Is sustainable HR management humanistic?

By DR KOON VUI YEE.

THE goal of sustainable development, known as the “triple bottom line”, which seeks to balance the needs of society and the environment with financial considerations, has given rise to the field of environmental management.

The environmental factor entails striking a balance between expanding operations while protecting the planet’s natural resources for future generations.

Several studies have linked specific human activities to environmental disruptions. Therefore, investigating and changing underlying human behaviour can be the first step towards reducing such disturbances.

Calling for sustainable human resource management (HRM), environmental advocate scholars underline the significance of studying human behaviour in environmental management.

An organisation’s environmental management and sustainable development strategies are believed to be successful if they are aligned with its human resource practices.

Triple-bottom-line HRM, green HRM and HR sustainability are examples of sustainable HRM. Sustainable HRM consists of behaviours and tactics that help organisations renew and regenerate their human resource capabilities and competencies for ongoing success in the various facets of sustainability as well as short- and long-term survival.

It is believed that implementing sustainable HRM practices can help organisations gain a competitive edge and improve their operational efficiency, environmental sustainability, human capital value and organisational reputation.

It is asserted that sustainable HRM can facilitate the successful implementation of other green initiatives and enhance the achievement of sustainable goals.

The preceding discussions highlight the dilemmas or challenges of balancing the triple bottom line in sustainable development and sustainable HRM because it is undeniable that any sustainability effort includes financial considerations that prioritise economic benefits.

To illustrate these dilemmas or challenges, consider the manufacturing industry, which is the primary driver of Malaysia’s real gross domestic product (GDP) per capita.

However, according to a recent study by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) and Greenpeace Malaysia, eliminating air pollution could save 32,000 lives per year.

Chronic exposure to poor air quality has severe effects on human health. Even though productivity growth contributes to Malaysia’s GDP, it may indirectly result in financial losses due to impact in the form of healthcare and medical expenditure, as well as lost economic productivity due to premature death.

China faces the same dilemma due to its rapid industrialisation over the past three decades, which has led to explosive growth in the manufacturing sector and increased environmental pollution.

Businesses worldwide must take on greater environmental responsibility with a humanistic mindset as the effects of human activities on the environment worsen.

We must, therefore, stop further environmental deterioration.

In 2011, Malaysia was placed 25th out of 132 countries on the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), but by 2021, it had dropped to 130th out of 180 countries, indicating an urgent need for reform in environmental awareness.

Similarly, despite its government’s efforts to improve environmental governance, China ranked just 160th out of 180 countries in 2021.

In response to the call from environmental advocate scholars, sustainable HRM should not be viewed as measuring human behaviour from an economic standpoint of efficiency and effectiveness.

HRM’s narrow focus on boosting efficiency in the workplace, however, has caused it to become detached from people’s everyday lives. When it comes to effectiveness, which involves satisfying environmental criteria, and efficiency, which involves input/output ratios, conventional HRM places its functions under the firm’s economic strategy.

The human resource practices implemented in the organisation must be authentically humanist, although these alone may not be sufficient.

Stated differently, advocates of humanism should advocate greater regard for individuals.

In Malaysia, non-governmental groups such as humanitarian organisations and the National Disaster Management Agency (Nadma) provide active emergency aid to disaster-affected communities.

In China, there are lists of non-governmental organisations (NGOs) that provide humanitarian aid to assist in the formation of a civil society, notably emphasising the grassroots and areas overlooked by the outside world.

Humanitarian work and HRM have been linked as complementary fields for improving organisational and personal effectiveness.

However, the purpose of humanistic philosophies is not to establish numerous NGOs and merge their activities with HRM.

Management, business and economics should not be viewed exclusively as sciences, devaluing problems of significance and moral value, but as humans in the business community.

Humanistic organisations are not those that employ human resource procedures or activities to enhance the organisation’s reputation and performance.

According to humanistic management approaches, the company is viewed as a community of sentient and self-aware individuals who control their own future.

Motivated individuals behave of their own free will and are not under the influence of others.

Each person has a unique internal causal locus, engaging in activities of their own volition and without being forced by external rules or obligations.

When no operational details are provided, intrinsically motivated people will still find their activities exciting and worthwhile.

To put it simply, HRM should prioritise humanistic values like personal development, building meaningful connections and social contribution to be sustainable.

Employees should not be categorised as a “cost” or “expense”.

Non-humanistic organisations link environmental management’s success rate or sustainable development to employee performance.

This metaphor classification disregards employees’ inherent value and dignity as human beings.

Understanding the true meaning of “human” is an essential first step toward sustainable HRM, where a humanistic attitude may be utilised to manage the environment better.

Negative human behaviour that harms the environment can be mitigated by focusing on what it means to be human, what sustains human existence and what nurtures human potential.

Therefore, businesses should emphasise the instrumental use of individuals in managing the environment rather than solely on increasing economic production.

Dr Koon Vui Yee is a Senior Lecturer at Sunway University. The views expressed here are entirely the writer’s own.

The SEARCH Scholar Series is a social responsibility programme jointly organised by the South-East Asia Research Centre for Humanities (SEARCH) and the Centre of Business and Policy Research, Tunku Abdul Rahman University College (TAR UC), and co-organised by the Association of Belt and Road Malaysia.

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