Hellenic hospitals, thus actively covering all the main medical specifications and treatments. In an entrepreneurial overview, the strategic design of the company is framed to the Research-Extrovert-Investment activities, while the future plans are focused on strengthening its business position in the globalized market by enhancing its exports, doubling its main entrepreneurial components and reinforcing its capital adequacy. Besides, continuous involvement in innovativeness and the accomplishment of 30 patents –that are approved from the main European and US Organizations, such as EPO and UPSTO– enable the company to co-fund projects of University-Research Center collaborations that are adapted in an industrial scale and make annual gross revenue of over 20 million Euros in Greece. 4.2

Methodology

The Case Study involves the construction and delivery of two different questionnaires. The first questionnaire, “Type 1”, consists of 24 close-typed questions in a 5-level ranking scale; these are sub-divided in 3 groups of 8 question each. These groups are specifically based on Management (questions m.1 – m.8), Technology (questions t.1 – t.8) and Strategy (questions s.1 – s.8) issues. The second questionnaire, “Type 2”, consists of 8 close-typed questions in a 5-level ranking scale; these are sub-divided in 3 groups that are also based on Management (questions m.1 – m.2), Technology (questions t.1 – t.3) and Strategy (questions s.1 – s.3) issues. The first questionnaire was provided to the upper ranking administrative staff of the company and there were responses from one man and one woman. The second questionnaire was provided to the company’s employees and there were responses from one man and nine women. Both questionnaires addressed the same objectives (questions) – per Type 1 or 2– within the following three periods: prior to 1990, 1990–1995, and 1995–2010. The questionnaires were delivered and collected during the December 2010. The outcomes of the Case Study are presented in the following Table 1.


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Table 1. The outcomes of the Case Study, according to the delivered questionnaires Period 2 responses (“1”, “2”) for the Questionnaire-Type 1* Partial Sum of Management Partial Sum of Technology Partial Sum of Strategy Total Sum: Man-Tech-Str

Prior to 1990 1 2 15 32 18 65

15 30 18 63

1990-1995 1 2

1995-2010 1 2

18 34 25 77

22 37 29 88

16 33 25 74

19 36 26 81

Results Total/Mean marks (out of 5.0) 105/2.19 202/4.21 141/3.36 448/3.25

10 responses (“1-10”) for the 1-10 Total/Mean marks Questionnaire-Type 2 (out of 5.0) Partial Sum of Management ** 8-7-8-9-8-7-8-6-6-6 73/3.65 Partial Sum of Technology*** 12-10-12-11-9-11-12-11-12-10 110/3.67 Partial Sum of Strategy*** 13-12-13-12-13-11-11-12-11-12 120/4.00 Total Sum: Man-Tech-Str 33-29-33-32-30-29-31-29-29-28 303/3.79 *each response is summed up to maximum of 8 questions of 5 marks each= 40marks ** each response is summed up to maximum of 2 questions of 5 marks each= 10marks *** each response is summed up to maximum of 3 questions of 5 marks each= 15marks

4.3 4.3.1

Discussion upon the Literature Review and the Case Study

Discussion upon the Employees’ Recruitment and Human Resources’ Selection Overview Human resources’ selection is a vital entrepreneurial process during the last 40 years. The earlier studies of human resources’ exploitation had been focused on naval (Blanchard, 1975), trading, industrial and engineering systems (Askren and Lintz, 1975), while the methodological tools of experimental planning and raw sources’ manipulation, such as interviewing and data storage, were similar to the main decisive techniques (Schwan, 1976; Heim, 1989). A regional allocation of human resources’ selection in published studies during the last 15 years is depicted in the following Table 2. These references are grouped in accordance to regional allocation and in reversed chronological order: from the newest to the earliest. The findings of the above Table 2 revealed a wide spectrum of regional allocation and conceptual categorization upon the human resources’ involvement in a business environment. Indeed, human resources’ selection is subject to highly populated regions and megacities, such as in Western Europe and China, since human resources are associated with the patterns of goods’ production and consumption as well as with the practices of a marketing mix that reinforces consumerism pattern for not merely satisfied but for delighted customers. Contrarily, less developed and sparsely populated countries –such as in Africa and in South America– are regulated from simpler forms of marketable brands and consumerism motives, possibly restricted to provision of only raw materials and outsourcing to developed countries, thus human resources’ selection plays an inferior role within their context. From an entrepreneurial overview, human resources’ selection plays a vital role to businesses’ profit and team working build up, while from the workforce overview, employees should attribute their business’s growth and profitability as a personal accomplishment, feeling inseparable and vital stakeholders to their business prosperity. These regional distinct characteristics to human resources’ selection were further

