Illustrated in Figure 6.2 of the text book (Collis & Hussey, 2013, p.100). This week you will present your
topic (keeping in mind the criteria mentioned in your text book Box 6.1 p.101) research motivation, and
pertinent literature reading so far.
To prepare for this Assignment:
� Read Chapter 6 of your core text, �Writing your research proposal� (Collis & Hussey, 2013, pp.96-
128) ((this file is sent by email)
� Return to your chosen research topic-problem identified (THE CHOSEEN TOPIC I ALREADY WROTE
IT DOWN) and consider how you may develop your ideas further including literature, research questions,
your interest and scope, and feasibility.
� Present/discuss your chosen research topic from your degree field.
� Discuss the key arguments and findings from pertinent literature and draft your critical review keeping
in mind its purpose
� Formulate the main research question(s)
� Describe your interest in the topic and questions, demonstrating the motivation for your research, plus
the link between your topic/questions and existing research literature
� Discuss the feasibility of the study and explain how you can gain access to the data that you need to
collect
Human Resource Strategies
Part 1: Justification, Research Aims and Feasibility
- Background Information
Human capital is undoubtedly one of the most imperative determinants of an organisation’s
performance both in terms of productivity and profitability (Walker, 2016). Thus, it is important
to ensure that there is high employee engagement in order to increase their satisfaction and
loyalty to the organisation as well as reducing the rate of turnover. As a result, appropriate
human resource strategies are necessary to achieve this fete (Alnaqbi, 2011; Walker, 2016). This
means that integration of human resources strategies that are effective in an organization has
always had a considerable compatibility or relationship with improved competitive edge of an
organization in the market (Al-Emedi, Schwabenland & Wei, 2014; Dutch, 2013). According to
Guiso, Sapienza & Zingales (2015) and Sahoo (2016), there is need to always make sure that
human resource strategies are in synergy or synchronised with a succinctly clear as well as a
functional and an actively operational organisational structure including devoted engagement
with the right and talented employees on basis of clearly outlined short-term and long-term
human resource strategies.
This paper shall then undertake an exploration of the influence of human resource strategies on
employee engagement in Qatar organisations, and how organizations in Qatar are adapted as well
as how they can be modified to utilize human resource personnel systems, strategies and
principles that are more productive and effective in terms of organisational performance. An
interpretivist approach technique will be utilized in the acquisition of literature based on human
resources strategies utilized in Qatar. The interpretivist research will be utilized in this research
project because the human resources management field requires adoption of a strategy of
Human Resource Strategies
including vital information obtained from the personnel and/or employees considered in the
study. This is attributable to the fact that, opinions obtained from a vast range of experts in
human resources management is significantly appreciated and receives a wide acceptance based
on the first-hand experience of these experts in the field (Alnaqbi, 2011; Dutch, 2013; Kleckner
& Marshall, 2014).
- Research Aim
To identify and explore the human resource strategies that influence employee engagement
within organisations in Qatar and to develop recommendations on how these human resource
strategies can be changed in order to improve employee engagement. - Research Questions
In order to make sure that the aim and objectives of the study are achieved, it is imperative to
formulate appropriate research questions that the researcher should strive to answer by the end of
the study through the findings obtained from the data collected from the research participants. As
a result, the main research questions formulated for this study are as follows:
RQ1: Which human resource strategies influence employee engagement within
organisations in Qatar?
RQ2: How do these human resource strategies influence employee engagement within
organisations in Qatar?
RQ3: How can these human resource strategies get changed or modified in order to
improve employee engagement within organisations in Qatar?
