Towards a sustainable HRM: Bridging professional capital and sustainable micro-political influence tactics of German Human Resources Managers

This study investigates the professional capital and the sustainable micro-political influence tactics, German Human Resources Managers use to contribute to the organizational success and also maintain and develop their position within the organization. In larger organizations, HR Managers must fulfil the contradictory roles of a human resources specialist and of a strategic business partner at the same time. We use the concepts of professional capital and of sustainable micro-political influence tactics to identify the patterns, managers' use in daily activities, allowing them to serve both roles on a long run. The results of our study show, that HR professionals generally use soft influence tactics and tend to combine them with other proactive influence tactics to reach a desired outcome and develop a socially sustainable relationship to main collaborators. In that sense, German HR Manager contribute to a sustainable HRM system and seem to be prepared for further professional developments.