Research in nonprofit human resource management from 2015 to 2018

Abstract

PurposeThis paper systematically reviews the past four years of research on human resource management (HRM) in nonprofit organizations (NPOs) to better understand: (1) recent theoretical and empirical developments and where scholarship in the field is headed (i.e. trends); (2) what topics and findings are especially important to understanding how the thought and practice of nonprofit HRM differs from that in public and for-profit organizations (i.e. insights); and (3) what gaps exist in current knowledge and scholarship and some real-world, practice-driven developments in people management that illuminate promising future research directions (i.e. opportunities).Design/methodology/approachSixty-seven peer-reviewed journal articles covering the period 2015–2018 were identified using a university library database search, as well as by-hand searches through every issue of 22 nonprofit and 36 human resources-related journals during the four-year period.FindingsThe findings highlight strong continued interest by scholars in a wide range of nonprofit HRM issues, coverage of these issues by a worldwide network of researchers who bring global perspectives and contexts to the study of nonprofit HRM, and rich theoretical and methodological diversity. Yet, compared with the universe of possible human resource topics and several leading-edge developments in organizations and societies that might affect the way people are managed in nonprofits, the paper uncovers gaps in the most recent knowledge base.Originality/valueThe paper creates a compilation of the most recent nonprofit human resource research to be used as a tool for scholars, students, and practitioners for many years to come.

Job stress and employee outcomes: employment practices in a charity

“…Our findings are in line with others (Cooper et al , 2020) and suggest the need to move away from management-consultancy-led formulaic employee relations practices, and develop a sector-specific approach rooted in charities' own mission and values. This thus contributes to a new line of enquiry of HRM in non-profit charities at the organizational level with the changing nature of the workforce (Akingbola et al , 2020; O'Rourke, 2020).…”

“…Secondly, this study contributed to the on-going debate of the appropriateness of the use of business-like operations in the not-for-profit charity sector committed to doing “good” by helping those most in need (Baines, 2009; Maier et al , 2016; Kay, 2018). Although the transition to business models has increased efficiency in some aspects, the distinctive nature of not-for-profit from profit-making organizations dictates that this sector should not directly imitate the private sector (Cooper et al , 2020; Lee, 2016). Cost-reduction measures have reduced staff performance and harmed with essential services provided.…”

“…This means there is a consensual agreement to back the mission over any financial gains. These unique features enable NPOs to provide goods and services that private industry and governments are unable or unwilling to produce (Brown and Yoshioka, 2003; Cooper et al , 2020). The given mission of any NPO creates the value-fit, thus providing an intrinsic motivation for staff to pursue meaningful work despite known poor extrinsic rewards on offer from such paid employment.…”

“…This differentiates it from mainstream instrumental work relations (Akingbola et al , 2020; Ridder and McCandless, 2010). Furthermore, charitable NPOs can prioritize mission over financial performance since they are not obliged to deliver dividends to investors (Cooper et al , 2020). This unique feature of paid employment has tended to attract staff who are motivated by the charity's mission despite poor extrinsic rewards such as low pay and poor employment terms and working conditions (Brown and Yoshioka, 2003; Nickson et al , 2008; Taylor, 2004).…”

“…Findings from this research are intended to contribute to the understanding of contemporary employee relations with a changing workforce. We hope to shed light on the “significant gap in our understanding of the link between employment relations and mission” (Akingbola et al , 2020, p. 1046), and answer the call to explore human resource management (HRM) in the non-profit charity sector (Cooper et al , 2020; Kellner et al , 2017; Maier et al , 2016).…”