Dynamics of HR Practices in Disruptive and Innovative Business Models in an Emerging Economy

Ethical issues in recruitment/selection and training/development, protection of employees rights concerning fair and adequate compensation, employee engagement, Flexi-working, maternity and paternity pay, job security and compulsory holiday pay are the issues that continue to bug web and platform-based businesses in emerging economies. While there are elements of infusion of HR and technology in practice and application, the role and perception of contemporary HR practices and practitioners in steaming the effects of disruptive business models on the afore-mentioned HR issues and constructs are both foggy and fussy. This research paper, therefore, focuses on understanding the HR practices of disruptive business models and the challenges of balancing between ethics/best practices in HR and organisational bottom-lines. The research exploits exploratory data from secondary sources and gathers primary evidence from major stakeholders in Nigeria emerging web and platform-based businesses, otherwise know as the ‘gig economy’. The study focused, specifically, on Uber and Taxify which are the two prominent transport platform networks operations in Nigeria. Samples were drawn from a large population consisting of 22 D&I business executives, 150 D&I operators, 5 industry regulator executives, and 500 service users. Sequel to the data collection, the quantitative data were analysed using SPSS to derive descriptive and regression analysis. This study found that despite changes in the business models of these organisations, particularly the human resource unit, new HR management systems such as the human capital management software for recruitment had also taken a new shape which is more effective and less expensive to organisations. The protection of employees’ rights seemed to have been a critical issue leading to ethical concerns. Also, as a result of the ‘gig’ nature of the industry, it is challenging for organisations to measure the basis for maternity and paternity pay. This research recommends the need for ensuring fairness to all employees, eradicating tribal, age, gender and income discrimination, ensuring that the role of technology does not encroach into the privacy and flexibility of employees but rather to enhance their skills, development and overall competence.