Human Resource Management in New Service Arrangements: Extending the Ability, Motivation, Opportunity Framework Into the Gig Economy

Human Resource Management in New Service Arrangements: Extending the Ability, Motivation, Opportunity Framework Into the Gig Economy

Authors: Michael David Maffie & Tashlin Lakhani — Human Resource Management, Vol. 64, Issue 5 (Sept/Oct 2025). DOI: 10.1002/hrm.22305

Article date: 2025-09-02T23:14:25+00:00

Summary

This paper applies the Ability–Motivation–Opportunity (AMO) framework to platform-mediated gig work and shows how human resource (HR) practices used by digital labour platforms influence worker retention behaviour. Using a mixed-methods approach — original qualitative interviews plus quantitative data from the ride‑hail sector — the authors find that platform HR practices reduce drivers’ tendency to multi-home (work simultaneously for rival platforms). The study integrates multi‑sided platform theory with strategic HRM to explain how non‑traditional employment arrangements can still be shaped by HR investments even when workers are classified as independent contractors.

Source

Source: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hrm.22305?af=R

Key Points

• The study extends the AMO (Ability, Motivation, Opportunity) framework to platform-based gig labour, linking HR practice design to gig-worker behaviour.
• Platform HR practices (training, communication, incentives, and managerial touchpoints) are associated with lower rates of multi-homing among ride‑hail drivers.
• Data come from both qualitative interviews and quantitative analysis in the ride‑hail industry, strengthening the causal argument that HR practices can affect retention even without employment contracts.
• The findings position HR interventions as strategic tools for platform competition in multi‑sided markets: reducing multi-homing increases a platform’s effective labour supply and competitive edge.
• Implications reach beyond firms to policymakers and regulators: HR investments by platforms shape labour market outcomes and worker exposure to algorithmic control and market risk.
• The authors report no specific funding and declare no conflicts of interest; data are available on request from the corresponding author.

Context and relevance

This article matters because it bridges two debates: classic strategic HRM (how HR systems influence performance) and the emerging realities of the gig economy (algorithmic management, contractor status, platform competition). For HR practitioners and platform managers it shows that designing people‑facing practices still changes behaviour even when workers are technically independent. For academics and policymakers it reframes retention and labour control as outcomes influenced by HR-like investments within platform ecosystems rather than only by algorithmic incentives or legal classification.

Why should I read this?

If you care about how platforms actually keep drivers loyal (spoiler: it isn’t just fancy algorithms), this short paper cuts to the chase. It shows that well‑crafted HR-style practices — training, feedback, incentives and human contact — nudge gig workers away from juggling multiple apps. Handy for HR folk, platform strategists and anyone tired of the assumption that contractors are immune to people management.

Author note

Punchy take: the paper is a neat, evidence-backed wake-up call — HR still matters in the gig economy. Read the full methods and robustness checks if you’re designing platform labour policies or advising regulators; the details are where the practical lessons live.

Additional metadata

Journal: Human Resource Management (Vol. 64, Issue 5), Pages 1263–1280. First published online 22 April 2025. Keywords: gig work; HR practices; nonstandard work; organisational performance; strategic human resource management.