What is it about and why is it needed? Presentation in WORK2015 conference – New Meanings of Work, Turku Finland 21th of August 2015. Minna Janhonen and Sara Lindström, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health.

1. Well-being through work

2. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Agile HRM in growth enterprises
What is it about and why is it needed?
Minna Janhonen & Sara Lindström
21.8.2015, WORK2015 – New Meanings of Work, Turku

3. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Why study Agile HRM?
• Initial observations of HR practitioners
promoting agility especially in growth
enterprises
• Lack of research combining agility and
HRM
• Need to develop HRM in growing SMEs

4. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Why study Agile HRM?
• Political pressures
for economic growth
• Media hype
surrounding
startups promoting
agility

5. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi

6. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Agility
• Agile manufacturing (Gunasekaran
1999; Yusuf et al. 1999)
• Strategic agility in management
(Doz & Kosonen 2008)
• Flexibility, speed, openness, integration

7. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Agility and Human Resource
Management – key points
• Enhancing the strategic influence of HR
• Long-term emphasis on organizational
culture
• Short-term emphasis on flexibility in
management practices

8. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Agile HRM in Growth Enterprises: Operation
models for SMEs (2015-2016)
Aims:
1. To increase understanding in small and
medium-sized growth enterprises and
expansionalry startups of the importance of
the role of human resource management
issues in the enterprises’ goal oriented
operations.
2. To improve enterprises’ readiness to develop
their own HRM methods, taking into account
their own operational environment.

9. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Project steps
3 steps:
1. Information compilement
• Interviews, social media, Meadow-data
2. Piloting
• 5 firms undergoing the growth phase
3. Knowledge dissemination
• Workshops, networks, blogs, seminars, media, articles…

10. © Finnish Institute of Occupational Health – www.ttl.fi
Thank You!
www.ttl.fi/ketterahr
minna.janhonen@ttl.fi
sara.lindstrom@ttl.fi