- Title
- A study of the impact of management philosophy on HR practices and employee attitudes and performance in two Chinese manufacturing organisations: a case study approach
- Creator
- Tam , Wai Kau Alphaeus
- Resource Type
- thesis
- Date
- 2013
- Description
- Professional Doctorate - Doctor of Business Administration (DBA)
- Description
- The objective of this research is to provide insight into the impact of Chinese and Western management philosophies on HR practices in Chinese manufacturing organisations in China and subsequent organisational and employee performance. This research follows a case study approach. It investigates the management philosophies and HR practices of two very similar manufacturing firms in Shenzhen, China. Both firms engage in original brand manufacturing (OBM) of the same products, both employ approximately 3,000 local Chinese operator level staff and both produce finished products for export. The key difference between the firms is that one is a subsidiary of an American Multinational Corporation that adopts a Western management philosophy and HR practices; whereas the other is Chinese owned and adopts a Chinese management philosophy and HR practices. This empirical, qualitative study aims to answer the following research questions through a multi-level qualitative case study methodology: (1)How does management philosophy impact the use and implementation of HRM in a Chinese context? (2)How is management philosophy understood, implemented and operationalized in a foreign MNE operating in China and a Chinese-owned enterprise; and what are the differences and similarities across these areas in these two organisations? (3)What practices are most beneficial in increasing employee and organisational performance in manufacturing firms in China? In relation to research question 1, this study finds that in the case of OBM in China, HR practices influenced by a Western management philosophy have a negative impact on operator level workplace attitudes, perceptions and performance. Conversely, HR practices influenced by a Chinese management philosophy have a positive effect on the same factors. This suggests that at least in the context of OBM in China, the management philosophy enacted by senior management needs to be congruent with the values, attitudes and beliefs of the workers. In relation to research question 2, this study finds that local Chinese employees in the Western-oriented firm did not fully understand the HR directives from top management and were not willing or able to work effectively, even though they were given specific detailed instructions, clearly written in Chinese characters. Conversely, employees in the Chinese-oriented firm clearly understood general messages and directives from top management without such explicit instructions and were more willing and able to work effectively. Finally, in relation to research question 3, this research suggest that the practice most beneficial in increasing employee and organisational performance in manufacturing firms in China is to implement a management philosophy and HR practices that are congruent with the values, attitudes and beliefs of all employees.
- Subject
- Chinese philosophy; Western management philosophy; employee attitudes; organisational performance; case study
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1036940
- Identifier
- uon:13384
- Rights
- Copyright 2013 Wai Kau Alphaeus Tam
- Language
- eng
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| Thumbnail | File | Description | Size | Format | |||
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| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT01 | Abstract | 294 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download | ||
| View Details Download | ATTACHMENT02 | Thesis | 1006 KB | Adobe Acrobat PDF | View Details Download |