A set of effective HRM practices can influence company performance and
help the company in achieving a sustainable competitive advantage.
The Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), established in 1956, is
among the world’s largest life insurers. With magnificent performance, at
enormous scale, LIC dwarfs the other 23 life insurance players in India.
LIC is fully owned by the Indian government; and given the popular
perception that privately-managed organizations perform better, LIC’s
sustained success and dominating growth is intriguing. This study inquires
into HR and management practices at LIC and attempts to link such
practices to past research on competitive strategies to understand and
explain the contributing factors for its exemplary performance. This paper
examines the counterintuitive practices adopted by LIC, which a typical
organization would not normally do, and how far it is in line with the
competitive strategies in line with the earlier research findings.

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