The paper “Talent management, absorptive capacity, and firm performance: Does it work in China and Russia?” co-authored by Associate Professor of Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management Department Marina O. Latukha and Assistant Professor of Operations Management Department Anna S. Veselova was accepted for publication in high-ranked journal “Human Resource Management” (A-level according to ABS ranking).The research of talent management practices and its relationship to absorptive capacity in Russian and Chinese contexts was conducted within the Center for the Study of Emerging Market and Russian Multinational Enterprises in Saint-Petersburg State University.

  

Marina O. Latukha		Anna S. Veselova

 

The authors studied how talent management practices and firm’s ability to acquire, assimilate, and exploit knowledge are related to firm performance. This relationship was examined in the context of emerging markets, in particular, Russia and China. These two countries were chosen due to their similarity in some aspects, e.g. their historical past, social structure, quite long isolation from the other world. However, at the same time, Russia and China have a number of differences in terms of institutional, cultural and economic conditions which affect the relationship under investigation.

 

The authors examined 120 Chinese and Russian enterprises. As a result, they determined that well-developed talent management practices positively affect firm’s absorptive capacity (the ability to acquire, assimilate, transform and exploit knowledge). Moreover, firm’s absorptive capacity was found to be a significant mediator of the relationship between talent management practices and firm performance. Also, the authors confirmed that in Chinese firms talent management practices have a positive impact on their performance, and this influence is much stronger than in Russian firms which is related to the specificity of their external environment.

 

The journal “Human Resource Management”  is an A-level journal (ABS ranking) which provides practicing managers and academics with the latest concepts, tools, and information for effective problem solving and decision making in this field. Broad in scope, it explores issues of societal, organizational, and individual relevance. Journal articles discuss new theories, new techniques, case studies, models, and research trends of particular significance to practicing managers.