Unique hr practices in the Indian IT industry: A research agenda

The research aims to discover the extent to which Indian HR practices can be considered unique, and in what ways they are developing.

The research aims togather evidence from software professionals in Indian IT companies situated in various parts of India, about their expectations and experiences in relation to the HR practices followed in their respective companies. A multiple case study approach will be adopted in this study and the primary data will be collected by conducting semi-structured interviews with software professionals from five selected Indian IT companies and by obtaining written responses from controlled online discussion boards specifically set up for this study by the researcher.

Drawing on a review of literature the paper sets out an agenda for research on HR practice in Indian IT firms. It includes an innovative approach to qualitative data collection using online discussion boards to capture employee experiences.

The research is in the planning phase and this planning will be subject to change over time.

The paper draws up a new research agenda that may be of value to other researchers. Further it develops a relatively new approach to qualitative data collection that may find applications in research across a range of disciplines.

This research will contribute to evidence concerning the unique HR practices in Indian IT companies. The thesis aims to fill gaps in the current IHRM and International Business literature, specifically the lack of published work by indigenous Indian researchers; and qualitative analysis of the employee perspective on HRM practices.