Human Resource Management Constructs Realities : Reengineering the Payroll Process Mediated by an Enterprise Resource Planning Package(<Special Issue>Beyond Rigor vs. Relevance (The First Volume))

Abstract

Recently, the research-practice gap has become a major issue in human resource management (HRM) studies. Some studies insist that HRM studies have to be carried out based on rigorous theoretical accounts. Other studies propose that HRM studies have to be relevant to management. Both assume that HRM studies can pursue rigor or relevance by building on universal facts. However, there are no universal facts that are available. In contrast, this study advocates the critical analysis of how "HRM works". We analyze business process re-engineering through the introduction of an enterprise resource planning (ERP) package. This analysis indicates how our practices are constructed by the distinctiveness of HRM.