Advancing understanding of HRM in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): critical questions and future prospects

References

• Allen, M., Ericksen, J., & Collins, C. (2013). Human resource management, employee exchange relationships and performance in small business. Human Resource Management, 52(2), 153–174. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21523
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Amarakoon, U., & Colley, L. (2022). Attraction and retention of employees in an Australian regional SME: The importance of place and scale in human resource management. Personnel Review. https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-03-2021-0172
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Atkinson, C., Lupton, B., Kynighou, A., & Antcliff, V. (2022). Small firms, owner managers and (strategic?) human resource management. Human Resource Management Journal, 32(2), 449–469. https://doi.org/10.1111/1748-8583.12406
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Bacon, N., Ackers, P., Storey, J., & Coates, D. (1996). It’s a small world: Managing human resources in small business. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 7(1), 82–101.
   Google Scholar
• Bacon, N., & Hoque, K. (2022). The treatment of disabled individuals in small, medium-sized, and large firms. Human Resource Management, 61(2), 137–156. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.22084
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Baron, J., & Hannan, M. (2002). Organizational blueprints for success in high-technology start-ups: Lessons from the Stanford project on emerging companies. California Management Review, 44(3), 8–37. https://doi.org/10.2307/41166130
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Barrett, R., & Mayson, S. (2008). The formality and informality of HRM practices in small firms. In R. Barrett, & S. Mayson (Eds.), International handbook of entrepreneurship and HRM. Edward Elgar.
   Google Scholar
• Bowen, D., & Ostroff, C. (2004). Understanding HRM-performance linkages: The role of the ‘strength’ of the HRM System. Academy of Management Review, 29(2), 202–222.
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Bryson, A., & White, M. (2019). HRM and small-firm employee motivation: Before and after the great recession. ILR Review, 72(3), 749–773. https://doi.org/10.1177/0019793918774524
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Buisson, M.-L., Gastaldi, L., Geffroy, B., Lonceint, R., & Krohmer, C. (2021). Innovative SMEs in search of ambidexterity: A challenge for HRM! Employee Relations, 43(2), 479–495.
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Burton, M. D., Fairlie, R. W., & Siegel, D. (2019). Introduction to a special issue on entrepreneurship and employment: Connecting labor market institutions, corporate demography, and human resource management practices. ILR Review, 72(5), 1050–1064. https://doi.org/10.1177/0019793919866409
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Cardon, M., & Stevens, C. (2004). Managing human resources in small organisations: What do we know? Human Resource Management Review, 14(3), 295–323. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2004.06.001
   Google Scholar
• Chadwick, C., & Li, P. (2018). HR systems, HR departments, and perceived establishment labor productivity. Human Resource Management, 57(6), 1415–1428. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21914
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Chadwick, C., Way, S., Kerr, G., & Thacker, J. (2013). Boundary conditions of the high-investment human resource systems-small-firm labor productivity relationship. Personnel Psychology, 66(2), 311–343. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12015
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Cooke, F. L., Dickmann, M., & Parry, E. (2020). IJHRM after 30 years: Taking stock in times of COVID-19 and looking towards the future of HR research. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 31(1), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2020.1833070
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Curran, J. (1990). Rethinking economic structure: Exploring the role of the small firm and self-employment in the British economy. Work, Employment and Society, 4(5), 125–146. Mayhttps://doi.org/10.1177/0950017090004005007
   Google Scholar
• Curran, J., & Stanworth, J. (1981). Size of workplace and attitudes to industrial relations in the printing and electronic industries. British Journal of Industrial Relations, 19(1), 14–25. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8543.1981.tb01094.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Drummond, I., & Stone, I. (2007). Exploring the potential of high performance work systems in SMEs. Employee Relations, 29(2), 192–207. https://doi.org/10.1108/01425450710720011
   Google Scholar
• Festing, M., Harsch, K., Schäfer, L., & Scullion, H. (2017). Talent management in small and medium sized enterprises. In D. G. Collings, K. Mellahi, & W. F. Cascio (Eds.), The Oxford handbook of talent management, (pp. 478–493). Oxford University Press.
   Google Scholar
• Forth, J., Bewley, H., & Bryson, A. (2006). Small and medium-sized enterprises: Findings from the 2004 Workplace Employment Relations Survey.
   Google Scholar
• George, G., Haas, M. R., McGahan, A. M., Schillebeeckx, S. J. D., & Tracey, P. (2021). Purpose in the for-profit firm: A review and framework for management research. Journal of Management. In press. https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063211006450.
