Despite the accumulating evidence supporting the nexus between HPHRPs and
organizational performance, it is widely accepted that there is a lack of clarity as to how
such relationships unfold (Becker and Huselid, 2006; Guest, 2011). Messersmith et al.
(2011), for example, argued that “theorists have lamented a lack of clear understanding of
the key mediating factors that link the utilization of HPWS to firm performance” (p. 1105).
Becker and Huselid (2006), lamenting the absence of research evidence explaining how HR
practices lead to organizational performance, identified the “‘black box’ as the most
pressing theoretical challenge facing SHRM” (p. 899). The mediators so far identified have
been limited in scope and have not sufficiently acknowledged the influence of intervening
variables such as organizational climate, job characteristics, need satisfaction, and
motivation. Messersmith et al. (2011), for example, while modelling the mediating role of
job satisfaction, commitment and empowerment in the relationship between HPWSs
and department performance, did not include the known influence of job resources and
job demands on job satisfaction, commitment and performance (Humphrey et al., 2007).