160
Table 9: Hong Kong Cotton Spinners' Preferred and Actual Employment Status
Owner-director Non-proprietory director R. Total Owner 16 5 21 Senior executive 6 5 11 C. Total 22 10 32X2 = 1.617 (adjusted for continuity as d.f. = 1).
.. Not significant.
Source: Interviews, 1978.
For the owner-directors who opted to have independent enterprises early in their career, they were very conscious of the peculiar opportunity structure of Hong Kong. As they saw it, the economy was not yet dominated by huge corporations and small entrepreneurs could still strive and prosper. Apart from two respondents, monetary benefits were not mentioned as the main attraction. The chief motifs emerging from their answers were the lure of self-advancement, and an abhorrence of self-subjugation. B22 asserted,
'Even if it is a small firm at the beginning, you can stand out and move ahead. But salaried employment is a blind alley,'
There was a strong implication that the life of a subordinate was stifling and humiliating. Thus A18 said,
'It depends on your personality. Many people are content with their lot, so they become employees. But if you have high expectations for yourself, you want to do things on your own. You have to take risks.'
Given the dislike for subjugating oneself, why then did a handful of the owner-directors express a wish to be executives? When I pressed for the reasons, I discovered that it was not because they valued this role for its own sake. Rather, they regarded it either as a stepping stone providing the necessary preparation for later ownership, or else as an escape route offering relief from the crushing responsibilities of handling an unwieldy work force.
160
Table 9: Hong Kong Cotton Spinners' Preferred and Actual Employment Status
Owner-
Choice
director
Non-proprietory director
R. Total
Owner
16
5
21
Senior executive
6
5
11
C. Total
22
10
32
X
1.617 (adjusted for continuity as d.f. = 1).
.. Not significant.
Source: Interviews, 1978.
For the owner-directors who opted to have independent enterprises early in their career, they were very conscious of the peculiar opportunity structure of Hong Kong. As they saw it, the economy was not yet dominated by huge corporations and small entrepreneurs could still strive and prosper. Apart from two respondents, monetary benefits were not mentioned as the main attraction. The chief motifs emerging from their answers were the lure of self-advancement, and an abhorrence of self- subjugation. B22 asserted,
'Even if it is a small firm at the beginning, you can stand out and move ahead. But salaried employment is a blind alley,'
There was a strong implication that the life of a subordinate was stifling and humiliating. Thue A18 said,
'It depends on your personality. Many people are content with their lot, so they become employees. But if you have high expectations for yourself, you want to do things on your OWII. You have to take risks."
Given the dislike for subjugating oneself, why then did a handful of the owner-directors express a wish to be executives? When I pressed for the reasons, I discovered that it was not because they valued this role for its own sake. Rather, they regarded it either as a stepping stone providing the necessary preparation for later ownership, or else as an escape route offering relief from the crushing responsibilities of handling an unwieldy work force.
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