FRQ Relève étoile Award presented to postdoctoral researcher Charles Cayrat

Charles Cayrat, a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Human Resources Management at HEC Montréal, has received the Relève étoile Paul Gérin Lajoie Award from the Fonds de recherche du Québec (FRQ). He earned this distinction for his research conducted in collaboration with Michel Cossette, Professor and Director of the Department of Human Resources Management.

The FRQ’s Relève étoile Award aims to promote research careers and recognize the excellence of work carried out by emerging Québec researchers. Accompanied by a $1,500 scholarship, the award is presented monthly to one recipient in each of the three sectors: Nature and Technology, Health, and Society and Culture.

Examining the Legitimacy of the HR Function

The prize was awarded to Charles Cayrat for his article “On the road to HR legitimacy in SMEs: the signalling power of HR metrics,” co authored with Sylvie Guerrero and Michel Cossette, and published in The International Journal of Human Resource Management.

This study addresses a long standing issue: the legitimacy crisis affecting the human resources (HR) function within organizations. For several decades, HR professionals have been caught in a double bind:

• leadership sometimes views them as too detached from strategic issues;
• employees doubt their ability to advocate for their interests.

This paradox, the researcher notes, undermines trust in the HR function and ultimately affects organizational performance.

HR Metrics as Signals of Legitimacy

Drawing on signalling theory, the study shows that HR metrics – such as engagement or absenteeism rates – can play a key role in creating shared perceptions between employers and employees. These measures act as communication tools that demonstrate that the HR function supports both organizational performance and employee well being.

This research provides the first application of signalling theory to HR metrics and introduces an innovative method to quantify HR legitimacy. It also shows that such indicators can serve as strategic levers to reconcile economic interests with human needs, fostering sustainable value creation.

Based on data from 218 HR professionals working in Canadian small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), the study offers new empirical evidence in a context that remains understudied in Canada.