The inf luence of organizational variables on the transferability of management practices: An examination of traditional and learning manufacturing environments in Mexico Carolina Go ´mez a, * , Annette L. Ranft b,1 a Department of Management and International Business, College of Business Administration, Florida International University, University Park, Miami, FL 33199, USA b Calloway School of Business and Accountancy, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27109-7285, USA Received 16 February 2000; accepted 24 October 2001 Abstract This study examines two plants in Mexico operating under different management practices—one as a traditional, control-oriented manufacturer, another pursuing an organizational learning approach. Individual behaviors and an organizational-level factor related to learning are examined both quantitatively and qualitatively to understand their impact on the transferability of different management practices that are more or less congruent with Mexican cultural values. Significant differences were found between the two plants in both individual behaviors and on the organizational-level factor, providing support for the implementation of different management approaches in Mexico. Support for innovation, the organizational-level factor, was a good predictor of individual behavior differences, indicating that it may moderate the impact of national value differences on the transferability of management practices. Semistructured interviews revealed a range of human resource management policies that seem to affect the success of a learning approach. Implications for researchers and managers are discussed. D 2003 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved. Keywords: Organizational learning; Transferability of management practices; Mexico 1. Introduction When investing in foreign operations, managers of mul- tinational corporations (MNCs) need to decide what strategy and management techniques to follow in their subsidiaries. In the case of foreign direct investment (FDI) in Mexico, managers may focus on Mexico as a low-cost manufacturing alternative and pursue a cost-leadership strategy (Stanford, 1995). Nevertheless, research on MNCs increasingly points to the importance of a global learning focus that offers more flexibility and competitiveness (Bartlett and Ghoshal, 1989). To stay competitive, many US organizations are increasingly moving towards management approaches that promote organizational learning (Fiol and Lyles, 1985; Hult, 1998; Sinkula, 1994; Slater and Narver, 1995; Stanford, 1995). For example, Hult (1998) found that in sourcing relationships, an organizational learning approach resulted in improved custo- mer satisfaction, sourcing relationship commitment and re- duced cycle times. Different strategies require different organizational processes and employee behaviors. Well- defined jobs and tight supervisory monitoring may be most appropriate with a low-cost strategy. In contrast, a learning strategy may rely more on employee involvement and participation. It is critical for managers determining management strategies for overseas operations to understand whether and under what conditions different practices can be transferred to another culture. The issue of transferability becomes salient because employee involvement and other practices or processes that facilitate learning rely on specific behaviors that may be congruent with some cultures but less congruent with the cultural values of 0148-2963/03/$ – see front matter D 2003 Elsevier Science Inc. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/S0148-2963(01)00332-0 * Corresponding author. Tel.: +1-305-348-3269; fax: +1-305-348- 6146. E-mail addresses: gomezc@fiu.edu (C. Go ´mez), ranftal@wfu.edu (A.L. Ranft). 1 Tel.: +1-336-758-5098; fax: +1-336-758-6133. Journal of Business Research 56 (2003) 989 – 997