Human resource management and performance in European firms

We develop a theoretical framework to examine three hypotheses on the relationshipbetween human resource management (HRM) practices and organisationalperformance in European firms. The first is that collaborative forms of HRMpractice are more strongly associated with superior firm performance thancalculative forms. The second is that these associations are strongest where nationalinstitutional and normative settings support them. The third is that employer–employee consultative committees and collective payment methods are alsoassociated with superior firm performance. The first two propositions are stronglyempirically supported, as is the third, albeit more weakly. The implications of thefindings for European policy and Varieties of Capitalism theory are discussed.