Bridging the gap between reality and perception: Managers' role in shaping employee perceptions of high performance work systems

Strategic human resource management (HRM) scholars have acknowledged the mediating role of employee outcomes in the relationship between human resource (HR) systems and firm performance and demonstrated the importance of employee perceptions of HR systems on employee outcomes. In order to enhance the impact of HR systems on employee outcomes and subsequent firm performance, researchers suggest aligning employee perceptions of HR systems with those of management. To address this research need, the current study was designed to explore managers' role in translating HR information from HR departments to shape employee perceptions of high-performance work systems (HPWS)---a type of HR systems that has been most studied in the literature. Using a sample of 44 HR managers, 167 department managers, and 479 employees collected from a nationwide shipping company in China, I found that HR manager perceived HPWS and department manager perceived HPWS were not significantly related to each other. When department managers were more motivated to implement HR practices, the relationship between HPWS perceived by HR managers and department managers became stronger. Also, when department managers felt less empowered to deal with HR issues, department managers and HR managers were more likely to have consistent understanding of HPWS. Regarding the relationship between department manager perceived HPWS and employee perceived HPWS, I found that managers with more ability to deal with HR issues tended to have more similar perceptions of HPWS with employees. Also, for employees with good relationships with their managers (i.e., high leader-member exchange and high trust in leadership), their perceptions of HPWS were more aligned with managers. The findings of this study contribute to the literature by explaining why employees have different perceptions of HR systems from management. Theoretical and practical implications were also discussed in this study.