The Role of the Senior HR Executive in Japan and the United States: Employment Relations, Corporate Governance, and Values

Abstract

Based on an original survey of senior human resources (HR) executives, this paper provides empirical data for a comparison of HR management structures and practices in Japan and the United States. In both countries, the headquarters HR function has shrunk and employment decisions have become more decentralized in recent years. However, because the pace of change has been more rapid in the United States, the gap with Japan has widened. Significant differences persist in other areas, such as the HR executive's role in strategic decisions, perceived power of the HR function, executive values, and the consequences of these values for organizational outcomes and corporate governance.

Chief human resources officers on top management teams: an empirical analysis of contingency, institutional, and homophily antecedents

“…In the US, the head of the HRM function was traditionally considered ''a low man'' (Jacoby et al 2005) in the managerial hierarchy. At various times, however, HR managers became more valued.…”

“…In 1971, AT&T perceived the strategic importance of HR and became the first firm in the US to create the position of an executive officer mainly responsible for managing HR (Bottger and Vanderbroeck 2008). In the 1980s, all of the factors that had previously bolstered the worth of HR executives in the US diminished: governmental influence shrank, unions became weaker, the unemployment rate rose, and corporate governance began focusing even more intensely on shareholder value (Jacoby et al 2005). As HR departments weakened, the HR executives at the tops of organizations found themselves a primary target for outsourcing (Greer et al 1999).…”

HRM structures and subsidiary discretion in foreign multinationals in the UK

“…These include notably the harnessing of ICT in HRM (Tannenbaum 1990), and the search for economies of scale through HR 'shared services' (Ulrich 1995), outsourcing and offshoring of HR (Lever 1997). These innovations have been driven by growing pressures for the HRM function to demonstrate cost efficiency and value for money in a context of intensifying international competition and a 'shareholder value' ethic (Jacoby, Nason and Saguchi 2005). Jacoby (2005), in his detailed comparison of the evolution and functioning of HR in Japanese and US companies, points to considerable institutional specificity.…”

The human resource department's role and conditions that affect its development: Explanations from Austrian CEOs

“…In the European context, CEOs lack considerable latitude in developing a more strategic role for their HR departments (Brewster, 2004). For instance, governance structures require CEOs to recognize formal rights of various stakeholders, including the state (Jacoby, Nason, & Saguchi, 2005). Culturally shaped principles for managerial decision-making in Austria, such as strong emphasis on complying with social rules (Brewster;Erten, Strunck, Gonzalez, & Hilb, 2004), co-determination, and a specific concept of management competency and control (Scheytt, Soin, & Metz, 2003), could limit the generalizability of this study's framework to other contexts.…”