HRM practices in South Asia: convergence, divergence, and intra-regional differences

Abstract

South Asia is distinct from other parts of Asia and the rest of the world because of its unique political, legal, economic, and socio-cultural systems. Despite this uniqueness, human resource management (HRM) practices of the countries making up this region have not been subjected to sustained examination. This study aims to examine the HRM practices in six South Asian countries including Bangladesh, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka by synthesizing the existing literature and to propose some directions for future research. This review suggests that HRM practices in South Asia are simultaneously converging and diverging as in other Asian countries. In addition, HRM in South Asia appears to be following the early trajectories of the more advanced industrialized Western countries. Overall, South Asian nations lag East and Southeast Asian countries in adopting contemporary Western HRM practices.