Human Resource Strategies
- Objective
The objective or end-product of this study is the most imperative goal to achieve since it will
indicate whether the research project was successful or not in fulfilling its mandate. Thus, the
main objective or end-project envisaged to be achieved by the culmination of this research
project will be as shown below:
To develop recommendations on how human resource strategies can be changed in order
to improve employee engagement within organisations in Qatar. - Feasibility
This interpretivist research shall strive to explore how human resource strategies devised and
implemented by human resource management (HRM) professionals as well as managers of
organisations in Qatar can influence employee engagement subsequently leading to increased
employee commitment, satisfaction as well as retention in their respective organisations (Sutirtha
et al., 2015). This is imperative because in many organisations such as multinationals as well as
small and medium enterprises (SMEs) have the potential to use human resource strategies in
their attempts towards increasing employee engagement and subsequently improving
productivity and profitability of their respective organisations. Research data for this study shall
be collected from a variety of participants randomly picked from a wide range of organisations in
Qatar to avoid bias and ensure representativeness of the selected sample size from the target
population (Collins & Hussey, 2013). In particular, the research participants from whom research
data will be collected include employees from various organisations operating in diverse
industrial sectors. The research participants will specifically be picked from low cadre personnel,
Human Resource Strategies
middle level personnel (including workforce supervisors, head of departments and coordinators
or junior managers), as well as top level management personnel.
In addition, a number of HRM consultants will also be recruited in the study in order to
participate in the structured interviews so that additional data is collected from a different
perspective (Albrecht et al., 2015). A review of company documents will also be carried out to
ensure detailed information or data about the chosen organisations is gathered, especially with
regard to employee productivity as well as organisational performance and profitability as an
attempt to achieve methodological triangulation demonstration (Stacey & Vincent, 2011; Blau,
Bach, Scott, & Rubin, 2013; Gherardi & Perrotta, 2014). According to Albrecht et al. (2015),
ethical considerations will be fundamental in this research project since human participants are
involved. As a result, permissions have to be obtained both from the university as well as
organizations where the study is to be conducted (Collins & Hussey, 2013). So far, permission to
proceed with the research has already been obtained from the university and calls have been
made to various organizations expected to be included to the study and positive responses have
been given awaiting official permission. This means that the research project is feasible because
after official permissions are obtained from the necessary organizations, random selection of the
sample size will follow and questionnaires will be subsequently administered to collect the
required data.
Part 2: Literature Review
Significant work has been done in the area of human resources management and strategies, but
more emphasis has been on how they influence employee productivity and organisational
performance. However, few studies have been conducted to specifically research the influence of
Human Resource Strategies
human resources management and strategies on employee engagement meaning that, the findings
of this study will play a crucial role in enriching existing literature. This is because most of prior
studies have directed a considerable emphasis on examining the determinants of the departures
of individual employees as well as aggregate organisational turnover, even though a significant
number of the studies conducted in the past within this field focused on determinants of the
departures of individual employees rather than the aggregate organisational turnover (Albrecht et
al., 2015; Sutirtha et al., 2015). For example, Yee et al. (2014) and Kleckner & Marshall (2014)
reiterate that there are a vast range of factors that influence employee engagement and
subsequently organisational turnover including perceptions of job security, job satisfaction,
compensation or remuneration level, organisational tenure, presence and/or membership of a
workers’ union, whether individual expectations of an employee are met by the job, perceptions
of organisational culture, organisational commitment, demographic variables such as education
level, gender, age, and the number of dependents, as well as intention of an employee to search
for an alternative or another job.
Therefore, the theoretical rationale that justify the need to examine the influence of human
resource strategies on employee engagement and subsequently their turnover lies on the
influence of such strategies on the above mentioned individual-level job factors that may bear a
significant impact to an individual employee rather than the organisation’s workforce as a whole
(Blau, Bach, Scott, & Rubin, 2013; Dutch, 2013). Thus, an emphasis on influence of human
resource strategies on employee engagement has been prioritised with regards to reducing
individual and aggregate employee turnover in an organisation, and realistic job reviews as well
as job enrichment interventions were identified to be considerably effective in improving
Human Resource Strategies
employee engagement and subsequently reducing both individual and aggregate employee
turnover in an organisation (Albrecht et al., 2015; Bedwell, Fiore & Salas, 2014).
