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Procedia Economics and Finance 26 (2015) 1014 1019

4th World Conference on Business, Economics and Management, WCBEM

Recent Trends in Human Resources Management in Selected

Industry in Slovakia and the Czech Republic
Mariana Dubravskaa*,Emilia Solankovab
a

Faculty of Management, University of Presov in Presov, Konstantinova St.16, Presov, 080 01, Slovak Repulic
b
Henkel Slovensko, spol., s.r.o., Bratislava, 841 01, Slovak Republic

Abstract
The main goal of the paper is to evaluate trends in human resources management in the international environment on a selected
sample of HR managers and their employees. The paper is based on extensive theoretical research and on a study of previous
similar research. In order to achieve a more detailed analysis, there has been a research conducted. The research investigates the
relation between the trends and gained benefits and the origin of the respondents from Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
According to the results, there exists a statistically significant difference in a small group of trends/benefits. In the rest of the
benefits the results show there is no statistically significant difference in trends and benefits between employees who come from
Slovakia or the Czech Republic.

B.V.
This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
2015
2015The
TheAuthors.
Authors.Published
PublishedbybyElsevier
Elsevier
B.V.
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).
Peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Research and Education Center.
Peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Research and Education Center
Keywords: human resources management; trends; work-life balance; compensation; benefits

1. Introduction
Human resources management (HRM) is a term, which is now widely used but very loosely defined. Based on
theoretical work in the field of organizational behavior, HRM can be defined as a set of policies designed to
maximize organizational integration, employee commitment, flexibility and quality of work (Guest, 2007). The
current developments in the world economy stem mostly from globalization and integration processes. Under the
strong competitive forces, so significant in the current business environment, businesses seek a stable position with a
perspective of further development (Horska et al., 2008). As competitiveness of Czech and Slovak organizations is
growing under the influence of the globalization of the world economy, it brings with itself the need for flexibility in

* Mariana Dubravska. Tel.:+421-905-144640; fax: +421-51-777-59-11.

E-mail address: mariana.dubravska@unipo.sk

2212-5671 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license
(http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

Peer-review under responsibility of Academic World Research and Education Center

doi:10.1016/S2212-5671(15)00924-7

Mariana Dubravska and Emilia Solankova / Procedia Economics and Finance 26 (2015) 1014 1019

1015

management; because of this. businesses have to adapt their human resources management also and learn to cope
with new impulses and situations (Stacho et al., 2013). The effectiveness of the company depends on the quality of
work of its employees (Slusarczyk and Glosik, 2014). Human resources have changed their role in the company
from a supportive to a strategic one. In the current managerial and business philosophy, words such as capital and
value are increasingly tied to the people, their knowledge, skills and their abilities. Personnel and their resources are
becoming a major factor of competitiveness and organizational performance. The struggle to find experienced
managers, quality professionals and young talents has become the sharpest and most ruthless form of competition,
so strong and obvious, that even now can be regarded as one of the key determinants of the 21st century (Markovic
and Markovic, 2011).