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Table 2. Regional allocation of human resources’ selection studies during the last 15 years # Ref 1

Aguinis and Smith (2007)

Reference

Geographical area North America, USA

2

Snyder et al. (2006)

North America, USA

3

Bobko et al. (2005)

North America, USA

4

Whyte and Sue-Chan (2002)

North America, Canada

5

Raoudha et al. (2012)

Europe, France

6

Konig et al. (2011)

Europe, Germany

7

Polychroniou and Giannikos (2009)

Europe, Greece

8

Sow and Oi (2011)

Asia, China

9

Yang and Wang (2011)

Asia, China

10

Zhao and Jin (2010)

Asia, China

11

Tsai et (2003)

Asia, Taiwan

12

Zysberg (2009)

Middle Israel

East,

13

Saidi Mehrabad and Fathian Brojeny (2007)

Middle Iran

East,

Total References

al.

Main notion The study introduced an innovative integrative framework by simultaneously co-evaluating the four concepts of test validity, test bias, selection errors, and adverse impact. Various selection systems are subjected to their degree of validity and bias, while a relevant computational program offered online calculations and performance. The study investigates the designing and validating selection procedures for information technology (IT) workers. Implications are discussed among the stakeholders, who are industrial/organizational psychologists, human resource managers, and managers of IT workers. The study has addressed statistically based banding in order to manipulate test scores’ outcomes that are developed to assess job applicants. The appropriateness of classical test theory and models that estimate standard and binomial errors are also discussed. Base rate data were collected and manipulated in line to a statistically-oriented scenario that describes the selection decision by individual and groups of human resources’ managers. Use of a the linguistic model TOPSIS as a decision making practical tool in relation to task requirements, management limitations and candidates competences from a University. Cognitions of practitioners’ thinking about selection procedures. The adopted methodological tools are established interviews and the repertory grid technique to the selection filed of application. The study denotes the complexity, subjectivity and vagueness that interfere to human resources’ selection. Therefore, a fuzzy multi-criteria decision-making methodology was based on the TOPSIS multi-criteria decision tool in order to select employees in a major Greek private bank. This methodology determines the limitations of imprecision and uncertainty, showing flexibility in a recruitment process. Creative human resource approaches to hire new employees, necessary skills, economic implications, and reasons of employees’ turnover in the hospitality and tourism industry are addressed in the China context. A determining factor to human resource management is the outsourcing service provider. A well selected, developed, and evaluated outsourcing scheme reduces entrepreneurial risk, especially in the China context where outsourcing market is in the initial stage. The study investigated the parameters of human resource management and the optimization of enterprise logistics systems towards the prosperity of businesses. Besides, the authors adopted an integrated optimization framework that is developed from the sub-systems of marketing, human performance and technical support In this study, an integrated computational method, the accompanying critical resource diagram and a design approach of Taguchi’s parameter were implemented in order to explore the software resource human resources’ selection problem. The outcomes are promising, since the methodological approach can achieve robust performance with apparently reduced project cost and duration. The methodological tool of “process analytic” is adopted for human resources’ selection. This tool was applied to large-scale studies, offering a theoretical and psychometric framework for vocational purposes, being based on symbolic processes and cognitive ability. The strategic role of human resources’ selection was designed, modeled and implemented via an expert system for job preferences and organizational requirements, appointment of suitable applicants to a correct job rotation, and the matching of the salary schemes to the qualifications of applicants.

