The Role of Societal Cultural Practices in Organizational Investment in Training: A Comparative Study in 21 Countries

Abstract

The role of cultural practices on the level of organizational investment in training, with the added effect of key organizational background characteristics (size and technological level), was explored. Secondary analysis was conducted on the data of project GLOBE (Global Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness) and of CRANET (Cross-Country Human Resource Management Research), covering 5,991 organizations and 21 countries. Controlled for organization size and technology level, as well as economic strength (GNI), cultural practices such as low power distance, high future orientation, and high uncertainty avoidance explained increased investment in training, supporting the study hypotheses. Organizational characteristics were also related to investment in training: Larger size and high (vs. low) technology predicted increased investment. The two organizational background characteristics interacted with national values, so the above effects of uncertainty avoidance and future orientation were higher, respectively, for larger organizations and high-tech organizations. Implications are particularly relevant for diverse organizations, which encourage the employment of a diverse workforce, and for international organizations, which tend to emphasize a global organizational culture and standard organizational practices while underestimating local cultural values.