Work

Sustainable HRM and Employee Engagement in the Digital Era: The Role of Training and Green Skills in North Macedonia

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Organizations today face growing pressure from both digital transformation and sustainability. This creates challenges in aligning human resource practices with the skills and engagement of employees. While these two areas are often studied separately, less attention has been given to how sustainability-oriented HR practices function in digitally transforming organizations. This study examines the relationships among Sustainable Human Resource Management (SHRM) practices, green training, green skills, digital readiness, and employee engagement across organizations in North Macedonia. Drawing on the Job Demands—Resources framework, the study focuses on how organizational practices and employee competencies are associated within contexts shaped by both technological and environmental change. Using survey data from 152 employees representing 152 organizations, the findings indicate that SHRM practices are positively associated with green training and green skills. More importantly, green training emerges as a key mechanism linking SHRM practices with employee competencies, suggesting that sustainability-oriented HR systems are most closely associated with employee capabilities when supported by structured development processes. Green skills are positively associated with employee engagement, and this relationship appears stronger in organizations characterized by higher levels of digital readiness. These findings highlight the importance of training and digital context in shaping employee outcomes. The study contributes to the literature by integrating sustainability, HRM, and digital transformation perspectives, and by emphasizing the role of developmental mechanisms in linking organizational practices with employee outcomes.

Source: Societies

DOI: 10.3390/soc16050147

Authors: Elenica Sofijanova, Theodore Koutroukis, Liljana Pushova Stamenkova, Marija Majhosheva

Institutions: Goce Delcev University, Democritus University of Thrace

Language: English

Topic: Environmental Sustainability in Business

Subfield: Marketing

Field: Business, Management and Accounting

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Decent work and economic growth

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,689