Promoting corporate entrepreneurship through human resource management practices: A review of empirical research

As environments become more complex and dynamic, firms must become more entrepreneurial in order to identify new opportunities for sustained superior performance. Corporate entrepreneurship (CE) involves organizational learning, driven by collaboration, creativity and individual commitment. Therefore, it is widely held that HRM practices are an important driver of success. However, there is a pressing need for empirical research that addresses the contributions that HRM makes to a firm's ability to accept risk, be innovative and be proactive. This paper reviews empirical research linking human resource management (HRM) practices with CE. It is found that although there is consensus as to the importance of HRM to CE, the empirical evidence is mixed and tends to lack a clear theoretical explanation. This review identifies two central themes that need to be addressed as we seek a theoretical explanation for this important relationship: individual risk acceptance and the encouragement of discretionary entrepreneurial contributions. It is suggested that these two issues are interdependent. Potential theoretical avenues and future research directions are discussed.