Preparing U.S.-Based Company R to be Culturally Successful in Puerto RAico

Abstract

Company R is an off-price retail organization that sells high-quality specialty store brands of clothing and home goods at lower-than-average retail prices. Its problem is how its organizational culture aligns with Puerto Rican cultural norms. We used mixed-method data, incorporating both quantitative and qualitative components. The quantitative piece of our research was a 19-question Likert scale survey given to individuals working in Puerto Rican retail stores. The qualitative component is directly linked to Hofstede's six cultural dimensions. The Culture Factor Group was a crucial part of our research as it played a significant role in validating the data and enhancing the reliability of our findings. Our first interview was with the CEO of The Culture Factor Group, who developed a numeric scale of Hofstede's six cultural dimensions. This scale measures 110 different countries' cultural dynamics using Hofstede's six cultural dimensions, with the United States and Puerto Rico being two of the countries analyzed. We conducted four additional interviews with mid-level and senior-level managers from organizations transitioning from operating solely in the contiguous United States to the contiguous United States and Puerto Rico. Our data analysis indicates that Puerto Rican and Company R's workplace cultures do not wholly align, especially in the following areas: management hierarchy, family and friend integration, celebrating successes, and honoring traditions. Given this, Company R should make the following modifications to the Store Associate Welcome Book.