Effects of culture on the perception of South African and Tanzanian business students on high performance organizations

The purpose of this study is to determine whether there are common conceptions of high performance organizations (HPOs) among business students in South Africa and Tanzania, as the perceptions of these students will influence the structure and use of future HPOs. Questionnaire data were collected from a sample (357) of second and third year business students who were asked to rate the 35 items contained in the HPO Framework (Waal, 2012) on a seven-point- Likert-Scale. Factor analysis revealed that three of the five HPO factors in the framework - continuous improvement and renewal, long-term orientation, high quality management –are common for South African and Tanzanian students. A multivariate analysis showed that Tanzanian students scored higher than South African students for two of these factors - continuous improvement and renewal and long-term orientation - whilst South African students scored higher on the high quality management Factor. A bivariate correlation between the HPO factors and Hofstede’s dimensions of cultural values revealed a significant relationship between the HPO factor long-term orientation and three of the cultural dimensions. This study makes a contribution to the literature by empirically investigating whether business students from varying cultures share common conceptions on what constitutes an HPO. Thus, the findings of this study are relevant in the development and structuring of trainings, curricula and consultancies.