Comparing Managerial Values in Twelve Latin American Countries: An Exploratory Study

Abstract * This study compared managerial values of retail store managers across 12 countries of Latin America. From the 18 instrumental values of the Rokeach Value Survey, factor analysis extracted four dimensions, which were labeled: Integrity, Civility, Self-Direction, and Drive (in order of importance). * Analysis of variance indicated that, overall, values differ by country, suggesting that common stereotypes of "Latino" and/or "Hispanic" managers should be used with caution. On the other hand, multiple comparisons showed that several pairs of nations were not statistically different, indicating the presence of within-region cultural similarities. Key Results * Despite similarities in the importance of values associated with social interaction, there were significant differences in the relative importance of work-related values. Introduction Values play an important role in understanding the behavior of individuals at work since people assess events and take actions using values as their criteria (Kluckhohn 1951, Rokeach 1973, Williams 1968). Values are also central to cultural differences (Hofstede 1980); managers from different cultures are expected to differ in the importance that they place on personal values and, since values influence behavior, differences in the importance of values will be reflected in differences in managerial behavior (Bigoness/Blakeley 1996, England/Lee 1974, Ralston et al. 1992). Studies have examined the effect of differences in national culture on a wide range of management issues, including a firm's preference for market entry (Kogut/Singh 1988), the likelihood of joint venture survival (Barkema/Vermeulen, 1997), cross-border acquisition performance (Morosini/Shane/Singh 1998), product development (Nakata/Sivakumar 1996), strategic management and decision-making (Newman/Nollen 1996, Geletkanycz 1997, Schuler et al. 1996), the transfer of technology (Kedia/Bhagat 1988), human resource management (Schuler et al. 1996, Schuler/Rogovsky 1998), and managerial performance (Neelankavil /Mathur/Zhang 2000). A common theme in most of these studies is the need for a fit between cultural values and management practices. Indeed, understanding the values of the people with whom one does business is important in building a good working relationship (Tung/Miller 1990), and Dunning (1997, p. 196) states: ". firms which are best able to identify and reconcile [cultural] differences, or even exploit them to their gain, are likely to acquire a noticeable competitive advantage in the marketplace. " Most of the cross-cultural research of managerial values that has been done so far has focused on developed countries, particularly in Europe and North America (e.g. Bigoness/Blakely 1996, Barkema/Vermeulen 1997). This is understandable, since much of the underlying theory of human values has been developed by scholars in these regions. However, the study of managerial values and behavior is particularly relevant to international management in the context of emerging economies, When multinational corporations (MNCs) decide to enter foreign markets, they have to familiarize themselves with the local environment and learn how to manage local employees and to deal with local suppliers and distributors. Yet MNCs tend to select local partners based on perceptions of the partner's competence rather than on the partner's familiarity with local markets (Arnold/Quelch 1998). As a result, new ventures in emerging markets' may lack knowledge about local organizational and managerial behavior. Among emerging markets, Latin America has recently had the largest share of inward foreign direct investment (1). This region accounts for 6.8% of global GNP and is home to the 8th and 12th largest economies in the world--Brazil and Mexico, respectively (World Bank 2000). Furthermore, through trade agreements, Latin America is linked to the world's two largest economies, the European Union (EU) and the USA. …