IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/h/elg/eechap/21373_7.html
   My bibliography  Save this book chapter

HRM systems and online labour platforms: survival of the (mis-)fittest?

In: Research Handbook on Human Resource Management and Disruptive Technologies

Author

Listed:
  • Anne Keegan
  • Jeroen Meijerink

Abstract

Extant HRM theorizing predicts that desired business outcomes depend on the alignment of individual HRM activities - i.e. the core elements of HRM systems - and their fit with business strategy and institutional forces. The aim of this chapter is to show how the rise of online labour platforms (OLPs) like Uber, Deliveroo and Fiverr contradicts this so-called strong systems logic by disrupting links between human resource management (HRM) systems and undermining the importance of fit. We argue that as a result of their disruptive business model (i.e. algorithmic matching of supply and demand for freelance labour), platform firms engineer mis-fit through contradictory HRM practices that are deployed to manage freelance gig workers. Specifically, OLPs combine HRM activities that traditionally are seen to belong to different HRM systems (i.e. internal (mis)fit), and dynamically adjust them to cope with ongoing changes in their business strategy and challenges arising from institutional pressures (i.e. external (mis)fit). This chapter details the implications for future research on HRM systems and for theorizing on HRM in the gig economy.

Suggested Citation

  • Anne Keegan & Jeroen Meijerink, 2024. "HRM systems and online labour platforms: survival of the (mis-)fittest?," Chapters, in: Tanya Bondarouk & Jeroen Meijerink (ed.), Research Handbook on Human Resource Management and Disruptive Technologies, chapter 7, pages 94-104, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    • Handle: RePEc:elg:eechap:21373_7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781802209242.00016
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:elg:eechap:21373_7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Darrel McCalla (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.e-elgar.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.