Authors: Abhishek Kumar, Jitendra Singh
Abstract: Purpose: Educational institutions are increasingly expected to demonstrate environmental responsibility alongside academic excellence, yet the human resource mechanisms through which this responsibility is actually embedded into institutional life remain under-examined. This paper conceptually examines how Green Human Resource Management (Green HRM) practices influence organizational performance in the educational sector, and proposes an integrated framework linking Green HRM practice bundles to institutional performance outcomes through employee green behaviour. Design/Methodology/Approach: The paper adopts a conceptual, literature-based approach, synthesizing peer-reviewed research on Green HRM, the Ability-Motivation-Opportunity (AMO) framework, the Resource-Based View, and Social Exchange Theory, with particular attention to studies situated in higher education institutions. Findings: The review indicates that Green HRM practices – green recruitment and selection, green training and development, green performance management, green compensation, and green employee involvement – enhance organizational performance in educational institutions primarily by shaping employee green behaviour, which in turn improves environmental performance, staff engagement and retention, institutional reputation, and social responsibility outcomes. Top management support and green organizational culture emerge consistently as boundary conditions that strengthen or weaken this relationship. Practical Implications: The proposed framework offers educational leaders and HR administrators a structured basis for designing, sequencing, and evaluating Green HRM interventions, rather than adopting green practices in an ad hoc or symbolic manner. Originality/Value: While Green HRM has been extensively studied in manufacturing and corporate contexts, its conceptualization within educational institutions – as employers of knowledge workers with a dual mandate to model and teach sustainability – remains comparatively limited. This paper contributes an integrated, AMO-grounded conceptual framework tailored specifically to the educational sector.
DOI: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21768797