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Gilman, M., & Edwards, P. (2008). Testing a framework of the organisation of small firms. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 26(5), 531–558. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242608094028
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Gilman, M., Raby, S., & Pyman, A. (2015). The contours of employee voice in SMEs: The importance of context. Human Resource Management Journal, 25(4), 563–579. https://doi.org/10.1111/1748-8583.12086
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Guerrero, S., Cayrat, C., & Cossette, M. (2021). Human resource professionals’ human and social capital in SMEs: Small firm, big impact. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1919739
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Haar, J., O’Kane, C., & Daellenbach, U. (2021). High performance work systems and innovation in New Zealand SMEs: Testing firm size and competitive environment effects. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–29. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1894213
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Harney, B. (2021). Accommodating HRM in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): A critical review. Economic and Business Review, 23(2), 72–85. https://doi.org/10.15458/2335-4216.1007
   Google Scholar
• Harney, B., & Alkhalaf, H. (2021). A quarter-century review of HRM in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): Capturing what we know, and exploring where we need to go. Human Resource Management, 60(1), 5–29. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.22010
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Harney, B., & Collings, D. G. (2021). Navigating the shifting landscapes of HRM. Human Resource Management Review, 31(4), 100824–100829. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2021.100824
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Harney, B., & Dundon, T. (2006). Capturing complexity: Developing an integrated approach to analysing HRM in SMEs. Human Resource Management Journal, 16(1), 48–73. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1748-8583.2006.00004.x
   Google Scholar
• Harney, B., & Dundon, T. (2007). An emergent theory of HRM: A theoretical and empirical exploration of determinants of HRM among Irish small to medium sized enterprises. Advances in Industrial and Labor Relations, 15, 109–159.
   Google Scholar
• Ingham, G. K. (1967). Organisational size, orientation to work and industrial behaviour. Sociology, 1(3), 239–258. https://doi.org/10.1177/003803856700100302
   Google Scholar
• Jarzabkowski, P., & Wilson, D. (2006). Actionable strategy knowledge: A practice perspective. European Management Journal, 24(5), 348–367. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.emj.2006.05.009
   Google Scholar
• Jennings, J. E., Jennings, P. D., & Greenwood, R. (2009). Novelty and new firm performance: The case of employment systems in knowledge-intensive service organizations. Journal of Business Venturing, 24(4), 338–359. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusvent.2008.03.003
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Kim, K. Y., Messersmith, J. G., & Allen, D. G. (2021). Are they worth it? Warmth and competence perceptions influence the investment of slack resources in and the efficacy of HPWS. Personnel Psychology, 74(3), 611–640. https://doi.org/10.1111/peps.12421
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Klofsten, M., MacEachen, E., & Ståhl, C. (2021). New and small firms in a modern working life: How do we make entrepreneurship healthy? Small Business Economics, 57(2), 755–763. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-020-00380-6
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Korsgaard, S., Hunt, R. A., Townsend, D. M., & Ingstrup, M. B. (2020). COVID-19 and the importance of space in entrepreneurship research and policy. International Small Business Journal, 38(8), 697–710. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242620963942
   PubMed Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Krishnan, T. N., & Scullion, H. (2017). Talent management and dynamic view of talent in small and medium enterprises. Human Resource Management Review, 27(3), 431–441. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2016.10.003
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Kroon, B., & Paauwe, J. (2021). HRM in 21st century small organizations: A midrange typology to describe, contrast and contextualize the phenomenon. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–28. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1915359
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Lai, Y., Saridakis, G., & Johnstone, S. (2017). Human resource practices, employee attitudes and small firm performance. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 35(4), 470–494. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242616637415
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Li, S., Rees, C., & Branine, M. (2019). Employees’ perceptions of human resource management practices and employee outcomes: Empirical evidence from small and medium-sized enterprises in China. Employee Relations: The International Journal, 41(6), 1419–1433. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-01-2019-0065
   Google Scholar
• Lim, D. S., Morse, E. A., & Yu, N. (2020). The impact of the global crisis on the growth of SMEs: A resource system perspective. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 38(6), 492–503. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242620950159
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Lundmark, E., Coad, A., Frankish, J. S., & Storey, D. J. (2020). The liability of volatility and how it changes over time among new ventures. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 44(5), 933–963. https://doi.org/10.1177/1042258719867564
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Mallett, O., & Wapshott, R. (2014). Informality and employment relationships in small firms: humour, ambiguity and straight-talking. British Journal of Management, 25(1), 118–132. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2012.00836.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Marlow, S. (2006). Human resource management in smaller firms: A contradiction in terms? Human Resource Management Review, 16(4), 467–477. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2006.08.004