Number of references

North America: 4

Europe: 3

Asia: 4

Middle East: 2

13


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examined by Gerhart (2009) who adopted the diversification of locally-based “individuals/team-member cultures” as distinct and dominant motives that determine the “national culture constraints” and the “organization cultures”. According to Gerhart (2009), the relationship among the above cultures is not always straightforward, since implications arise from the predominant influence of national culture differences in managing workforces as well as from the fact of balancing out the aforementioned inherit constraints and the ultimate importance of businesses’ well being, solid development and economic profitability. Carless (2009) pointed out that businesses’ performance is linked to recruitment and selection, thus a sound psychological profile of employees is needed. Psychological tests that measure features of ability and personality have to be constructed in such a way in order to reveal applicants’ traits and capabilities throughout the steps of employees’ recruitment and selection. Stevens and Campion (1994, 1999) developed a metric test that consists of 14 characteristics of team working, independently of each team responsibilities. These characteristics are grouped in the following categories: solution of conflicts, cooperative problems’ solving, communication, targets’ determination, performance management, and program and coordination of tasks. These characteristics pointed out necessary capabilities of team working, excluding personal or technical specializations. McClough και Rogelberg (2003) revealed the relationship between team working capabilities and employees’ performance in the light of team working interactions. Morgeson et al. (2005) denoted the dominant role of an appropriate sociopsychological environment of a company, focusing on the effectiveness of employees’ selection and the successful implementation of teamwork members. Morgeson et al. (2005) introduced an interview pattern that measured a spectrum of social capabilities, a personality test, and a Stevens-Campion test, all concluding that adopted methodological tests of selection were related to personal and teamwork performance. Bjorkman and Lu (1999) investigated the involvement of 65 Western countries on conglomerations to HRM in China. The study revealed that a wide range of Westernbased practices were applied in China, while sporadic Western companies applied their policies to China, since they motivated in order to be benefited at applying policies and practices of Chinese culture and origins. Nevertheless, Child (1991) and Osland and Cavusgil (1996) denoted that HRM in China is a challenge to foreign countries that are operating within its context, since multinational companies have to either address issues of HRM and worldwide applicability to the China context, or they should be adapted to the Chinese cultural framework and its regional practices of HRM. 4.3.2 Discussion upon the Case Study The critical questions that originate from the innovative orientation of the company are: Which are its innovative Departments?, In which way are its employees educated?, By which way are the company’s Departments collaborate to each other?, Which methods monitor the innovativeness accomplishment? In response to the above key-questions, the innovative products of the company were predominately based on the human workforce, the production line, and the financial management. These innovative-oriented features enabled the market control,

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the profitability, the competitive advancement, and the effective composition of the entrepreneurial scheme of Management-Technology-Strategy. According to the outcomes of the Table 1, the main enduring competitive advantage of the company was the constant technological superior position of all its technologically-based Departments, while the Strategy component, even though it was inspired from both the internal and external business environment, it had not proven such advantageous as the Technology was.

5

Conclusions and Future Orientations

The association of attraction and selection of employees is the subject of many published studies. Rynes and Barber (1990) denoted that the process of employees’ attraction is positively associated with a complex spectrum of interrelated issues, including: • • •

Salary, benefits, children care, flexibility in working hours, job prosperities. Targeted pool of company applicants, level of education, working experience, demographic elements of age, gender, ethnicity. Market conditions and job specifications.

Numerous studies are focused on new patterns of employees’ attraction and selection, in line to the businesses’ organizational framework. Therefore, the traditional pattern of employment was devoted to a simple task, being compounded from a range of similar activities all of which were burdened one worker. On the other hand, while a product or service completion necessitates the remote task of a worker or a working team, current patterns of selection programs are focused on the integrated grid of activities and responsibilities to all members of the entrepreneurial hierarchy, involving both employers and employees within the same business (Gatewood et al., 2008). It is also noteworthy that communication abilities and cooperation capabilities are recognized as utmost importance elements to selection and job offer. This finding is in accordance to new patterns of employees’ attraction especially for team working specifications (Gatewood et al., 2008, Stevens και Campion 1994, Stevens and Campion, 1999, McClough and Rogelberg, 2003, Morgeson et al., 2005). Finally, the Case Study revealed that each of the aforementioned 24 questions of the Questionnaire-Type 1 implied the necessity of different Life Cycle Analysis structure for each entrepreneurial activity, thus the plethora of responses to QuestionnaireType 2, in comparison to only two responses of the Questionnaire-Type2, offered a more objective and credible evaluation of the outcoming results over the three chronological periods examined. Moreover, generalizing the main the main outcomes of the Case Study it should be stated that a contemporary business environment necessitates the adaptation of each national company to the external environment of the globalized market. This view of globalization enhances the interactive association between businesses and Organizations/Economies. The fulfillment of this adaptation should be achieved either with no changes in a business environment, thus no globalization occurs, or with a dynamic adaptation to the globalized market in line to the prominent role of the Management-Technology-Strategy entrepreneurial scheme.


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