Ficcionalizar la escuela en la narrativa reciente del Cono Sur

All three papers in this dissertation highlight the importance of the configurational approach in understanding variations in management practices. This is mainly a result of the complex associations involved and unclear theoretical rationales. The proposed approach is based on set-theory using Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA).

Configurational methods tend to combine complexity with parsimony (Fiss, 2011). They offer a pragmatic way to assess complex relations and interdependent elements in a coherent way through typified profiles (Delery and Doty, 1996; Doty, Glick and Huber, 1993). In fact, recently a number of studies in the field of social sciences have used this approach to assess complex relations (e.g., Curado, Muñoz-Pascual and Galende, 2018; Ho, Plewa and Lu, 2016). Yet, to date, the HRM field has adopted this approach only to a limited extent (e.g., Meuer, 2017). To this effect, this dissertation lead to methodological and empirical contributions within the field of strategic management by highlighting the importance of such an approach in understanding variations in HRM practices.

As discussed throughout the dissertation, the configurational approach allows for the analysis of complex combinations through the investigation of synergistic multiple interactions simultaneously. Thus, it recognises the fact that different organisational elements cannot be understood in isolation. Moreover, the approach considers that different elements may have different relationships within different configurations (nonlinearity). The approach also accommodates for equifinality, that is, it acknowledges the fact that there may be more than one way to succeed (Delery and Doty, 1996; Fiss, 2007; Meyer, Tsui and Hinings, 1993). It also accommodates for asymmetric relations, that is, the idea that the elements associated with the high presence of the outcome may be different from the elements associated with the low presence of that particular outcome (Fiss, 2007, 2011).

Therefore, unlike traditional econometric methods, set-theoretic methods based on fuzzy-set analysis are considered to be an appropriate method to assess multiple interacting effects and complex associations, as shown in recent studies. Most importantly, fuzzy-set analysis facilitates a data-driven approach (inductive reasoning), and allows researchers to derive some propositions/observations that themselves help provide greater specificity to extant theoretical arguments. These are important criteria

due to the lack of theoretical understanding and limited empirical evidence of the associations investigated, and also due to complex associations related to variations in management practices which make it very difficult to adopt a deductive approach (Fiss, 2007, 2011).In this respect, the importance of the configurational approach in each paper papers is explained in the remaining part of this section.

Through Paper 1, I analyse in detail how HRM practices are likely to vary with respect to performance, as a result of different contextual situations. In line with the contingency view of Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM) theories, the first paper posits that, theoretically, it is expected that the influence of HRM practices on performance is likely to vary depending on different internal and external contingent factors (Jackson et al., 2014)

approach across all contexts (e.g., Becker and Huselid, 1998; Combs, Liu, Hall and Ketchen, 2006). In fact, when analysing industry-related factors (knowledge-intensity, capital-intensity, competition) with respect to the HRM-performance relation, I find competing theoretical rationales and equivocal empirical outcomes (e.g., in the case of capital-intensity; see: Arthur, 1994; Datta, Guthrie and Wright, 2005).

In this paper, I argue that the empirical support with respect to the universalistic view and equivocal empirical outcomes with respect to the contingency view may be a result of the empirical methods typically used in this area of research, based on linear econometric methods and the use of HRM additive index. These methods obscure the potential interdependencies between industry-related factors and between HRM practices (Purcell, 1999), thus ignoring the potential influence that combined HRM practices may have with respect to performance as a result of combined contextual situations. In addition, the methods also fail to show the likely presence of equifinality and causal asymmetry, which are likely to be present as a result of the multiple interactions that may be involved (Fiss, 2007).

Due to the competing theoretical rationale and complexities involved in the association between contextual factors, HRM practices and performance are associated, I adopt a configurational-based empirical method. The empirical results based on this method confirm that different combinations of HRM practices are associated with different industry contextual factors within high and low productive firms. The multiple interacting relations among the constructs show complex causal associations, involving

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the importance of configuration analysis in understanding the effect of HRM practices on performance in different contextual situations.

In Papers 2 and 3 I investigate the connection between leadership and HRM practices. I suggest that the adoption of such practices is likely to be influenced by leader cognitions and behaviours (Hambrick and Mason, 1984; Yukl, 1999). The influence of these leader elements is likely to be combined given that leader cognitions are likely to precede behaviour, as shown in various cognitive studies (Bandura, 1982; Lazarus, 1991).

A detailed review shows that theories acknowledge a connection between leader cognitions based on experiential knowledge structures, behaviour, and management practices. However, these theoretical arguments are fragmented and at a general level. Literature on how specific cognitions and specific leader behaviours are connected or how they are likely to influence variations in management practices is limited (see: Baron and Hannan, 2002; Klaas et al., 2012; Zhu, Chew and Spangler, 2005). Moreover, empirical evidence on how the three elements are simultaneously connected is missing.

In view of these gaps, Paper 2 is designed as a review paper, aimed at digging deep into the potential associations between specific cognitions, specific behaviours, and specific management practices. Specifically, in this paper I discuss how the adoption of HRM practices (traditional and discretionary HRM) might be impacted by variations in leader skills (as a form of experiential knowledge structures, analysed through conceptual, interpersonal, technical, and entrepreneurial skills), and leader behaviour (transactional and transformational). Paper 2 served as a foundation for the empirical analysis conducted in Paper 3. This Paper examines how the level of HRM practices (high and low) might be impacted by leader skills and strategic behaviour (command, rational, and generative).

Due to the lack of knowledge associated with the relation among leaders and management practices, a conceptual framework is developed within Papers 2 and 3, aimed at establishing a link between specific cognitions, specific behaviours, and specific management practices. The framework is based on the Attention-Based View (ABV; see: Ocasio, 1997) and the Experiential Learning Theory (ELT; see: Kolb, 1984). It stipulates that leader cognitions (based on experiential knowledge structures), behaviours, and management practices are likely to be based on reciprocal associations. This implies that the connections between the constructs are likely to be complex, involving endogeneity.

This complexity is enhanced when taking into account that leaders are likely to have different cognitive structures which are likely to be associated with different patterns of behaviours and HRM practices. In addition, based on these idiosyncratic characteristics among leaders, it is argued that the association between these constructs is likely to be characterised by equifinality and asymmetric causality.

The lack of theoretical rationale, limited empirical evidence, and the complex associations call for configurational analysis, based on set-theoretic methods. This is discussed through a detailed analysis in Paper 2 through a research agenda. In Paper 3, the application of set-theoretic methods to assess the relationship between leader skills, strategic behaviours, and HRM practices confirms this complexity. Overall, the empirical findings lead to important theoretical insights, showing that leader skills map on strategic behaviours in complex ways, involving nonlinearity, multifinality, and equfinality. Moreover, the results show that leader skills and behaviours are likely to influence the level of HRM practices. This relationship is characterised by nonlinearity, equifinality, and asymmetric relations.

These complex interactions confirm the importance of the configurational approach as opposed to traditional regression methods based on HRM indices. As discussed previously, the importance of this approach also stems from the fact that it allows for inductive reasoning. In fact, through these complex associations, important findings emerge with respect to specific theories in the field of strategic management which have not been observed in previous studies. These theoretical insights are discussed in detail in the following section.