Chinese managerial activities : culture versus local isomorphism

This article examines the effects of individual, organizational, and country level factors on the managerial activities of Chinese managers, with their Canadian counterparts as the control group. It is found that country-level factors are better predictors of variations in managerial activities than individual and organizational factors. Specifically, the results indicate that Taiwanese managers place more, and Hong Kong managers less, emphasis on managerial activities when compared to Canadian managers. This implies that the notion of 'Chinese management', without accounting for national context, should be treated with caution. The result is also consistent with the premises advanced by proponents of 'local isomorphism'.