2. Methodology and data

The main goal of the paper is to evaluate trends of human resources management in the international
environment on a selected sample of HR managers and their employees. This paper contributes to the aims of the
project KEGA No. 032PU-4/2013. The research is based on extensive theoretical research and on a study of
previous similar research. The theoretical review utilises various primary and secondary sources. The primary
sources include data gained by a questionnaire. The target group was the largest delivery companies in Slovakia and
the Czech Republic according to their economic results for the year 2012. The questionnaire was formed from the
viewpoint of the company strategy, profitability, action on the foreign countries and new trends in human resource
management. A questionnaire was distributed to employees and another one to HR managers. In order to achieve a
more detailed analysis, there has been a research conducted. The research investigates the relation between the
trends and gained benefits and the origin of the respondents Slovak and Czech one.
Based on the research conducted, the following hypothesis was formulated and is investigated in the proposed
paper: We assume that there is no statistically significant difference in trends and benefits for employees of selected
companies in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
As the research compares two groups whose results are binominal, the Chi-square test was used. If the p-value
calculated by chi-square test is lower than the set level of significance (usually 5 % = 0.05), this zero hypothesis is
rejected. If the p-value is equal or higher than the set level of significance, the zero hypothesis cannot be rejected.
3. New trends in human resources management
There are many studies which investigate new trends in human resources management. The most discussed
topics are: globalization and its impacts (cultural diversity), knowledge management, work-life balance, flexible
working hours, talent management, changes in compensation and benefits.
Globalization has become a business strategy as organizations compete for consumers across borders. Thus,
globalization forces HR practitioners to add value by transforming and integrating HR throughout the organization
as a core business process (Chambers, 2013). Worldwide there is a gradual rise of the problem of unemployment, as
there is a surplus of labour overexceeding the needs for the economy (Kotulic). To succeed in this new economy, it
is essential to have knowledge of other cultures and their corporate cultures. At the beginning of 21st century,
cultural values make an impact on the types of organizations that emerge, behaviour that takes place in them, ways
and directions they change and the techniques to manage them (Francesco and Gold. 2005). Cultural differences
across international borders create management problems for global HR managers and require the alignment of HR
practices with the leadership support. These cultural differences also call on HR to step forward as a strategic
partner. One method that global HR leaders can use to address and overcome potential management problems is
attempting a deeper understanding of culture, individual cultural competency and cross-cultural competence. Only
13% to 19% of 33 million students all over the world in the developed countries are suitable candidates for work in
multinational companies because of their poor language skills, low education and lack of cultural intelligence.
Human resources have to play an important role in connecting different cultures and languages (Kapoor, 2011).
Nowadays economic, political and social development is influenced by the process of globalization. In the
knowledge-oriented society, the most important factor of competitive advantage is not the new applied technologies,
the uniqueness of the product/service, the tangible assets, but the knowledge and the ability to manage it, since this
resource is hard to repeat or copy. The survival of the business depends on the organizations ability to gain a

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Mariana Dubravska and Emilia Solankova / Procedia Economics and Finance 26 (2015) 1014 1019

competitive advantage. Organizations can no longer expect that the products/services created in the past or which
have been working for a long time will still be successful tomorrow and will keep on ensuring great organizational
performance. Today, knowledge is the main source of innovation in a knowledge-based economy. Creation of
innovations depends on the gained knowledge and its commercialization, transformation into the productive
knowledge (Gimiene, 2013). Tureckiova (2004) identifies employees as a competitive advantage. The aim of
knowledge management is to develop employees that will become the holders and creators of the new knowledge
knowledge workers.
The business case for work-life balance practices relies on their ability to enhance recruitment and retention and
to reduce work-life conflict for employees. It makes sense that offering work-life balance practices would attract
individuals to an organization and that using these practices results in an improved employee attitudes and behaviour
within the organization (Beauregard and Henry, 2009).
In the light of the increasing de-centralization and globalization of work processes, many organizations have
responded to their dynamic environments by introducing virtual teams, in which members are geographically
dispersed and coordinate their work predominantly via electronic and communication technologies (e-mail, videoconferencing, etc. Virtual teams are a new and exciting work form with many fascinating opportunities. Due to these
opportunities, virtual teamwork becomes increasingly popular in organizations. Although many practical questions
how such teams should be managed still await empirical investigation, this review of systematic research already
documents many concrete recommendations that might support those managers and employees for whom virtual
teamwork is common practice today (Hertel et.al, 2005). Although part-time employment often appears as a
substandard form of employment, evidence that part-time employees are less satisfied than full-time employees is
ambiguous. To shed more light on this issue, we test an extended discrepancy theory framework using data from the
German Socio-Economic Panel. The results help explain previously inconsistent findings: Part-time employment
increases the chances of being underemployed while it reduces the likelihood of working more hours than preferred,
and the negative effects of both types of working time mismatches on job satisfaction are similar in size.
Furthermore, the importance attributed to family roles mitigates the negative effect of part-time employment on job
satisfaction (Iseke, 2014).
Talent management has become one of the most prevalent topics in the field of people management and
development for workers and researchers alike (Collings, 2014). One critical challenge for organizations today is
building and sustaining a strong talent pipeline through effective management of human assets. Talent management
focuses on developing talent that is strategically important for an organizations future. Research in talent
management typically focuses on managerial or leadership talent, yet there are other important career tracks within
an organization. Although preparing employees for promotion into management remains critically important,
technical expertise such as engineering is often the key competitive advantage in the global knowledge economy
(Kim et al., 2014). Developing and building global talent leadership bench strength of successors supports the
strategy for global expansion and must be linked to the talent management function. In addition, building bench
strength for critical global leadership positions in support of a growth strategy also creates opportunities for talent
development and enhances the capabilities of high-potential individuals (Silzer and Dowell, 2010).
According to Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) talent management is one of the most
important bodies of knowledge for human resources professionals. According to this survey, it is the second most
important body of knowledge after the Strategic Business Management (see Table 1).
Table 1 Rating of bodies of knowledge for HR professionals 10 years from now
Body of Knowledge
Average Rating (0-10)
Strategic Business Management
8.8
Talent Management
8.6
Change Management
8.5
Workforce Planning and Environment
8.5
Compensation and Benefits
8.3
Human Resource Development
8.2
Employee and Labour Relations
8.1
HR Technology
8.0
Risk Management
7.7
Global and International Human Resources
6.9

