The importance of strategic competence in HRM. Evidence from Austria, Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia

Abstract

Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) is vital in order to gain competitive advantage for organisations. Although there is extant literature on SHRM from academia and practitioners alike, looking closer at HR activities in today’s organisations, resource allocation is still inclined towards more operational, day-to-day activities. The main objective of this paper is to give a deeper understanding about how the importance of strategic competence in HR might vary depending on the country, the work experience of HR managers and whether it differs between HR and stakeholders HR (namely, middle and top management), or if company size and the organisational life cycle play a role. A quantitative study of HR managers and stakeholders HR using telephone interviews were conducted in Austria and three CEE countries. Findings on the perceived importance of the strategic competence of HRM are presented in detail and suggestions for further research are presented.