How perceptions of training impact employee performance. Evidence from two Chinese manufacturing firms
| Published date | 04 February 2019 |
| Date | 04 February 2019 |
| Pages | 163-183 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/PR-05-2017-0141 |
| Author | Xiaoyu Guan,Stephen Frenkel |
| Subject Matter | HR & organizational behaviour,Global HRM |
How perceptions of training
impact employee performance
Evidence from two Chinese
manufacturing firms
Xiaoyu Guan
School of Government, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China, and
Stephen Frenkel
UNSW Business School, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
Abstract
Purpose –The purpose of this paper is to investigate the influence of firm training on the job performance of
mainly semi-skilled manufacturing employees in the context of changes required to ensure the
competitiveness of contemporary Chinese manufacturing.
Design/methodology/approach –Data were collected using a survey with time-lagged method and from
multiple sources. The sample included 348 supervisor-subordinate dyads from two Chinese manufacturing
firms. PROCESS macro tool (Hayes) was used to test the mediating role of work engagement and the
moderating role of HRM strength in the training-performance relationship.
Findings –Work engagement mediates the relationship between training and in-role task performance,
while the relationships between work engagement and both task performance and organizational citizenship
behavior are moderated by HRM strength.
Research limitations/implications –Based on a time-lagged survey, causal relationships cannot be
drawn from this study. Results point to future research on the training-performance relationship that more
closely considers antecedents and the organizations’internal and external contexts.
Practical implications –Managers should pay close attention to the context and process of training and
learning from the employees’perspective. In addition, a strong HRM system will improve the benefits of
training on employee performance.
Originality/value –This study provides theoretical explanations on the mechanisms linking training and
employee performance based on the ability-motivation-opportunity framework.
Keywords Training, Quantitative, Work engagement, Organizational citizenship behaviour (OCB),
Task performance, HRM strength
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Cheap labor has fueled China’s rapid economic growth based primarily on the export of
manufacturing goods (Roberts and Kynge, 2002). However, labor shortages and rising labor
protests signal a need for change: Chinese manufacturing enterprises can no longer rely on
low-skilled, low-paid and over-worked employees (Elfstrom and Kuruvilla, 2014; Li, Li, Wu
and Xiong, 2012). This is reflected in government labor market policy which has established
labor rights and benefits underpinned by a series of recent labor laws (Gallagher and Dong,
2011; Wu and Sun, 2014). Furthermore, recent government innovation policy encourages
technology upgrading, a strategy that necessitates a more knowledgeable, flexible and
skilled workforce (Dobson and Safarian, 2008; Nahm and Steinfeld, 2014). An additional
incentive for change is the growing pressure of large western retailers and brands requiring
Chinese suppliers to be globally competitive and to uphold international labor and
environmental standards (Krueger, 2008; Lund‐Thomsen and Nadvi, 2010). Together, these
developments are pushing Chinese manufacturing firms to review and improve their Personnel Review
Vol. 48 No. 1, 2019
pp. 163-183
© Emerald PublishingLimited
0048-3486
DOI 10.1108/PR-05-2017-0141
Received 6 May 2017
Revised 1 February 2018
Accepted 4 June 2018
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/0048-3486.htm
The research is supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Project
Nos 71802023 and 71871025).
163
Perceptions of
training
strategies and structures. This includes changes in human resource management (HRM)
systems (Li et al., 2006; Liu et al., 2016), particularly training and development policies and
practices which are likely to strongly impact workforce efficiency and flexibility.
Development of employee knowledge and skills is generally regarded as a critical HRM
function (Hansson, 2007). Employees at all levels need to understand the firm’sstrategy
including their own contribution and the need to continuously improve their job performance
(Becker and Huselid, 2010), particularly in the context of rapid process and product innovation.
In the current study, training is defined as the acquisition and development of knowledge, skills
and attitudes by employees to perform their work effectively (Goldstein, 1980; Latham, 1988). In
practice,trainingmaybenarrowlyfocusedonlearningspecificskillsoritmaybebroader,
intended to develop understanding of the production process, encourage reflection on the way
the job is undertaken in relation to other functions and develop creativity to execute tasks more
effectively (Sung and Choi, 2014; Vough et al., 2017). Training has been found to have important
consequences for employees: higher job satisfaction (Chiang et al., 2005), commitment to the
organization (Ahmad and Bakar, 2003) and reduced turnover intention (Newman et al., 2011).
Improvement in these related aspects is likely to increase productivity, flexibility and quality,
thereby lifting performance. These characteristics suggest a key role for training in the modern
Chinese manufacturing enterprise.
In prior research, training is widely acknowledged as contributing to improvements in
individual and organizational performance (Tharenou et al., 2007). At the firm level, training,
particularly managerial training, has been found to be positively related to firm productivity
(Barrett and O’Connell, 2001; Zwick, 2006), financial performance (Glaveli and Karassavidou,
2011; Kim and Ployhart, 2014), innovative performance (Sung and Choi, 2014) and sustainable
development ( Ji et al., 2012). At the individual level, several studies have demonstrated a positive
relationship between training and employee performance (Bartel, 1995; Elnaga and Imran, 2013;
Khan, 2012). However, the mediating processes between training practices and employees’job
performance remain unclear (Tharenou et al., 2007). In addition, less is known about how
organization contextual factors might moderate the effectiveness of training (Arthur et al., 2003).
The current study focuses on training as perceived by employees and explains how it
influences employees’job performance in a Chinese manufacturing context. Two key concepts
in our model are work engagement, which describes a positive work-related state of mind
characterized by vigor, dedication and absorption (Bakker and Schaufeli, 2008) and the strength
of HRM system (hereafter referred to as HRM strength). HRM strength refers to the
effectiveness of HRM systems in communicating to employees the kinds of behaviors that are
expected, evaluated and rewarded by management (Bowen and Ostroff, 2004). We propose that
the link between training and job performance is mediated by employee work engagement and
that this effect is strengthened where employees perceive the presence of a strong HRM system.
This study makes three contributions to the training and HRM literature. First, we
explain the impact of training on employee attitudes and performance based on the AMO
framework. This marks a departure from prior research on perceptions of HRM, which has
mainly applied social exchange theory to explain why the whole HRM system contributes to
desirable outcomes (Alfes et al., 2013; Karatepe, 2013; Meijerink et al., 2016). Relatedly, our
study is among the first to examine the mediating role of work engagement in the
relationship between training and employee performance. Training is a key HRM practice
that influences work engagement and related behavioral and performance outcomes
through organizational climate and the job demands and resources experienced by
employees in their work roles (Albrecht et al., 2015; Shantz et al., 2016). Our research findings
support the growing literature showing that high-performance HRM practices such as
training improve employee work engagement, productivity and growth (Bakker, 2017).
Second, we incorporate HRM strength as a novel moderator in the training-performance
relationship. Integrating HRM content (training) and process (strength) perspectives
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