The organization of Human Resource Management in temporary work agencies—towards a comprehensive research agenda on temporary agency work in Germany, the Netherlands and the US

While many studies suggest that companies use temporary agency work only as a short-term instrument to adjust the workforce in line with demand, recent research has pointed to new developments in employers' use of temporary agency work. Studies have highlighted the development of increasing long-term contractual relationships between temporary work agencies and client companies in countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and the US. What is missing in the current debate so far are insights on how temporary work agencies are responding to new expectations by client companies. Therefore, possible strategies are analyzed with special regard to the design of Human Resource Management instruments in temporary work agencies. Although the Human Resource Management is the core competency of temporary work agencies, surprisingly little attention in the academic literature has been paid to the question how Human Resource Management should be structured in order to support the adopted strategies by the agencies. This will be analyzed in the paper with a special focus on the situation in Germany, the Netherlands and the US, developing propositions for further research and a comprehensive research agenda for international comparative studies.