This chapter explores the intricate interrelationship between sustainability and HRM. The circular economy surfaces as a paradigm-shifting idea that calls on companies to give diversity, skill development, and worker well-being priority. The chapter focuses on promoting the healing principles of the circular economy. The chapter examines the dynamic character of sustainable HRM and India's creative plastic highways. The chapter emphasizes social responsibility, environmental stewardship, and economic sustainability before concluding with IKEA's devotion to the TBL paradigm. Green recruitment and training are gaining relevance in the shifting landscape, strategically harmonizing with sustainability aims. Challenges in the circular economy necessitate strategic solutions that emphasize teamwork, training, and good communication. This chapter offers a comprehensive analysis of historical foundations, practical applications, and leadership commitment that leads to success stories, providing significant insights for organizations wanting to create a sustainable future.
TopIntroduction
Sustainability has significantly grown in prominence in recent decades, emphasizing the integration of economic, social, and ecological considerations, particularly focusing on environmental preservation (von Weizsäcker & Wijkman, 2018). A defining moment occurred in 1987 when the Brundtland Commission introduced the concept of sustainability, highlighting the imperative to meet the needs of the present generation without compromising those of the future. This definition emerged in response to pressing global concerns like overpopulation, resource depletion, and environmental degradation. It laid the groundwork for the framework of Triple Bottom Line, which underscores the importance of economic prosperity, social equity, and environmental integrity. This framework has led to the concept now known as 'Sustainable Human Resources Management' (Sustainable HRM), signifying the adoption of HRM practices aligned with long-term financial, social, and ecological objectives (Ehnert et al., 2016).
This global discourse on sustainability extends its influence into the corporate and HRM domains, emphasizing actions that shape an organization's environmental and social resources while influencing management practices. Sustainability plays a dual role in HRM, highlighting the HR function's significant contributions to corporate sustainability and its role in addressing internal HRM challenges, including human resource shortages and the ageing workforce.
Simultaneously, the concept of a circular economy (CE) has come up as a system that perpetually recycles materials through processes like maintenance, refurbishment, and recycling. This model champions resource conservation, addressing global concerns such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution. The CE concept is gaining global momentum and has garnered support from various sectors, offering substantial economic benefits and challenging the conventional linear model of 'extract-produce-use-dump' (Korhonen et al., 2018).
In response to economic and environmental challenges, organizations are prioritizing sustainability and corporate green strategies. As a result, leaders are placing sustainability at the forefront to create profitable business models. This evolving landscape, shaped by a blend of economics, sociology, psychology, and management sciences, has led to the evolution of Human Resource Management (HRM) into a multifaceted discipline. Various HRM theories and trends, including the resource-based view and strategic HRM, have evolved in response to these transformations. As the HRM landscape continues to evolve, it is essential to understand how these theories and trends intersect with broader sustainability and circular economy frameworks. This chapter will explore these intersections, offering insights into how HRM can be leveraged to drive sustainable practices and navigate the challenges posed by the circular economy. Further on, we dig deeper into the intricate role of HRM in the evolving business world.
The concepts of circular economy can be used by companies to encourage sustainable HRM practices. The linear economic structure, “take, make, dispose”, can be challenged using a restorative and regenerative approach. Human resources involve the development of work environments that focus on prioritizing skill development, diversity, and well-being of employees, along with the long-term impact on the wider environment and community outside the workplace. Incorporating the ideas of circular economy into HR practices includes the development of methods of employment that aim to reduce the production of waste, maximizing the utilization of talent, and promoting regular learning. Businesses may implement policies and strategies that help in inclusive hiring, programs for reskilling and upskilling, and developing a flexible workplace culture, contributing to the practices of circular economy. A mutually beneficial relationship is built between the HR practices and ecological responsibility, emphasizing on the belief that achieving financial success can be brought about by parallelly promoting the welfare of the society.