Multiple Roles of Human Resource Department in Building Organizational Competitiveness—Perspective of Role Theory

[Abstract] Globalization dominates the competitive horizon, and a Human Resource Department (HRD) deal is at the heart of organizational success. HRD should create new models and processes for attaining global agility, effectiveness, and competitiveness. This study recognizes the roles of HRD from the viewpoint of role theory and discusses its influence on organizational performance within four HRD characters: strategic partner, administrative expert, employee champion, and change agent. We conducted a survey of 112 companies in Taiwan, the results of which demonstrate that the role of HRD influences corporate performance, particularly the performances of an employee champion and change agent. Although HRD has eliminated the role of a transitional affair worker, being a strategy partner requires greater effort. [Keywords] role theory; HRD's role; performance; Ulrich's multiple role model Introduction Role theory has been used effectively by researchers in the fields of psychology, social psychology, sociology, organization behavior, and resource management since the early 1930s (Welbourne, Johnson & Erez, 1998). Role theory is based on a dramaturgical metaphor (Solomon, 1985) that explains how people send and adopt specific roles. Recently, this theory was used to analyze various forms of social systems. Biddle (1986) states that role theory comprises one of the most important characteristics of social behavior - the fact that beings behave in ways that are different and predictable, depending on their respective social identities and the situation (Biddle, 1986). Drawing on a behavioral perspective, role theory is attractive and useful in ameliorating problems. Multiple researchers from various fields have concluded that roles are important in social structure (Mead, 1934; Turner, 1978; Welbourne, Johnson & Erez, 1998), and roles have been recognized as central to understanding employee behavior in organizations (Katz & Kahn, 1987; Welbourne, Johnson & Erez, 1998). Additionally, role theory has also been proposed to explain teamwork. Belbins' role theory (1981), Benne & Sheats (1948), and Heap (1977) indicate the functionality of member roles that affect group performance (Chen, et al., 2002). Chen et al. (2002) provide experimental results demonstrating that role theory is effective in predicting group performance. According to role theory, employee performance is a function of both the individual and the organization. Welbourne, Johnson, and Erez (1998) support that this theory represents a milestone in explaining performance since it combines the psychological (individual contributions) and sociological (organizational framework) perspectives. Consequently, this study recognizes the roles of HRD and discusses its influence on organizational performance within four Human Resource Department (HRD) characters: strategic partner, administrative expert, employee champion, and change agent. Role of HRD The phrase human resource professional (HRP) has long remained an oxymoron. If HR practices are to be leveraged by the HR function, HR professionals must begin to act professionally. Therefore, the new competitive reality is a new agenda for HR that is championing competitiveness. As champions of competitiveness, HR professionals must focus more on the deliverables of their work than on doing their work better. Ulrich (1997) supports the argument that HR should define their roles in terms of value created, and develop HR mechanisms that will allow for prompt business results. They must also learn to measure results in terms of business profitability and to lead cultural transformation. HR professionals must fulfill four key roles in order to make their business partnership a reality (Figure 1). Ulrich (1997) devises this framework over the course of his work with dozens of companies and hundreds of HR professionals; many companies have since used it as a way to describe the deliverables of their HR work. …