The “HRM project” and managerialism: Or why some discourses are more equal than others
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to present a detailed examination of the relationship and debate between realist understandings of HRM, on the one hand, and discourse‐based notions of HRM, on the other. The objective is to provide a basis for a possible debate between these, seemingly contradictory, perspectives.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper argues that these perspectives can be integrated if one adopts a perspective that overcomes this dualism by thinking of HRM as a “project” where speech acts and non‐linguistic forms of action are seen as interdependent. The paper uses interview extracts in order to illustrate how the HRM Project gets constituted but also resisted in the context of a post‐privatisation electricity company.
Findings
This paper is predicated on the notion that the discourse of HRM is closely intertwined with the shift in power relations between employers, managers, employees and trade unions from the early 1980s onwards. In order to capture the broader context of the discourse it is suggested that the notion of an “HRM Project” includes not only language but also practices, boundary‐spanning linkages, and external agents such as regulators and financial institutions.
Originality/value
Builds on the notion of discourse as a strategic resource.
Keywords
Citation
Mueller, F. and Carter, C. (2005), "The “HRM project” and managerialism: Or why some discourses are more equal than others", Journal of Organizational Change Management, Vol. 18 No. 4, pp. 369-382. https://doi.org/10.1108/09534810510607065
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2005, Emerald Group Publishing Limited