Opportunities and Challenges of Human Resource Virtualization in the Banking Sector: Evidence from Zimbabwe
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15575/jieb.v6i1.48984Keywords:
HR Virtualization, Work-from-home management, Virtual team, HR policies, Benefits and challenges of HRAbstract
The rapid advancement of digital technologies has transformed human resource (HR) management practices and compelled organizations to adapt to increasingly dynamic business environments. In the banking sector, HR virtualization has emerged as an important strategy for enhancing operational flexibility and sustaining organizational performance in the digital era. This study examines the opportunities and challenges associated with the implementation of HR virtualization at a commercial bank in Zimbabwe. A mixed-method descriptive survey design was employed involving seven managers selected through purposive sampling and 493 employees. Data were collected using structured questionnaires and virtual interviews and analyzed using descriptive and thematic approaches. The findings reveal that HR virtualization provides several opportunities, including improved work–life balance, enhanced operational efficiency, increased organizational competitiveness, and improved service delivery. However, its implementation is constrained by challenges such as internet connectivity problems, employee stress, low levels of virtual engagement, resistance to change, and limited technological resources. The study concludes that while HR virtualization offers significant benefits to banking institutions, its successful implementation requires supportive organizational policies, reliable technological infrastructure, and effective change management strategies. The study contributes to the growing literature on digital human resource management by providing empirical evidence on the opportunities and challenges of HR virtualization within the banking sector of an emerging economy.
References
Attaran, M., Attaran, S., & Kirkland, D. (2019). The need for digital workplace. International
Journal of Enterprise Information Systems, 15(1), 1–23. Doi: https://doi.org/10.4018/IJEIS.2019010101 .
Bhatia, S., Sharma, A., & Chauhan, A. (2017). Virtualization: A key enabler for Deutsche
Bank's digital transformation journey. Journal of Advances in Management Research, 14(3), 338-351. https://doi.org/10.1108/JAMR-08-2016-0069
Brandão, C., Silva, R., & dos Santos, J. V. (2019). Online recruitment in Portugal: Theories and candidate profiles. Journal of Business Research, 94, 273–279.
Brahma, M., Tripathi, S. S., & Sahay, A. (2021). Developing curriculum for industry 4.0: digital workplaces. Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, 11(1), Pp144–163.
Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/HESWBL-08-2019-0103 .
Caldow, J. (2009). Working outside the box: A study of the growing momentum in telework.
Washington, DC: Institute for Electronic Government, IBM Corporation.
Cheng, J., and Zhang, C. (2022). The depleting and buffering effects of telecommuting on wellbeing: Evidence from China During COVID-19. Front. Psychol. 13:898405. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.898405
Corbin-Herbison, C. (2019). Pros and cons of digital workplace – striking a human balance. Retrieved from https://www.interactsoftware.com/blog/pros-cons-digital-workplace/
Delery J E and Roumpi D (2017), ‘Strategic human resource management, human capital and competitive advantage: is the field going in circles?’, Human Resource Management Journal, 27 (1), pp 1–21.
Duffield, S. M., Whitty, S. J., & Johnson, C. E. (2018). The impact of virtual communication on team effectiveness and cohesion. Small Group Research, 49(2), 202-232. https://doi.org/10.1177/1046496417750559
Eom, S. B. (2021). The effect of virtual work on individual and organizational outcomes: A review and synthesis of empirical research. Journal of Business and Psychology, 36(1), 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10869-019-09644-x
Erceg, V., & Zoranović, T. (2020). Required competencies for successful digital transformation. Ekonomika, 66(3), 47–54. https://doi.org/10.5937/ekonomika2003047E
Forrester Research. (2019). The future of work: How flexible work policies can drive employee engagement and productivity. Retrieved from https://www.dropbox.com/s/ro7y7c7kq6j6fem/Forrester_The_Future_Of_Work_How_Flexib le_Work_Policies_Can_Drive_Employee_Engagement_And_Productivity.pdf?dl=0
Gao, Y., Liu, Y., & Wang, L. (2020). Virtualization technology in Barclays. In 2nd International Conference on Big Data, Cloud Computing, and Data Science Engineering (BCD 2019) (pp. 145-151). Springer, Singapore.
