Is the HR department representative of the organization? HPWP and perceived organizational support

Integrating the literatures on strategic human resource management and organizational support theory, we examined how high performance work practices (HPWPs) improve individuals’ perceptions that the organization values their contributions and cares about their well- being (i.e., perceived organizational support, or POS), which results in enhanced organizational commitment and job satisfaction. We proposed that the HPWPs-POS relationship is moderated by the extent to which employees identify the human resources (HR) department with the organization (HR department’s organizational embodiment, or HROE). With a sample of 103 teams representing 296 employees in South Korea, we found that HPWPs increased POS and that this relationship was stronger when HROE was high. We also found that HROE was predicted by HR department status and HR head’s favorable attitudes. These findings suggest that HROE is a critical boundary condition for the relationship between HPWPs and POS with consequences for organizational commitment and job satisfaction.