The Transferability of Management Training and Development: The Case of Hong Kong

The purpose of this paper is to critically review the role of culture as a potential barrier to the transferability of management training and development. The paper therefore seeks to summarise the relevant literature and, in doing so, to transcend the dichotomy of the ‘culture‐free’ and ‘culture‐determinist’ positions and the presentation of culture as a simple and undifferentiated ‘barrier.’ From our literature review and training experience in this area we develop a model of three different levels of cultural effect: the level of training/learning style, the level of values, and the level of cognition. The paper then attempts to illustrate the operation of these levels as barriers to the successful implementation of a training and development intervention in Hong Kong. Finally, an agenda for future research on this important topic for trainers in South East Asia is suggested.