Gerten, E., Beckmann, M., & Bellmann, L. (2019). Controlling working crowds: the impact of digitalization on worker autonomy and monitoring across hierarchical levels. Jahrbücher für
Nationalökonomie und Statistik, 239(3), 441–481. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1515/jbnst-2017https://doi.org/10.1515/jbnst-2017-01540154
Haddud, A., & McAllen, D. (2018). Digital workplace management: exploring aspects related to culture, innovation, and leadership. 2018 Portland International Conference on Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET),1–6. Doi: https://doi.org/10.23919/PICMET.2018.8481807
Heng, T. B., Hooi, S. C., Liang, Y. Y., Othma, A., and San, O. T. (2012). Telecommuting for business continuity in a non-profit environment. Asian Soc. Sci. 8:226. doi:10.5539/ ass.v8n12p226
Hertel, G., Binnewies, C., Krumm, S., & Holling, H. (2019). Virtual work: A meta-analysis and review of empirical research on perceptions of factors influencing the effectiveness of distributed teams. European Journal of Work and Organizational Psychology, 28(3), 267-288. https://doi.org/10.1080/1359432X.2019.1580505
Herath, T., & Herath, H. S. B. (2020). Coping with the New Normal Imposed by the COVID19 Pandemic: Lessons for Technology Management and Governance. Information Systems Management, 37(4), 277–283.
Hicks, M. (2019). Why the urgency of digital transformation is hurting the digital workplace. Strategic HR Review, 18(1), 34–35. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/SHR-02- 2019-153
Huang, S., and Liu, H. (2021). Impact of COVID-19 on stock price crash risk: Evidence from
Chinese energy firms. Energy Econ.101:105431.doi:10.1016/j.eneco.2021.1 05431
IDC. (2018). The business value of VMware Workspace ONE. Retrieved from https://www.vmware.com/content/dam/digitalmarketing/vmware/en/pdf/whitepaper/products/ workspace-one/the-business-value-of-vmware-workspace-one.pdf
Jackson, C. B., Quetsch, L. B., Brabson, L. A., & Herschell, A. D. (2018). Web-based training methods for behavioral health providers: A systematic review. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 1–24. PMID: 29352459.
Kalischko, T., & Riedl, R. (2021). Electronic performance monitoring in the digital workplace: conceptualization, review of effects and moderators, and future research opportunities. Frontiers in Psychology, 12. Doi: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.633031
Kissmer, T., Knoll, J., Stieglitz, S., & Groß, R. (2018). Knowledge workers’ expectations towards a digital workplace. Conference: Americas Conference on Information Systems 2018.
Retrieved from https://aisel.aisnet.org/amcis2018/OrgTrasfm/Presentations/8/
Md Dahlan, M. K., Abdullah, N., & Suhaimi, A. I. H. (2018). A Study on supporting factors of digital workplace diffusion in public sector. In N. Abdullah, W. Wan Adnan, & M. Foth (Eds.), User Science and Engineering. i-USEr 2018. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 886. (pp. 327–335). Doi: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1628https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-1628-9_299_29 .
Meske, C., & Junglas, I. (2020). Investigating the elicitation of employees’ support towards digital workplace transformation. Behaviour & Information Technology, 1–17. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2020.1742382 .
Netz, J., Reinmoeller, P., & Axelson, M. (2022). Crisis-driven innovation of products new to firms: The sensitization response to COVID-19. R&D Management, 52(2), 407–426.
Schmidt, C., Praeg, C., & Gunther, J. (2018). Designing digital workplace environments and agile framework for large-scale end-user participation. International ICE Conference on Engineering Technology and Innovation.
Society for Human Resource Management. (2019). The evolution of technology in the workplace. Retrieved from https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/trends-and-forecasting/researchhttps://www.shrm.org/hr-today/trends-and-forecasting/research-andsurveys/Documents/SHRM Evolution of Technology in the Workplace.pdfandsurveys/Documents/SHRM%20Evolution%20of%20Technology%20in%20the%20Work place.pdf
Song, Q., Wang, Y., Chen, Y., Benitez, J., and Hu, J. (2019). Impact of the usage of social media in the workplace on team and employee performance. Inf. Manage. 56:103160. doi: 10.1016/j.im.2019.04.003.
Sunkara,R. & Dr. Venkateswarlu Karumuri (2021). Challenges in Virtual Workplace Management. IAR J Bus Mng; 2021; 2(1): 211-215.
Vallo Hult, H., & Byström, K. (2021). Challenges to learning and leading the digital workplace. Studies in Continuing Education, 1–15. Doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2021.1879038
Zhang, J., Zhang, Y., & Li, W. (2019). Virtualization technology in BBVA. In 2019 IEEE 3rd Information Technology, Networking, Electronic and Automation Control Conference (ITNEC) (pp. 1413-1417). IEEE.
Zhou, Y.; Liu, G.; Chang, X.; Wang, L. (2021) The impact of HRM digitalization on firm performance: Investigating three-way interactions. Asia Pac. J. Hum. Resour. Pp 59, 20–43
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
Citation Check
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Dingane. D. Mushukuku, Vonai Chirasha, Mildred Mahapa (Author)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).
