Best Fit and Best Practice in HRM

 

Best fit and best practice are basically the concepts and approaches towards human resource Management. They are the back bone of Human resource management. 

At the most general level, best fit is contingency approach while best practice is a universal approach. 

 

1. Best Fit

it is based on the premise of picking the most effective HR policies and practices depends on matching them appropriately to the organizational 's environment. The contingent factors influencing the HR strategy might include type of business strategy is pursued, organizational size, type of available technology, geographic location and labor market management skills and preferences industry sector and their economic conditions. Contingency approach refers to a method of decisions making often applied in devising appropriate human resource (HR) strategies and termed the “best fit” approach in contrast to “best practice” approach. 

 

2. Best Practice 

Best practice is mostly used term across the globe and is referred as a universal approach because it documents the benefits of HRM across all context. For best practice a prescriptive set of practices, precede strategy but provide the human resources needed to fulfil the organization’s objectives, whatever they are.

 

 We can see that the two concepts differ in their methods. The topic has gained much scholarly attention because it not only addresses a theoretical controversy but also possesses a high degree of practical managerial significance.

 

Analysis of Best fit vs Best Practice 

The best practice approach suffers from a series of limitations. Firstly, when implementing best practice standards organizations run risk of introducing mutually prohibitive combinations like team working and compensation based on individual performance resulting in a deterioration of employee collaboration through over exaggerated competition.

Whereas best fit approach is also subject to sever criticism. Firstly, Boxall and Purcell (2003) criticizes that in a changing business environment companies and their strategies are subject to multiple alternating contingences and that it is merely possible to adjust entire HR systems to new challenges frequently. Secondly, as companies move through their life-cycle HR practices have to be aligned which leads to an alternating treatment of employees which can have a demotivating effect and show inconsistency in corporate culture.

 

Conclusion 

To put everything under consideration, one can see that best fit and best practice approaches offer companies powerful tools for shaping human resource management processes.  Best fit strategy which is only aligned to the contingency of strategy and a neglect of environmental forces and internal capabilities can lead to a failure of HR in international markets. The best practice methods as it pursues a selective employment approach aiming at attracting skilled personnel that can connect to the company’s high performance ethic and live up to quality standards