SOFT AND HARD MODELS OF HUMAN-RESOURCE MANAGEMENT - A REAPPRAISAL

Two of the most widely adopted models of human resource management are the hard and soft versions. These are based on opposing views of huma n nature and managerial control strategies. The hard model is based on notions of tight strategic control, and an economic model of man acco rding to Theory X, while the soft model is based on control through co mmitment and Theory Y. We argue that because these assumptions are so divergent, they cannot both properly be incorporated within a single m odel of human resource management. Eight in-depth case studies were ca rried out, involving questionnaires, interviews and focus groups in or der to find out whether organizations were practising either form of H RM. We found that no pure examples of either form existed, The paper c oncludes that the rhetoric adopted by the companies frequently embrace s the tenets of the soft, commitment model, while the reality experien ced by employees is more concerned with strategic control, similar to the hard model. This distinction between rhetoric and reality needs to be taken into account in conceptualizations of human resource managem ent.