Recent investigations suggest that human resource practices influence organisational performance through their effect on key mediating variables. However, the link between human resource management practices and innovation performance is yet to be determined and little is known about the variables that can mediate this relation. The diverse results of studies in this field seem to suggest that the sector of activity may determine specific aspects of this relation. By analysing data from a single industry, this paper aims to increase understanding of the mediating role of human capital in the relation between human resource management practices and innovation. Data from a survey of 109 firms managing hotel establishments in Spain show that, in the hotel industry, some human resource management practices affect innovation through their influence on human capital. Recruitment and selection human resource management practices, however, do not enhance the level of human capital of the firms studied, although they do determine their innovation performance.
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