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Green Human Resource Management and Organizational Performance: A Systematic Review

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  • Leanna Lawter

    (Department of Business, Wheaton College, 26 E. Main Street, Norton, MA 02667, USA)

  • Petra Garnjost

    (Fakultät für Wirtschaftswissenschaften, Hochschule für Technik und Wirtschaft des Saarlandes, Campus Rotenbühl, Waldhausweg 14, 66123 Saarbrücken, Germany)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to conduct a systematic literature review to investigate how GHRM impacts organizational performance measures related to social impact, environmental performance, sustainable performance, firm performance, and/or green innovation. Following the PRISMA 2020 protocol process, a total of 180 studies were identified that met the search criteria. Utilizing AI tools and Excel, a bibliometric analysis was conducted that assessed publication trends such as the year of publication, academic journal, study country, and industry. The second stage of analyses assessing the reported results on the key performance measures was conducted on 136 of the 180 studies where full texts were available to the authors. The analysis showed that there has been a large increase in the number of publications over the last three years, particularly in Asia and the Middle East. Further, the results show that GRHM has a direct positive impact on environmental performance, sustainability goals/sustainable performance, and green innovation. The impact of GHRM on firm financial performance is less clear as this relationship is more indirect than direct. This paper is one of the first reviews that examines the relationship between strategic organizational-level performance measures and GHRM. The review also identifies gaps in the literature, recommendations for best practices in measurement, and future directions for research.

Suggested Citation

  • Leanna Lawter & Petra Garnjost, 2025. "Green Human Resource Management and Organizational Performance: A Systematic Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(7), pages 1-20, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:7:p:3132-:d:1626086
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Wang Zihan & Zafir Khan Mohamed Makhbul & Syed Shah Alam, 2024. "Green Human Resource Management in Practice: Assessing the Impact of Readiness and Corporate Social Responsibility on Organizational Change," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(3), pages 1-25, January.
    2. Alisher Khamdamov & Zhiwei Tang & Muhammad Ali Hussain, 2023. "Unpacking Parallel Mediation Processes between Green HRM Practices and Sustainable Environmental Performance: Evidence from Uzbekistan," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-18, January.
    3. Shah Ridwan Chowdhury & John Mendy & Mahfuzur Rahman, 2023. "A Systematic Literature Review of GHRM: Organizational Sustainable Performance Reimagined Using a New Holistic Framework," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(9), pages 1-15, May.
    4. Jian Zhu & Weihang Tang & Hui Wang & Yuye Chen, 2021. "The Influence of Green Human Resource Management on Employee Green Behavior—A Study on the Mediating Effect of Environmental Belief and Green Organizational Identity," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-14, April.
    5. Aisha AlKetbi & John Rice, 2024. "The Impact of Green Human Resource Management Practices on Employees, Clients, and Organizational Performance: A Literature Review," Administrative Sciences, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-19, April.
    6. Abu Elnasr E. Sobaih & Ahmed Hasanein & Ibrahim Elshaer, 2020. "Influences of Green Human Resources Management on Environmental Performance in Small Lodging Enterprises: The Role of Green Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(24), pages 1-19, December.
    7. Huirong Xie & Teck Chai Lau, 2023. "Evidence-Based Green Human Resource Management: A Systematic Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-23, July.
    8. Wei Zhao & Lihua Huang, 2022. "The impact of green transformational leadership, green HRM, green innovation and organizational support on the sustainable business performance: evidence from China," Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(1), pages 6121-6141, December.
    9. Shuang Ren & Guiyao Tang & Susan Jackson, 2018. "Green human resource management research in emergence: A review and future directions," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 35(3), pages 769-803, September.
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