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Does the bundling of human resource practices result in better performance? In order to better understand and respond the question Does the bundling of human resource practices result in better performance? It is needed to first address a general comprehension of what these procedures include. The following essay will first begin to explain how such practices are an essential tool in todays human resource management and then proceed to analyze their positive impact discussing how personnel recruiting and training bundles lead to an efficiency improvement, in both productivity and financial performance. To finally end presenting an exhibition of evidence that supports the discussion, ending with a conclusion. Earlier work in both educational and popular press argues that the use of High Performance Work Practices would result in better company performance. So this is the focal point of this paper. Investing in bundling of human resource practices is in fact, associated with lesser employee turnover and greater efficiency and companys economic performance. The traditional methodology of human resource management which focused on the results of unconnected human resource practices on individual level outcomes, has changed nowadays to a more global, and strategic perspective (Butler, Ferris, & Napier, 1991). Before continuing to analyse such practices, it is fair to state that even though there could be an ideal HR system architecture, whatever the bundles or arrangements of procedures applied in a certain firm, the individual practices must be aligned between each other and be consistent with the HR design if they are intended to influence a firm performance (Becker & Gerhart, 1996).

Personnel recruiting and training bundles As mentioned by Levine and Tyson (1990), when personnel possess skills and expertise that managers do not, when they are encouraged to apply this set of knowledge throughout their labour day; and also when the organization's commercial or manufacture plan can be accomplished only when workers
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contribute such effort. So, as this will be analysed, an improvement in economic performance is expected to be achieved by innovative human resource practices. A firms human capital can experience an improvement by development of skills and knowledge but also through the acquisition of the best prospects available. Recruiting process with a large number of competent candidates can become a hassle if not paired with a consistent and effective selection program. Also, this superior plan can lead to a considerable impact on the quality of new employees. Amongst the HRM practices that could improve employee set of skills and impact employees' development, here is a presented a buffet of options: formal and informal training practices, elementary skills training, general knowledge of the firm even if they will not be working in that area or duty, in order to improve communication and awareness; coaching and mentoring on firms rules, expectations, and values and management development. Worker performance is a function of both capability and stimulus; that is the reason to include practices designed to enhance both. Husselid (1995) mentions samples of organization attempts to conduct and stimulate employee behaviour which consist of performance assessments that evaluate group or individual task performance, connecting these evaluations strongly with reward systems, usage of inner promotion schemes that concentrates on personal merit, plus diverse manners of incentives envisioned to align the interests of employees with those of shareholders. High performance work practices (U.S. Department of Labour, 1993) that were largely associated with valuable corporate level results. Such policies and practices include: extensive recruitment, training methods, formal exchange of information, attitude assessment, job design, grievance procedures and programs that participate in the management of labour; and execution evaluation, promotion and incentive schemes that identify and reward employee merit. Likewise, an HR bundle that has the faculty of giving flexibility, accessibility, information, and financial support to employees to deal with their non-work life better, can be
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considered strategic and should be added to the list of the "best practices" of strategic human resource management (Perry, Smith & Blum, 200) By shaping psychological links between organizational goals and employees, HR systems engage preferred conducts and behaviours of employees. In other words, the focus is on the development of trusted, dedicated staff, in its sole discretion to use to perform tasks in a manner consistent with the objectives of the organization (Organ, 1988).

Efficiency improvement The objective of human resource systems are control costs and direct labor reduction, or efficiency improvement, by implementing employee compliance with specified rubrics and techniques and support reward employees on some measurable performance criteria (Eisenhardt, 1985). The system of high performance work explained by (Arthur 1994), which is called a system of "engagement", specifies a low value in the variable remuneration, while other authors consider it in an opposite direction, having solid emphasis on variable compensation. As mentioned before, there is no standard configuration of policies and bundles, but a correct mixture according to firms specific goals and objectives. Another example would be the HR strategies that are based on internal actions and access to process employee grievances. Huselid (1995) described such as high performance practices. This same study broadly valued the links among structures of high business execution and work procedures. Outcomes based on a national sample of nearly a thousand companies show that these practices count with a monetary and statistical substantial impact on both turnover and productivity employee outcomes and short and long-term financial performance companies have. Practices of human resource management can also affect the performance of the company through the delivery of organizational schemes to promote employee participation and
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improve how they will conduct their work. Multi-functional teams, job rotation are examples of such structures. The general perception proposes that the embracement of an internal coherent system of high performance work practices result in better corporate performance being reflected. It must be possible to determine the best practices of HRM for approval, because their results are usually valued at the corporate level (Huselid, 1995).

