HRM inside UK e-commerce firms : innovations in the ‘new’ economy and continuities with the ‘old’

Dietz, G.; van der Wiele, T.; van Iwaarden, J.; Brosseau, J.

doi:10.1177/0266242606067267

HRM inside UK e-commerce firms : innovations in the ‘new’ economy and continuities with the ‘old’

Dietz, G.; van der Wiele, T.; van Iwaarden, J.; Brosseau, J.

Authors

G. Dietz

T. van der Wiele

J. van Iwaarden

J. Brosseau

Abstract

The e-commerce approach to people management (i.e. HRM) is popularly believed to be radically new and an innovative rewriting of the ‘old’ rules of employment. Yet little is known about which HR practices are used by such companies, and what might explain these companies’ policy selections in the realm of HR. Exploratory survey data based on a sample of 30 small-medium UK e-commerce firms reports use of employee involvement in decision-making, internal communication, financial participation and reward schemes, performance evaluation, training and provision for employment security. Insights from interviews with five senior managers from the sample augment the survey data with qualitative evidence on e-commerce firms’ approach to HR. The findings suggest that this approach falls somewhere between radical ‘new’ innovations and enduring continuities with ‘old’ people management techniques, and that this has parallels with the experience of small-medium enterprises generally.

Citation

Dietz, G., van der Wiele, T., van Iwaarden, J., & Brosseau, J. (2006). HRM inside UK e-commerce firms : innovations in the ‘new’ economy and continuities with the ‘old’. International Small Business Journal, 24(5), 443-470. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242606067267

Journal Article Type	Article
Publication Date	2006-10
Deposit Date	Aug 26, 2008
Publicly Available Date	Aug 26, 2008
Journal	International Small Business Journal
Print ISSN	0266-2426
Electronic ISSN	1741-2870
Publisher	SAGE Publications
Peer Reviewed	Peer Reviewed
Volume	24
Issue	5
Pages	443-470
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1177/0266242606067267
Keywords	E-commerce, HRM, Management, New economy, SMEs, UK.
Public URL	https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1589568

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The final, definitive version of this article has been published in the Journal, International small business journal, 24/5, 2006, © SAGE Publications Ltd, 2006 by SAGE Publications Ltd at the International small business journal page: http://isb.sagepub.com/ on SAGE Journals Online: http://online.sagepub.com/