Regional differences in a national culture and their effects on leadership effectiveness: A tale of two neighboring Chinese cities

We argue that regional differences in a large culture influence leadership effectiveness. Studying the differences and their consequences on leader–member exchange (LMX) and the employee performances in two neighboring Chinese cities, our empirical results show significant differences between group supervisors in Hong Kong and those in Shenzhen. Hong Kong supervisors apply the LMX technique more aggressively, and also more successfully than their Shenzhen counterparts in terms of improving employee performance and reducing turnover.