Evidence A set of evidences to support how bundling HR practices conduct to an improvement in effectiveness in both productivity and financial performance needs to be presented. Next, strategic HR management collected works are revised in the search for embracing a look on the impact of the HRM on firm performance. First, Porter (1985), made a comparison between the extended to the conventional estimates, which measure the "fit" on interactions with standard calculations of corporate strategy. By studying the impact of the company's performance in the HR organism and the broader context of the organization which assist and strengthens a system of personnel management for high performance. The results sustain a substantial support for a positive relationship between HR system high performance and business success. Also, as Dyer & Reeves (1994), mentioned in an analysis of Arthurs (1994) work. By making a study in manufacturing industry, results showed that the average turnover rate in mini-mills with a strategy of "engagement" was less than half (3%-7% annual rate) of the mini-mills with a strategy of "control". Resulting in strategy of HR actually is substantially connected to turnover rates. Among other studies analyzed thoroughly by the same authors, the one that lchniowski (1990) did using regression models with multiple control variables is worth mentioned. He discovered minor but statistically weighty positive relationship between productivity (time of operation of the finishing lines) and most of the examined work.
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Like mentioned before in the personnel recruiting and training bundles paragraph, MacDuffie (1995) also mentions that a bundle of HR practices provides numerous means for employees to obtain skills (for instance, during leisure and training, job rotation, group problem solving). As various incentives intended to boost motivation in workers like pay for performance and awards for participation in decision making. In general, the evidence presented show bundling and

strengthened hr practices in a structure that already includes manufacture and corporate strategy, is likely to outperform in productivity and quality another with a more old-fashioned mass production system.

Finally, bundles appear to be above in performance improving than any other of the various activities of human resources which they are made. Some are especially better when planned to develop more skilful employees, or to go through a better recruiting process, others to reduce labour costs or align labour force ideals and goals with the ones of the organization. Also, configurations are intended to improve production and economic performance, but this progress is already achieved in many ways by the overall development of employees set of skills and knowledge, and undeniably their involvement in companys success. The diverse approaches are differently named, "commitment", "innovative, amongst others; but no matter how are they named, all of them count with a certain degree of employee participation, and most of them include selection, extensive training and conditional recompense. So, logically combinations that integrate and combine these elements are likely to form a highly efficient HR strategy (Dyer & Reeves, 1995). As mentioned by Cutcher and Gershenfield (1991), it is the arrangement of techniques in a bundle rather than separate practices, what determines the pattern of relations between managers and labour force. Giving the results a review, and analysing the several positive outcomes that HR bundles generate to a firms performance, one may conclude that the adoption and appliance of these procedures is a must in todays high performance work practices.

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REFERENCES Arthur, J.B. 1994. Effects of human resource systems on manufacturing

performance and turnover. Academy of Management Journal, 37(3): 670-687. Becker, B. & Gerhart, B. 1996. The impact of human resource management on organizational performance: progress and prospects. Academy of

Management Journal, 39(4): 779-801. Butler, J. E., Ferris, G. R., & Napier, N. K. 1991. Strategy and human

resources management. Cincinnati : South-Western. Cutcher-Gershenfeld, Joel. 1991. "The Impact on Economic Performance of a Transformation in Workplace Relations." Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Vol. 44, No. 2 (January), pp. 241-60. Dyer, L. & Reeves, T. 1995. Human resource strategies and firm performance: what do we know and where do we need to go? Human Resource Management, 6(3): 656-670. Eisenhardt, K. M. 1985. Control: Organizational and economic approaches. Management Sci-ence, 31: 134-149. Guest, D., Conway, N. & Dewe, P. 2004. Using sequential tree analysis to International Journal of

search for bundles of HR practices. Human Resource Management Journal, 14(1): 79-96. Huselid, M.A., & Becker, B.E. 1997. The impact of high performance work

systems, implementation effectiveness and alignment with strategy on shareholder wealth. Paper presented at the 1997 Academy of Management Annual Conference, Boston, MA. Huselid, M.A. 1995. The impact of human resource management practices on turnover, productivity and corporate financial performance. Management Journal, 38(3): 635-672. Academy of

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Levine, D. l., & Tyson, L. D. 1990. Participation, productivity, and the firm's environment. In A. S. Blinder (Ed.), Paying for productivity: A look at the evidence: 183-243. Washing- ton, DC: Brookings Institution. MacDuffie, J.P. 1995. Human resource bundles and manufacturing performance: Organizational logic and flexible production systems in the world auto industry. Industrial and Labour Relations, 48(2): 197-221. Perry-Smith, J.E., & Blum, T.C. 2000. Work-family human resource bundles and perceived organizational performance. 43(5): 1107-1117. Porter, M.E. 1985. Competitive Advantage: Creating and Sustaining Superior Performance. The Free Press: New York. Wright, P. M., & McMahan, G. C. 1992. Theoretical perspectives for strategic human resource management. /Journal of Management, 18: 295-320. Academy of Management Journal,