Improving employee experience in a medium-sized retail chain through quality human resource management practices: Does bifurcation bias in family firms moderate the nexus?

• Main Authors: Paderna, Raymond Disomito, Guiveses, Michaela Lorain, Ong, Stephen Jan, Tsai, Joshua Lemuel
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2020
• Subjects: Family-owned business enterprises—Personnel management; Human Resources Management
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/faculty_research/10350
• Institution: De La Salle University

This mixed-method research explores the propensity of bifurcation bias in a family business to either amplify or diminish the effect of human resource management practices on employee experience. To perform this task, the researchers polled 235 employees of a medium-sized department store chain in the Philippines using instruments adapted for the study. The company owners and a human resource management expert were interviewed afterwards in order to cross-validate observed data. Survey results revealed that the quality of most human resource management practices in the company is satisfactory and that employee experience was assessed to be very good by those who were polled. Unsurprisingly, bifurcation bias which favored family over non-family members was adjudged to be prevalent according to the respondents. Moderated regression analysis conducted also confirmed the moderating effect of bifurcation bias, indicating that only when bias is reduced can the effectiveness of human resource management practices lead to enhanced employee experience. All expert respondents were largely unsurprised by the survey results suggesting that they were expected from a family business of this size. The company was recommended to upgrade specific human resource management practices as well as reduce bifurcation bias by recruiting family members based on competence.