Designing the Productivity Model of Green Human Resources Management in the Tose'e Ta'avon Bank

Introduction
In recent decades, environmental degradation, climate change, and the depletion of natural resources have become major global concerns. Factors such as population growth, expanding industrial production, and the excessive consumption of raw materials have intensified environmental crises, including global warming. These challenges have prompted governments and international organizations to adopt environmental regulations and agreements such as the Kyoto Protocol and the Montreal Convention. In this context, organizations are increasingly expected to strike a balance between technological advancement, behavioral requirements, and their overall environmental impact in order to address these issues effectively. Against this backdrop, the implementation of Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) practices has emerged as a key strategic approach. This approach encompasses initiatives such as green recruitment, green performance management, green training and development, employee participation in environmental activities, and green reward systems. Such practices not only contribute to environmental sustainability but also enhance productivity, improve organizational performance, and reduce operational costs. In Iran, the Bank of Tose’e Ta’avon, as one of the country’s key economic institutions, can play an important role in advancing green management. Given its mission to support small and medium-sized enterprises and finance productive activities, the bank has significant potential to institutionalize the principles of green human resource management. However, several challenges have limited its ability to achieve its environmental objectives, including the absence of mechanisms for evaluating employees’ environmental performance, the lack of a strong green organizational culture, and the underutilization of green human resource capacities. Furthermore, legal requirements and growing social pressure to implement green policies have made it necessary for the bank to develop comprehensive green human resource management models. Such models should emphasize the recruitment of environmentally committed personnel, the provision of continuous training, the evaluation of green performance, and the creation of motivational systems capable of enhancing organizational productivity while reducing the environmental impact of the bank’s activities. This research aims to identify the key factors influencing the productivity of green human resource management at the Bank of Tose’e Ta’avon and to propose a comprehensive model for improving the bank’s environmental performance and enhancing employee productivity. Such a model can strengthen the bank’s role in promoting environmental sustainability and contribute to the country’s economic and social development.
 
Methodology
This research is developmental-applied in terms of its purpose and qualitative in terms of data collection, based on the nature of the research. In this study, grounded theory with the "systematic approach of Strauss and Corbin" was used. According to this theory and the systematic approach of Strauss and Corbin, causal conditions, the core phenomenon of green human resources management, context, intervening conditions, strategies (actions and reactions), and finally, the consequences of green human resources management were examined. For data analysis, three types of open, axial, and selective coding were used. Semi-structured interviews with experts and purposive and snowball sampling methods were used to collect data. The statistical population of the research included experts from the bank (managers and specialists at both the headquarters and provincial levels of the Bank of Cooperative Development). Sampling continued until theoretical saturation was achieved, and a total of 15 interviews were conducted. To assess the validity of the interviews, three criteria—credibility, transferability, and reliability—were used.
 
Findings
The research data were examined and analyzed using three types of coding: open, axial, and selective. Based on the conducted interviews, 140 open codes were extracted. After open coding, axial coding was performed, in which various categories were placed within a meaningful framework, resulting in 44 axial codes. These codes were then organized into main categories as selective categories within the research model. This model, as a comprehensive framework, identifies a set of factors influencing green human resource productivity, which were analyzed in six components: causal conditions, intervening conditions, contextual conditions, the core phenomenon, strategies (actions and reactions), and outcomes. Moreover, regarding causal conditions and outcomes, the categories were emphasized and analyzed at individual, organizational, and social levels.
 
Discussion and Conclusion
The present study aimed to develop a model for enhancing the productivity of Green Human Resource Management (GHRM) at the Bank of Tose’e Ta’avon. The findings indicate that the major outcomes of this model include improving employees’ quality of work life, increasing organizational productivity, and strengthening the culture of banking responsibility and social responsibility, all of which can support the banking sector in moving toward sustainability and achieving its environmental objectives. The effective implementation of this model requires careful consideration of cultural and social contexts, as well as the alignment of managerial policies and organizational processes with green standards. The findings of the present study are consistent with those of previous international studies conducted by Abouyahia and Zargar (2023), Fatoki (2021), Jabour et al. (2019), Renwick et al. (2018), Jabati (2018), Vermeer et al. (2018), Opata and Arul Raja (2018), Longoni et al. (2018), Donohue (2017), Bangwal et al. (2017), Tank et al. (2017), Norton et al. (2017), Masri and Jaron (2017), Dumont et al. (2017), Apata (2017), Stocklapp and Dell (2016), Gurchi et al. (2016), Opata and Arul Raja (2014), Masri and Jabour (2013), Renwick et al. (2013), Jackson et al. (2011), and Jabour and Santos (2008), as well as domestic studies by Akbari and Shaegh (2023), Mozaffari Tehrani et al. (2022), Ghasemi Ram et al. (2022), Sabk Row et al. (2022), Shirdel et al. (2022), and Shahnoushi and Abdollahi (2018). Based on these findings and the model developed in this research, several practical recommendations can be proposed for the Bank of Tose’e Ta’avon to help position it as a leading institution in sustainability and social responsibility while also enhancing human resource productivity and stakeholder satisfaction. These recommendations include designing personal development programs to strengthen employees’ skills and personal characteristics in line with green policies, using modern educational technologies to enhance employees’ knowledge of sustainable human resource management practices, developing a sustainability charter or statement centered on green values and social responsibility, promoting an organizational culture that supports sustainability through internal communication programs and active employee participation in environmental initiatives, reviewing management policies and processes to ensure alignment with international green standards, implementing a green management system focused on optimal resource utilization, reducing paper consumption, and improving digital processes, establishing effective monitoring systems to assess compliance with environmental standards and objectives, and developing environmentally friendly banking products and services, such as green loans and investments in sustainable projects.