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The fifth and the most important body of knowledge according to the survey mentioned above (see Table 1). is
compensation and benefits. Areas of compensation that motivate and retain employees in various countries differ
because of cultural differences and local conditions. In addition, strategically aligning compensation in global
organizations is challenging because of variations in employee pay expectations and perceptions of pay fairness. A
global compensation strategy combined with local responsiveness is strongly suggested because of the differences in
countries and cultural aspects of the global environment (Chambers, 2013).
4. Results and discussion
All firms aim at optimalization. We can confirm the trends move away from permanent employment to the
personal leasing as they lay stress on work effectiveness. Firms focus on employee development to the specialist or
manager. We can see a trend of employees having a greater interest in the firms development and that is why firms
introduce benefits and motivation plans to support and develop employees involvement of the employees in the
firms results.
Moreover, employees participate in the processes involving changes in the company. The transformation of the
economy from a centrally planned to a market one in all Central and Eastern Europe countries was accompanied by
a decline in GDP and industrial production (Kotulic and Adamisin, 2012). The presented paper deals with delivery
companies which struggle with high fluctuation on the position of drivers, while firms are trying to keep these
employees. Work-life balance is an innovation of the last years that firms begin to implement in their operations. In
most of the companies studied, they try to re-evaluate the benefits for their employees based on their needs.
The companies studied apply the concept of the talent control and take care of the talent as they are interested in
the employee development. Firms cooperate with secondary schools, they organize internships for students and
work with universities organizing lectures. In hiring, they focus on candidates with a potential, that can be
developed. Annually, a job evaluation in a form of interviews focused on further development is performed. An
annual training calendar is planned. Also, there is a management review evaluating managerial potential and
succession building.
Companies change their system regularly, they train the employees within the company but also offer training
courses outside of it. They try to keep up with the current market. Companies advance their strength by a system of
professional tests that are set for the individual positions. Companies respond to the changes in human resources
management and they are working on the improvement of the set processes. They try to compensate the speed of the
current changed with flexibility. The delivery companies studied use HR outsourcing only in 40% of the time for the
operator and specialized positions. During the period of May till August. outsourcing services are used to find
drivers and storekeepers.
HR workers were asked questions on cultural dimensions. According to the results, collectivism overcomes
individualism in the companies studied. Hierarchy keeping is characteristic for companies studied, which means the
role of each employee is strictly defined and the authority of the superior is on high level. There is a difference in
the uncertainty avoidance between the Slovak and Czech companies. Slovak companies seem to be more
conservative than the Czech ones. Companies are rather masculine in the Slovak Republic and more feminine in the
Czech Republic.
Analysis of the human resources management and benefits
In order to achieve a more detailed analysis, there has been a research conducted. The research investigates the
relation between the trends and gained benefits and the origin of the respondents from Slovakia and the Czech
Republic. The hypothesis: We assume that there is no statistically significant difference in trends and benefits for
employees of selected companies in Slovakia and the Czech Republic was tested by a Chi-square test.
We have found out that there is a difference in these benefits: Automobile on the account of Slovakia (meaning
more Slovak employees have this benefit), Short/long-term business trips on the account of Slovakia, Performance
evaluation on the account of the Czech Republic and Foreign business trips on the account of Slovakia.
For other benefits (see Table2), the H0 cannot be rejected and we adopt the hypothesis that there is no
statistically significant difference in trends and benefits between employees in Slovakia and the Czech Republic.

