THE CULTURAL PERSPECTIVE IN PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL: The Case of the Malaysian Banking Industry

This paper deals with the impact of culture on performance appraisal in a non-Western setting. Adapting culturally relevant and accepted ways of managing is crucial to the success of organizations. Insufficient attention was paid to the significance of contextual factors surrounding the appraisal process. The ways in which culture affects performance appraisal is largely unexplored. The paper sets out to demonstrate the impact of culture on performance appraisal in the Malaysian banking industry. Several areas are examined including work-related values, satisfaction with the appraisal interview, and attitudes towards the appraisal process. Information was gathered from managers and subordinates through two sets of different questionnaires. Among others, results of the study indicate that there is some degree of value shift among employees towards more Western-oriented ideals in both groups of respondents. Suggestions about the inappropriateness of appraisal models based on Western values in an Eastern setting need further thought and refinement.