The Role of Human Resources Management in Sustainable Competitive Advantage

Abstract

This paper explores the role of human resources as it relates to the sustainability of an organizations competitive advantage. The paper begins with defining human resources and providing explanations of the terms as it relates to human resources. Human resources has two main concepts that are used, sometimes, interchangeably: human capital resource and human resource practices. Therefore, it was important here to define which tenet could serve as source of sustainable competitive advantage using the VRIO Framework. Researchers differ in their opinion of whether human resources can serve as a source of sustainable competitive advantage. This paper will propose a contention that it may be possible for both tenets of human resources to work together to serve as a source of sustainable competitive advantage.