The impact of high-performance human resource practices on research performance and career success in the Saudi Arabia higher education sector

Abstract

This study examines the link between High-Performance Human Research practices (HPHRPS) namely training, internal mobility, recognition and participation and the research productivity and career success of faculty members in Saudi Arabian Higher Education sector. Contemporary Career theory is adopted, with the purpose of examining the extent to which faculty member career orientation impact the relationship between their research performance and career success. From a theoretical contribution standpoint, this study advances the literature in three main streams. First, this study advances the theory of HPHRPS by examining its impact at the individual level in the public sector of a developing country, an area recognized by researchers as needing more investigation. Second, career theory is progressed by examining the moderating role of career orientation on the relationship between performance and career success. Finally, this study builds on previous findings in research productivity literature and further develops the literature by examining additional managerial factors missing in current research productivity literature, such as HPHRPS (training, internal mobility, recognition and participation) From a practical standpoint, this study is of significance to higher education leaders as well as to human resource decision-makers in Saudi Arabian higher education sector because it offers insights on the factors affecting faculty members’ research productivity and success in this context. A quantitative methodology approach using survey strategy is utilized in this study. Faculty members working in five of the largest and prestigious Saudi universities are the target of this study. Questionnaire is adopted as the data collection instrument. Structural Equation Modelling is utilised for testing hypothesis using Mplus version 8. For the analysis stage, 586 usable questionnaires were used. The results of this study revealed that among the four investigated HPHRPS, only training and recognition were positively linked to faculty member research performance. In addition, the results showed that only internal mobility had a positive and significant paths to salary progression/increases, whereas internal mobility and recognition positively link with faculty member promotion. The results illustrated also positive and significant relationship only between internal mobility and recognition and faculty member career satisfaction. Furthermore, the study found that academics research performance do mediate the relationship between the practices of training and recognition with objective career success and the practices of recognition and subjective career success. The study is original in bringing together research from the fields of HRM and Academic Career Studies in order to develop a model for the factors play a crucial role in the research performance and career success of academics from the lens of HPHRPS. The study makes important contributions to the fields of Human Resources Management and Academic Career Studies and provides critical evidence for the implementation of Human Resources Management in the academic sector. This study has expanded understanding of the AMO theory (Appelbaum et al., 2000; Jiang et al., 2013; Boxall and Purcell, 2016) to the academia sector. It is hoped that the study will encourage researchers in Human Resources Management to continue researching the role of HPHRPS as mean of academics superior performance and career success in academia. Universities can develop a good research output as a result of developing academics’ abilities and motivation, and provide them with opportunities to perform their job. This thesis also inform practitioners of the critical role of HPHRPS in academia.

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ORCID for Yehuda Baruch: orcid.org/0000-0002-0678-6273

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