Leveraging culture
This study has implications for cross-culture knowledge transfer. Not only confirming
that the “hard” or explicit management elements (e.g. budgetary procedures) could
be applied across cultures, but the findings also suggested that the “soft” or tacit
management elements (e.g. HRM systems), could also be transferred if done properly.
The question then is whether organizational leaders can thoroughly grasp the western
approaches they adopt, and the underpinning cultural assumptions. Further, the case
study disclosed that the culture-oriented approaches (i.e. top-down power and trust
driven) facilitated organizational change. The challenge for change leaders to address
then, is, how to leverage culture to its advantage, instead of perceiving it as a
constraint.