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Mariana Dubravska and Emilia Solankova / Procedia Economics and Finance 26 (2015) 1014 1019

Table 2 Differences between the trends and benefits by employees of selected companies
BENEFIT
SR
SR (%)
CR
CR (%)
Chi-square test
(p-value)
Equity program
1
4.76 %
0
0.00%
0.290
Automobile
8
38.10 %
2
8.70 %
0.020
Extra day off
1
4.76 %
0
0.00 %
0.290
Flexible working time
13
61.90 %
10
43.48 %
0.222
Sick day
1
4.76 %
0
0.00 %
0.290
Short/longterm business
9
42.86 %
1
4.35 %
0.002
trip
Mobile phone
16
76.19 %
17
73.91 %
0.862
Working on Business
2
9.52 %
0
0.00 %
0.130
License
Bonus for profit
2
9.52 %
5
21.74 %
0.269
Bonus on food
12
57.14 %
16
69.57 %
0.392
Home Office
10
47.62 %
8
34.78 %
0.387
Performance evaluation
4
19.05 %
12
52.17 %
0.023
Training courses
5
23.81 %
1
4.35 %
0.060
Foreign business
6
28.57 %
1
4.35 %
0.028
Trips

Conclusion
There is no difference.
There is a difference.
There is no diffrence.
There is no difference.
There is no difference.
There is a difference.
There is no difference.
There is no difference.
There is no difference.
There is no difference.
There is no difference.
There is a difference.
There is no difference.
There is a difference.

Only 3-5% of the employees attend training courses. Only 4.55% of all employees asked have improved, their
language skills. Respondents claimed that their companies did not organize any such language courses. Training
courses seem to be very important for companies researched. Which asked which benefit would the employee like to
get from the employer, the most frequent answer was the training courses, about 54.55 % would like to attend them.

Percentage of respondents

60,00%
50,00%
40,00%
30,00%
20,00%
10,00%
0,00%

Figure 1 The most desired benefits by employees of searched companies

Most respondents applying for training courses were from the Czech Republic, judging by the other questions it
seems that Czech companies were less interested in organizing such courses. The less important benefits as rated by
the employees asked were free plane tickets and English lessons.
5. Conclusion
The global market is rapidly changing. As a part of an organization, human resource management professionals
must be prepared to deal with impacts of the changing global market. For the human resources managers it means

Mariana Dubravska and Emilia Solankova / Procedia Economics and Finance 26 (2015) 1014 1019

1019

understanding these factors: globalization and its impacts (cultural diversity), knowledge management, work-life
balance, flexible working hours, talent management, changes in compensation and benefits. The main goal of the
paper was to evaluate trends in human resources in the international environment on a selected sample of HR
managers and their employees. The paper is based on extensive theoretical research and on a study of previous
similar research. In order to achieve a more detailed analysis. there has been a research conducted. The research
investigates the relation between the trends and gained benefits and the origin of the respondents from Slovakia
and the Czech Republic. According to the results, there is a statistically significant difference in Having a car on
the account of Slovakia (meaning more Slovak employees have this benefit), Short/long-term business trip on the
account of Slovakia, Performance evaluation on the account of the Czech Republic and Foreign business trips on
the account of Slovakia. For other benefits, it can be said that there is no statistically significant difference in trends
and benefits between the employees in Slovakia and the Czech Republic. The most desired benefit wanted by the
employees asked are training courses, followed by financial benefits (having a car, free plane tickets, etc.).
The above-mentioned factors are only a few challenges that human resources managers have to deal with
nowadays. According to the Society for Human resources management (2012), the three biggest challenges facing
human resources executives in the next ten years are retaining and rewarding the best employees, developing the
next generation of corporate leaders and creating a corporate culture that attracts the best employees to organization.
Acknowledgements
Supported by the Scientific Grant Agency of the Ministry of Education (Project KEGA No. 032PU-4/2013 on
the topic: E-learning application by training of the economic subjects of the study program Management and new
accredited study programs at the Faculty of Management University of Presov in Presov).
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