​As the conditions in which many companies operate become increasingly complex, knowledge sharing between employees is more important now than ever. Research has left little doubt that HR practices can positively influence such knowledge sharing, although how multiple HR practices can influence knowledge sharing is less clear. A Danish study examined the effect of rewards, job design, and work climate on employees’ motivation to share knowledge. The results indicated that all three of these factors increased motivation for knowledge sharing, and these factors were found to complement each other such that the influence of reward was stronger when employees were also exposed to work climate and job design that supported knowledge sharing behavior.
 
Key Topics: Rewards; Job design; Work climate; Knowledge-sharing behavior

Does age moderate the effect of HR and organizational practices on employee commitment? A recent study on banking employees asked this very question and found that it did. Across a range of practices including reward, training, teamwork, and communication, age was found to impact on the role of these practices on employee commitment. Reward was found to have the greatest impact on commitment, and was a strong determinant of commitment levels across all age groups but was most influential in younger employees.

Key Topics: Affective commitment; Age; Teamwork; Training; Communication

How people are perceived by others has important implications in all areas of life, not least in the workplace. A recent novel study examined the effects on managerial pay of perceived physical attractiveness, trustworthiness and dominance as perceived through facial cues. The strength of all three of these facial cue types were found to be positively associated with greater managerial pay, but attractiveness was found to be a more important factor in mid-level than senior managerial pay, while perceived trustworthiness and dominance were more important in determining senior management pay.

Key Topics: Management; Face perception; Attractiveness; Dominance; Trustworthiness; Compensation

The ability of companies to be adaptable and pursue different paths simultaneously, to have organizational ambidexterity, is central to the success of many companies. A recent study on the banking sector in Israel examined the role of performance bonuses in facilitating organizational ambidexterity, and found bonuses to have a significant influence on employee performance, although the study also found that high ability employees were more capable of adjusting performance to benefit most from bonus plans.

Key Topics: Organizational ambidexterity; Employee Ability; Performance; Bonuses

While once seen as not the employer’s problem, many companies are now seeing the value in prioritising the health of employees. Despite this, income inequality is on the rise and research suggests this can have negative health implications. A recent study in Germany found that employees who perceived their income to be unjustly low have significantly worse physical health. The study also found that women and those in lower social classes were more likely to perceive their income to be unjustly low.

Key Topics: Justice; Physical health; Compensation; Income inequity