Human Resource Management

Head of Section: Professor Pete Turnbull
Telephone: +44 (0)29 2087 5582
Fax: +44 (0)29 2087 4419
Email: TurnbullPJ@cardiff.ac.uk

Aims

The aims of the HRM Section are threefold: to promote research of an international quality in the three broad areas of organisation studies, employment studies and public management; to deliver research-led teaching of an outstanding quality; and to provide a supportive environment for the development of academic researchers and educators.

Research

The HRM Section comprises more than 40 research active staff who work in three associated fields. The Section incorporates the following research groups:

• Centre for Global Labour Research
• Cardiff Organization Studies Group (CORGies)
• Centre for Local and Regional Government Research

The Section holds an annual, themed conference and a very successful seminar series, and is involved in ongoing collaboration with other research groups at Cardiff University in sociology and city and regional planning. A number of major international journals are edited by members of the Section including, International Journal of Human Resource Management, British Journal of Industrial Relations, Organization, British Journal of Management, the Journal of Management Studies and Work, Employment and Society.

The HRM Section has a very strong publishing profile with its members regularly publishing articles in the main employment, organisation, management and public management journals in both Europe and the United States. There is also a strong record of book publication and the Routledge Series, Studies in Employment Relations and Global Human Resource Management are edited by members of the Section. A recent Cardiff-based volume – Reassessing the Employment Relationship – was published by Palgrave-Macmillan.

In addition to academic outputs the Section has an advisory and consultancy role and has produced reports and advice for a broad range of corporate and other clients. Recent users of HRM research include the Trades Union Congress, the European Commission, the International Transport Workers' Federation, the Wales Assembly Government and the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. The collaborative work of the Section with the International Labour Organisation recently led to a collaboration agreement to promote and advance the social and labour dimension of work and employment in the industrial, services and maritime sectors.

The standing of the HRM Section is indicated by its success in winning research grants from the Economic and Social Research Council, the Leverhulme Trust and other established sources of funding. Currently there are four Fellows of the Advanced Institute of Management Research in the Section, Professor George Boyne, Professor Rick Delbridge, Dr Joe O'Mahoney and Professor Robyn Thomas.

Development

There is a strong commitment to developing academic staff within the HRM Section and several of its senior members have made the transition from undergraduate to postgraduate to a full academic career. All Section members belong to subject-based study groups and there is a system of mentoring and appraisal to ensure that individuals can maximise their professional potential. Professorial staff assume a research leadership role and there is a tradition of group-based research within the Section, which provides opportunities for learning in a work context.

The Section has access to ESRC and Business School funding for doctoral candidates and has recently employed a number of Teaching Assistants who combine paid work as tutors with registration for a PhD. There is a strong collegiate ethos to the Section and this provides a supportive context for the development of academic staff at all levels.