According to Al-Emedi, Schwabenland & Wei (2015), employee engagement can be
significantly influenced by the human resource strategies and/or policies implemented by an
organisation, and they are a key organisational success driver. This is attributable to the fact that,
high levels of employee engagement fostered by effective human resource strategies and policies
in both domestic and multinational companies often improve stakeholder value and
organisational performance, foster customer loyalty, and promote retention of talented
employees (Albrecht et al., 2015). However, this is a complex concept since employee
engagement has been found to be influenced by many factors including organizational
communication, workplace culture, company reputation as well as managerial and leadership styles
(Albrecht et al., 2015; Sutirtha et al., 2015). Furthermore, different studies have highlighted various
human resource strategies that improve employee engagement including talent acquisition, extensive
recruitment and selection, workforce and succession planning, training procedures, compensation
and employee benefits programs, grievance procedures, formal information sharing, employee
and labour relations, performance appraisal, safety management, attitude assessment, employee
wellness, rewarding employee merit and embracing diversity (Alnaqbi, 2011; Albrecht et al.,
2015; Walker, 2016). A balanced implementation of these human resource strategies is
imperative in fostering a culture of engagement between employers and employees, subsequently
leading the way to the designing, measurement and evaluation of proactive workplace practices
and policies that eventually result to improved organisational performance (Alnaqbi, 2011;
Walker, 2016).
Human Resource Strategies
Reference List
Al-Emedi, A. Q., Schwabenland, C., & Wei, Q. (2014), “The Vital Role of Employee retention
in Human Resource Management: A Literature Review,” The IUP Journal of
Organizational Behaviour, Vol. 14, No. 3, pp. 7-32.
Albrecht, S. L., Bakker, A. B., Gruman, J. A., Macey, W. H., & Saks, A. M. (2015),”Employee
engagement, human resource management practices and competitive advantage: An
integrated approach”, Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance,
Vol. 2, No.1, pp. 7-35.
Alnaqbi, W. (2011),”The relationship between human resource practices and employee retention
in public organisations: An exploratory study conducted in the United Arab Emirates,”
Edith Cowan University (Doctoral Thesis).
Bedwell, W., Fiore, S.M., & Salas, E. (2014), “Developing the Future Workforce: An Approach
for Integrating Interpersonal Skills into the MBA Classroom,” Academy of Management
Learning & Education, Vol. 13, No. 2, pp. 171-186.
Blau, D., Bach, L., Scott, M., & Rubin, S. (2013), “Clark Moustakas (1923–2012): Scholar,
teacher, colleague and friend,” The Humanistic Psychologist, Vol. 41, No. 3, pp. 97–99.
Human Resource Strategies
Collins, J., & Hussey, R. (2013), Business Research: A Practical Guide for Undergraduate and
Postgraduate Students (4 th edition). New York, NY: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN-13: 978-
0230301832
Dutch, M. A. (2013), “A Symbiotic Framework of Human Resources, Organizational Strategy
and Culture,” Amity Global Business Review, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 9-14.
Gherardi, S., & Perrotta, M. (2014), Gender, ethnicity and social entrepreneurship: Qualitative
approaches to the study of entrepreneuring. In E. Chell & M. Karata-Özkan (Eds.),
Handbook of research on small business and entrepreneurship (pp.130–135).
Northampton, MA: Elger.
Guiso, L., Sapienza, P., & Zingales, L. (2015), “The Value of Corporate Culture,” Journal of
Financial Economics, Vol. 117, No. 1, pp. 60-76.
Kleckner, M. J., & Marshall, C. R. (2014), “Critical Communication Skills: Developing Course
Competencies to Meet Workforce Needs,” Journal for Research in Business Education,
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Sahoo, S. (2016), “Strategic HRM Practices: Public Sector Perspective,” The Journal of Public
Enterprise, Vol. 39, No. 1, pp. 62-87.
Stacey, K., & Vincent, J. (2011), “Evaluation of an electronic interview through electronic media
with multimedia stimulus materials for gaining in-depth responses from professionals,”
Qualitative Research, Vol. 11, No. 2, pp. 605–624.
Sutirtha, C., Moddy, G., Lowry, P. B., Chakraborty, S., & Hardin, A. (2015),
“Strategic Relevance of Organizational Virtues Enabled by Information Technology in
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Organizational Innovation,” Journal of Management Information Systems, Vol. 32, No. 3,
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