Determinants of HRM Policies and Practices in India: An Empirical Study

Research suggests that a number of facfors influence human resource management (HRM), policies and practices. This article reports the empirical results of a study designed to examine and highlight the main contingent variables and national factors influencing Indian HRM. The investigation is based on a questionnaire survey carried out in 137 Indian firms in the manufacturing sector. The results suggest a number of significant correlations between a set of contingent variables (i.e., age, size, ownership, life cycle stage and HRM strategies of an organization, type of industry and union membership) and four HRM functions of recruitment and selection, training and development, compensation and employee communication. Similarly, four national factors (namely national culture, institutions, dynamic business environment and business sector) are suggested, which influence Indian HRM policies and practices. The study has a number of implications both for academics and practitioners. It has also opened avenues for future research.