HRM 4.0: THE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION OF THE HR DEPARTMENT

The aim of the present contribution is to shed light on the main effects of the ongoing 4th industrial revolution on HRM department activities. In particular, changes in the nature and organization of work, together with the growing availability of data (Big Data) are deemed two main phenomena driving changes in HRM. Some conditions relate to the HR Department’s ability to transform and hence win the never-ending challenge of retaining a strategic function in the 4.0 era. Moreover, the introduction of the design thinking approach as part of the organizational culture and therefore as the HR Department’s mission is deemed a competence that should inform work and collaboration in 4.0 organizations. Some theoretical as well as managerial implications of the proposal are presented in the last part of this chapter.