Exploring the Strategic Role of Human Resource Development in Organizational Crisis Management

Abstract

Crisis management has been a largely overlooked territory in human resource development (HRD) despite the increasingly recognized impact of organizational crises on the individual and organizational performance. This article explores the strategic role of HRD in the context of organizational crisis management using Garavan's strategic HRD model as a guiding framework to understand the various ways in which HRD can build crisis management capability in organizations. The authors apply various components of the model to the crisis management context and integrate ideas from both sets of literatures. The authors offer specific guidelines for HRD practitioners regarding how to align strategic human resource development focus, orientation, and strategies with the organization's overall crisis management efforts and identify areas for further research.