Strategic human resource management orientation (SHRM), as the company’s philosophy
of aligning human resource management (HRM) policies and practices with an organizational
strategy for maximizing organizational results, is considered the highest level of
the company’s HRM development according to the contemporary HRM theory. At the same
time, one of the trends in HRM is the digitalization of HRM activities, following
the global trend of adoption of digital tools for increasing individual and organizational
efficiency and effectiveness, leading to the age of HRM 4.0. However, it is interesting
to reveal whether is there a relationship between HRM digitalization and SHRM orientation.
Consequently, we developed two research questions: (1) Are digital HRM practices positively
related to the SHRM orientation? and (2) Are some digital HRM practices more relevant
for the SHRM orientation than others? For providing empirically based answers to research
questions, we utilized the CRANET 2021 dataset, covering 4495 organizations with more
than 200 employees from 38 countries worldwide. We used nine indicators revealing
the existence of digital HRM (manager self-service, employee self-service, HRIS, algorithm-based
HRM, HR analytics, telework, digital learning, social media recruitment, social media
selection) and five indicators for determining the SHRM orientation (HR manager’s
membership in the management board or equivalent; involvement of HR manager in the
development of business strategy; existence of written HRM strategy; HR to employee
ratio, the level of HR department performance evaluation) from the CRANET database.
SHRM orientation was determined using K-Means cluster analysis, and relationships
between variables were analysed using correlation and multiple logistic regression
analysis. The correlation analysis revealed that all indicators of digitalization
of HRM processes have a positive and a significant relationship with SHRM
orientation, implying that digital HRM practices are relevant for the SHRM
orientation. The results of logistic regression indicated that the usage of manager
self-service, algorithm-based HRM, HR analytics, telework, digital learning and social
media selection increase the probability of organizations’ SHRM orientation more than
other explored indicators. The HR analytics, digital learning and social media selection
were identified as the most relevant digital HRM practices for an organization’s SHRM
orientation. Findings imply that HRM needs to pursue the global trend of digitalization
to have the strategic leverage. To be on the optimal level of HRM development, organizations
must not only employ their digital HRM assets to assure the maximum functionality
for their internal customers, but keep the pace with technological advancements.
