آیا سیستم کار با عملکرد بالا همیشه یک ابزار ابقای با ارزش است؟ نقش استفاده از نیروی کار زن و مقدمات کار انعطاف  پذیر  Are High-Performance Work Systems always a valuable retention tool? The roles of workforce feminization  and flexible work arrangements

1. Introduction After more than two decades of research, the benefits of HR practices for firm performance are well-documented (Jackson, Schuler, & Jiang, 2014; Posthuma, Campion, Masimova, & Campion, 2013). Yet these benefits seem highly dependent on firm context, whereby different firms may reap differential benefits from the same practices. A number of contingent variables capable of influencing the effectiveness of HR practices have been identi- fied, including firm size (Way, 2002), reputation (Slavich, Cappetta, & Giangreco, 2014), industry (Datta, Guthrie, & Wright, 2005), business strategy (Takeuchi, 2009), and labour deployment strategy (Stirpe, Bonache, & Revilla, 2014). Despite the considerable body of research on contextual variables affecting the outcomes of HR practices, there is only scant literature focusing specifically on contingences related to workforce composition. For instance, employee age has been shown to moderate the relationship between HR practices and employee work attitudes (Innocenti, Profili, & Sammarra, 2013; Kooij, Jansen, Dikkers, & De Lange, 2010), but similar studies analyzing other demographic variables are scarce. This is surprising, especially considering the assumption that managers should take into account workforce composition when identifying suitable HR practices for their firms (Baron & Kreps, 1999). Thus, Peccei, Van de Voorde, and Van Veldhoven (2013) argue that the interaction between workforce characteristics and HR practices is a promising avenue for future research, and one that may well contribute to a better understanding of the HRMeperformance relationship. The overall argument is that employees with different demographic backgrounds and profiles “are likely to have different priorities and expectations at work and, consequently, are likely to evaluate and respond to HR practices differently” (Peccei et al., 2013: 39). Among the demographic variables defining the workforce, gender is particularly relevant, as the increasing presence of women in paid work has led to more feminized workplaces (Rubery, 2015b). Nevertheless, little research has been conducted on how workforce gender composition influences the effectiveness of HR practices. This study has therefore been designed to address this matter. In particular, we aim to explore the impact of workforce gender composition on the outcomes of what it is usually assumed to be the most effective set of HR initiatives, that is, the so-called High-Performance Work Systems (HPWS). Specifically, we explore how the presence of women in the workplace affects the workforce retention outcomes of these systems.