During the 1990-1996 window, Strategic Human Resource Management emerged as a distinct paradigm from traditional personnel management, with researchers arguing for HR as a strategic asset central to firm strategy formation. Theoretical perspectives coalesced around three main lenses—resource-based view, agency and transaction cost economics, and institutional theory—producing an integrative view of HR practices as capabilities that influence performance. Empirical work compared HR system configurations, showing commitment-based systems associated with higher productivity and reduced turnover, while revealing varied control-oriented approaches across industries; international comparisons and multinational life-cycle considerations broadened the research horizon, and critical reflection sought coherence across strands of SHRM. Historical Significance: This period solidified the place of Strategic Human Resource Management within the broader strategy literature, establishing the legitimacy of HR systems as strategic assets and linking them to sustained competitive advantage through organizational capabilities. Innovations such as HR bundles and manufacturing-oriented studies demonstrated that systemic, interrelated practices outperform isolated policies, and cross-national research highlighted globalization’s imprint on HR strategy. The rapid maturation of theory and practice during this window laid the groundwork for later debates about the orthodoxy of SHRM and for continued synthesis across competing theoretical perspectives.