   Google Scholar
• Marlow, S., Taylor, S., & Thompson, A. (2010). Informality and formality in medium-sized companies: Contestation and synchronization. British Journal of Management, 21(4), 954–966. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2009.00635.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Martinez-del-Rio, J., Pingshu, L., & Guthrie, J. (2021). Antecedents of high performance work practices in SMEs: An attention-based view. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–23. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1991431
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Mayson, S., & Barrett, R. (2006). The ‘science’ and ‘practice’ of HRM in small firms. Human Resource Management Review, 16(4), 447–455. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2006.08.002
   Google Scholar
• McClean, E., & Collins, C. J. (2019). Expanding the concept of fit in strategic human resource management: An examination of the relationship between human resource practices and charismatic leadership on organizational outcomes. Human Resource Management, 58(2), 187–202. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21945
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• McDonnell, A., Carbery, R., Burgess, J., & Sherman, U. (2021). Technologically mediated human resource management in the gig economy. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 32(19), 3995–4015. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1986109
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Mendy, J. (2021). Performance management problem of four small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): Towards a performance resolution. Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, 28(5), 690–710. https://doi.org/10.1108/JSBED-06-2019-0201
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Messersmith, J., & Wales, W. (2013). Entrepreneurial orientation and performance in young firms: The role of human resource management. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 31(2), 115–136. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242611416141
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Moule, C. (1998). The regulation of work in small firms. Work, Employment and Society, 12(4), 635–654. https://doi.org/10.1177/0950017098124003
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Mustafa, M., Coetzer, A., Ramos, H. M., & Fuhrer, J. (2021). Exploring the effects of small- and medium-sized enterprise employees’ job satisfaction on their innovative work behaviours: The moderating effects of personality. Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, 8(2), 228–250. https://doi.org/10.1108/JOEPP-07-2020-0133
   Google Scholar
• Nyfoudi, M., Theodorakopoulos, N., Psychogios, A., & Dysvik, A. (2022). Tell it like it is in SME teams: Adverse working conditions, citizenship behaviour and the role of team information sharing in a turbulent economy. Economic and Industrial Democracy, 43(2), 516–535.
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• OECD. (2019). OECD SME and entrepreneurship outlook 2019. OECD Publishing.
   Google Scholar
• Patel, P., Messersmith, J., & Lepak, D. (2013). Walking the tightrope: An asessment of the relationship between high-performance work systems and organizational ambidexterity. Academy of Management Journal, 56(5), 1420–1442. https://doi.org/10.5465/amj.2011.0255
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Patel, P. C., & Conklin, B. (2012). Perceived labor productivity in small firms—The effects of high–performance work systems and group culture through employee retention. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 36(2), 205–235. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-6520.2010.00404.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Perry, J. (1954). Human relations in small industry. McGraw-Hill.
   Google Scholar
• Ployhart, R., & Bartunek, J. M. (2019). Editor’s comments: There is nothing so theoretical as good practice- a call for phenomenal theory. Academy of Management Review, 44(3), 493–497. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2019.0087
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Prouska, R., McKearney, A., Opute, J., Tungtakanpoung, M., & Brewster, C. (2021). Voice in context: An international comparative study of employee experience with voice in small and medium enterprises. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1925323
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Prouska, R., Nyfoudi, M., Psychogios, A., Szamosi, L. T., & Wilkinson, A. (2022). Solidarity in action at a time of crisis: The role of employee voice in relation to communication and horizontal solidarity behaviour. British Journal of Management. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12598
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Psychogios, A., Nyfoudi, M., Theodorakopoulos, N., Szamosi, L. T., & Prouska, R. (2019). Many hands lighter work? Deciphering the relationship between adverse working conditions and organization citizenship behaviours in small and medium-sized enterprises during a severe economic crisis. British Journal of Management, 30(3), 519–537. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8551.12245
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Ram, M. (1991). The dynamics of workplace relations. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 10(1), 44–53. https://doi.org/10.1177/026624269101000103
   Google Scholar
• Ram, M., Edwards, P., Gilman, M., & Arrowsmith, J. (2001). The dynamics of informality: Employment regulation in small firms and the effects of regulatory change. Work, Employment and Society, 15(4), 845–861. https://doi.org/10.1177/095001701400438233
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Ram, M., McCarthy, I., Green, A., & Scully, J. (2022). Towards a more inclusive human resource community: Engaging ethnic minority microbusinesses in human resource development programmes targeted at more productive methods of operating. Human Resource Management Journal, 32(3), 540–554. https://doi.org/10.1111/1748-8583.12416
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Razouk, A. (2011). High-performance work systems and performance of French small- and medium-sized enterprises: Examining causal order. International Journal of Human Resource Management, 22, 311–330.
