A comparison of managerial style and work motivation between the People's Republic of China and Taiwan

The large amount of investment by Taiwan in Mainland China generates an expectation that the investment will yield a good return on investment. Conflicts that occur between the management in Taiwan and the management in the PRC will negatively effect this investment. Managers operating in the PRC are also working in a different economic, political and social environment. As a result, the managerial style can impact working relationships with employees as well as effect their level of motivation. Any problems that reduce the return on investment of Taiwan companies in the PRC need to be considered and resolved in the most effective way possible.; The results of this study provide an interesting set of comparisons between the management practices in Taiwan and the PRC. The relative importance of fourteen motivators was obtained for a sample of managers in both countries. It was found that motivators such as 'recognition for good work', 'having a good relationship with superiors and colleagues' and having 'a good chance for promotion and advancement' were important to both groups of managers. However, Taiwan managers considered 'challenging and interesting work' and a job that enables me to develop my skills and abilities important while the managers from the PRC tended not to see these motivators as important. On the other hand, the PRC managers saw 'good pay' and working in 'a prestigious and respected department or organization' as important motivators while their counterparts in Taiwan did not. In addition, while only ranked as moderately important by the PRC sample, the ranking for fringe benefits was considerably higher than that of the Taiwan managers. Overall, the motivator rankings seem to place the emphasis on both monetary and social status factors in the PRC when compared to the Taiwan sample.; Indeed, it is likely that the Chinese managers in the PRC are more likely to be motivated by economic and prestige factors in the foreseeable future. The fact that the importance of motivational factors is different in the PRC and Taiwan despite the cultural similarities of the two countries suggests that managers need to focus on different motivators in the two countries. This research project explored a variety of issues related to managerial practices. The results indicate that there are differences between a manager's approach to management in the PRC and Taiwan. The implications for starting businesses in the PRC and the choice of using managers from Taiwan or the PRC are significant. These factors should be taken into consideration by organizations considering going into or when evaluating managers and operations already in existence.