Whatever

Journal of International Business and Cultural Studies

Managing in Mexico – An Ethnographic Comparison to Theory and Previous Research

Gus Gordon University of Texas at Tyler Abstract The purpose of this study is to compare the author’s experience in founding and managing a company in Merida, Mexico to existing literature on cross-cultural management. The results should prove useful for non-Mexican managers working in Mexico and can provide a basis for devising empirical- based research to test the ethnographic results reported. The author concludes that most of the discriminating characteristics associated with Hofstede’s seminal study on cross-culture management are diminishing in Mexico and that to a great extent convergence of cultures is occurring. Nevertheless, certain cultural vestiges remain intact and operable and must be considered in management philosophy. The author found that creating trust and a stakeholder mentality were crucial variables to melding the cultural differences. A high level of cultural competence was an important mediating force in melding the cultural differences. However, the political and legal differences of the Mexican system, compared to the U. S. continue to create obstacles to managing in Mexico. Key Words: Cross-cultural management, Hofstede’s cultural dimensions, cultural convergence, strategies for managing in Mexico, cultural competence

Managing in Mexico, Page 1

Journal of International Business and Cultural Studies Introduction Many researchers hypothesize that managing in cross cultural environments will require adaptation of management methods to accommodate the host culture (Hofstede, 1983; Newman and Nollen, 1996; Morris and Pavett, 1992; Jarvis, 1990; Stinson, 1989; Kras, 1989, de Forest, 1994). There is contradictory evidence concerning the degree that cultural differences within a specific country imply behaviors that would require adapted managerial strategies of foreign managers to address cultural...