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Roundy, P. T., & Burke-Smalley, L. (2021). Leveraging entrepreneurial ecosystems as human resource systems: A theory of meta-organizational human resource management. Human Resource Management Review, 100863. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2021.100863
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Samnani, A.-K., & Singh, P. (2013). Exploring the fit perspective: An ethnographic approach. Human Resource Management, 52(1), 123–144. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.21516
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sarasvathy, S. (2001). Causation and effectuation: Towards a theoretical shift from economic inevitability to entrepreneurial contingency. Academy of Management Review, 26(2), 243–263. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2001.4378020
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sels, L., De Winne, S., Delmotte, J., Maes, J., Faems, D., & Forrier, A. (2006a). Linking HRM and small business performance: An examination of the impact of HRM intensity on the productivity and financial performance of small businesses. Small Business Economics, 26(1), 83–101. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11187-004-6488-6
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sels, L., De Winne, S., Maes, J., Delmotte, J., Faems, D., & Forrier, A. (2006b). Unravelling the HRM-Performance link: Value creating and cost-increasing effects of small business HRM. Journal of Management Studies, 43(2), 319–342. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-6486.2006.00592.x
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sheehan, M. (2014). Human resource management and performance: Evidence from small and medium-sized firms. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 32(5), 545–570. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242612465454
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sheehan, M., & Garavan, T. (2021). High-performance work practices and labour productivity: A six wave longitudinal study of UK manufacturing and service SMEs. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–32. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.2005658
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Sirmon, D. G., & Hitt, M. A. (2003). Managing resources: Linking unique resources, management and wealth creation in family firms. Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 27(4), 339–358.
   Google Scholar
• Storey, D. (2000). Small business: Critical perspectives in business and management. Routledge.
   Google Scholar
• Storey, D. J., Saridakis, G., Sen-Gupta, S., Edwards, P. K., & Blackburn, R. A. (2010). Linking HR formality with employee job quality: The role of firm and workplace size. Human Resource Management, 49(2), 305–329. https://doi.org/10.1002/hrm.20347
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Torres, O., & Julien, P. A. (2005). Specificity and denaturing of small business. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 23(4), 355–377. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242605054049
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Tsai, C. J., Sengupta, S., & Edwards, P. (2007). When and why is small beautiful? The experience of work in the small firm. Human Relations, 60(12), 1779–1807. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726707084914
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Van Beurden, J., Van De Voorde, K., & Van Veldhoven, M. (2021). The employee perspective on HR practices: A systematic literature review, integration and outlook. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 32(2), 359–393. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2020.1759671
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Van Lancker, E., Knockaert, M., Audenaert, M., & Cardon, M. (2022). HRM in entrepreneurial firms: A systematic review and research agenda. Human Resource Management Review, 32(3), 100850. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.hrmr.2021.100850
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Wach, D., Stephan, U., & Gorgievski, M. (2016). More than money: Developing an integrative multi-factorial measure of entrepreneurial success. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 34(8), 1098–1121. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242615608469
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Wapshott, R., & Mallett, O. (2013). The unspoken side of mutual adjustment: Understanding intersubjective negotiation in small professional service firms. International Small Business Journal: Researching Entrepreneurship, 31(8), 978–996. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242612450728
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Wapshott, R., & Mallett, O. (2021). HRM in small and medium sized enterprises. In A. Wilkinson, T. Dundon, & T. Redman (Eds.), Contemporary human resource management: Text and cases, (pp. 469–485). Sage.
   Google Scholar
• Werner, A. (2021). Why do managers of small and medium-sized businesses seek voluntary Living Wage accreditation? – An exploration of choice rationales. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 30(6), 778–712. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2021.1908417
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Wikhamn, W., Wikhamn, B. R., & Fasth, J. (2021). Employee participation and job satisfaction in SMEs: Investigating strategic exploitation and exploration as moderators. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1910537
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• World Bank. (2021). World Bank open data: Urbanization. https://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/smefinance.
   Google Scholar
• Zahra, S. A. (2021). The resource-based view, resourcefulness, and resource management in startup firms: A proposed research agenda. Journal of Management, 47(7), 1841–1860. https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063211018505
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar
• Zhang, J. A., & Edgar, F. (2021). HRM systems, employee proactivity and capability in the SME context. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 33(16), 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585192.2021.1905682
   Web of Science ®Google Scholar