Human resource management and performances: proposition and test of a causal model

This research aims at clarifying the links which may exist between human resource management practices and economic performance of firms. To this end, a theoretical model of an exploratory nature is proposed, based on the hypothesis of the existence of cascading relationships between three categories of performance: social, organizational and economic. The model is applied to a sample of almost 300 French small and mid-sized firms. The principal hypotheses put forth within the context of this study are to a large degree validated. This allows the formulation of interesting recommendations for managers and opens new ways for scholars pursuing this line of research.