The interaction of the personnel boundary in inter-firm relationship management is viewed as particularistic in China instead of universalistic as in many Western cultures. Specifically, guanxi networks, the Chinese system of inter-personal relationship, have strong strategic implications for business interactions. The practices of guanxi and the social norms associated with guanxi are complicated. On the one hand, guanxi practices can be traced back to Confucianism; on the other hand, guanxi???s significance has been changing in line with China???s economic reform. In this research, we have attempted to find what presently constitutes good guanxi in inter-firm relationship management against this dynamic backdrop. Additionally, from the transaction cost economies (TCE) perspective, we provide an analysis that guanxi-based business practices offer transaction cost advantages as an alternative to market-based practices. We argue that such advantages partially result from guanxi???s effect on the reduction of opportunist behaviors. Backed up by 97 questionnaire responses from firms in Shanghai and 15 semi-structured interviews, our study confirms that, in inter-firm relationships management, trust, affection and long-term orientation are features of close guanxi. To enhance guanxi quality, familiarization by self-disclosure and the presence of mutual benefits are also necessary, providing practical implications for business practitioners in China. Our study also indicates that guanxi business partners are expected to be obligational in business and flexible in contingencies. Opportunistic behaviors can be mitigated by adopting guanxi practices, supporting the TCE logic. In an absence of a rationalized legal system, guanxi may fill the gaps in the enforcement of the written contract.N

Thesis (MTech (Business Administration))--Peninsula Technikon, 2004. / Organizational identification has been regarded as a new control strategy for modern organizations. High levels of organizational members' identification result in various benefits to organizational performance. Among organizational theorists there exists a strong school of thought, which sees organizational culture as the antecedent to organizational identification. Culture, and therefore also organizational culture, is a complex and integrative phenomenon which encompasses the values, assumptions, interactions and behaviours within a particular group. As point of departure, this research adopted Martin's (2000:26) argument that culture is best studied through the cultural artefacts, being the most visible manifestations also of deep-seated values and assumptions. Previous studies on organizational culture-related organizational behaviours have been conducted mostly in a Western-cultural context. It was hoped, by this research, to fill the theoretical gap by establishing a link between organizational culture and organizational identification in Chinese organizations. The relationship between organizational culture and organizational identification was investigated through a survey conducted in three Chinese organizations representing a cross section of industry.

Mo Lai-lan. / "February 1999." / Thesis (Ph.D.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1999. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 182-208). / Electronic reproduction. Hong Kong : Chinese University of Hong Kong, [2012] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, MI : ProQuest Information and Learning Company, [200-] System requirements: Adobe Acrobat Reader. Available via World Wide Web. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / Abstracts in English and Chinese.

University of Macau / Faculty of Business Administration / Department of Finance and Business Economics

published_or_final_version / Public Administration / Master / Master of Public Administration

published_or_final_version / Business Administration / Master / Master of Business Administration

published_or_final_version / Japanese Studies / Master / Master of Philosophy

by Lam Pai-mui. / Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 1993. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 71-73). / ABSTRACT --- p.ii / TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.iii / LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS --- p.v / LIST OF GRAPHS --- p.vi / CHAPTER / Chapter I. --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1 / Chapter II. --- CONCEPT OF ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE --- p.7 / Chapter III. --- MANAGEMEOT IN CHINA --- p.14 / Historical Setting --- p.14 / Problems in the Past --- p.15 / Organizational Structure --- p.15 / Managerial Skills --- p.16 / Party and Management --- p.16 / Operations --- p.18 / Motivation and Labor Discipline --- p.18 / Economic and Management Reforms --- p.19 / Chapter IV. --- IMPACT OF CULTURE --- p.22 / Key Features --- p.22 / Respect for Age and Hierarchy --- p.22 / Group Orientation --- p.22 / Face' --- p.23 / Relationships --- p.23 / Cultural Consequences --- p.24 / Chapter V. --- METHODOLOGY --- p.36 / Questionnaires --- p.36 / Sampling --- p.38 / Distribution of Questionnaires --- p.39 / Chapter VI. --- FINDINGS --- p.41 / Company Profile --- p.41 / Demographic Profile --- p.41 / Organizational Climate --- p.48 / Comparison between Local and Foreign Firms --- p.59 / Chapter VII. --- SUMMARY AND DISCUSSION --- p.64 / APPENDIX I : ORGANIZATIONAL CLIMATE QUESTIONNAIRE --- p.67 / BIBLIOGRAPHY --- p.71

published_or_final_version / Education / Master / Master of Education

[Truncated abstract] This thesis investigates the phenomenon of organisational guanxi in business in the SOE hotel environment in south-west China. A general aim is to give the reader a sense of how organisational guanxi operates in this environment. It identifies the characteristics and roots of organizational guanxi and discusses the significance of its operation in this environment. This thesis also analyses the implications of the continued practice of organizational guanxi and the prospects of its future as the Chinese economy continues to evolve toward a more market orientation. In Chapter One, the phenomena of guanxi, mainzi and renqing are defined and the importance of their role in conducting business in mainland China proposed. … The findings of this new research in south-west China provide conclusive evidence that in this region the guanxi network remains the lifeblood of the business community (Kao, 1993). In addition, this research throws up some conclusions that are not aligned with that of Guthrie?s (2002) Shanghai-based findings. In Chapter Nine, The Conclusion, the major findings of this thesis are revisited and include the acknowledgement and definition of organisational guanxi, the exploration of the roots of organisational guanxi inside the danwei, the differentiation of intra-organisational guanxi from inter-organisational guanxi, the definition of the concept of guanxi neglect, and a comparison of the decay in the strength and usage of guanxi in south-west China with that in the Shanghai region.