| dc.description.abstract | Purpose: The overall aim of this study is to obtain more knowledge about Human Resources
(HR) work in supporting line managers and employees in the increasingly expanding
consulting industry. The study aims to identify which support outsourced consultants mainly
value from their employer in a specific consulting company, which is then compared to the
consultant managers' perception of their work in providing consultants with support. The
comparison should then provide a strategy for how the firm´s HR unit can advise the line
managers concerning support to the consultants.
Theory: The theoretical framework describes the challenges of personnel-related work in
innovative organizations, bearing in mind the variable level of capacity and interest in
personnel matters by consultant managers and the need for support. In order to illustrate and
examine the types of support that can be identified in the statements by consultants and line
managers, the categorization by House (1981) involving instrumental, informative, evaluative
and emotional support has been selected for use. To ascertain the flexible conditions that can
prevail in consulting firms, Mintzberg's (1989) theory of adhocratic organizational structures
has been used to illustrate how outsourced consultants and line managers can experience a
flexible structure and how these conditions can affect the supply of support.
Method: This study is based on qualitative research, where a total of six semi-structured
interviews have been conducted to collect empirical data. The data have been analysed by
encoding, where the answers to questions at the interviews have been divided into four
different categories, corresponding to House (1981).
Results: The study's empirical results show that the consultants experience seek an
improvement in mainly evaluative and emotional support, combined with a generally
increased social interaction. Both consultants and line managers experience that instrumental
support is a complex task. The distance between the two groups during the everyday working
situation and the specialized character of the consultant’s competence give rise to a marginal
understanding of the consultants' work by the line manager. As far as informative support is
concerned, it appears that the confidence for the work by line managers, concerning business
and personal affairs is satisfactory. This type of support seems to be catered for in the studied
organization.
In a broader context, this study highlights the complexity of providing support under the
flexible working conditions that prevail in an adhocratic organizational structure. Based on
previous research, two possible strategies have emerged for how HR can facilitate line
managers to provide consultants with support. One strategy is to develop clear descriptions of
responsibilities, where information is provided concerning when and how support can be
conveyed to consultants. We also suggest that further development of the line managers’ role
in a more HR-oriented context could be carried out. | sv |
