juan Antonio Fernandez - China CEO II: Voices of Experience from 25 Top Executives Leading MNCs in China

JUAN ANTONIO FERNANDEZ

LAURIE ANN UNDERWOOD

Cover design: Alicia Beebe and Wiley
Cover images: Portrait and design by Alicia Beebe

Research interns: James Warren, Nikki Pinder

Copyright 2020 by John Wiley & Sons Singapore Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved.

Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey.
Published simultaneously in Canada.

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ISBN 978-1-119-58343-1 (paper)
ISBN 978-1-119-58339-4 (ePDF)
ISBN 978-1-119-58321-9 (ePub)

I dedicate this book to the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) on the 25th anniversary of its founding. I also dedicate this book to the wonderful people at CEIBS who helped us during the work on this book. Finally, to my wife, Hanning, and my three sons, Simon, Oscar, and Daniel, who give meaning to my life.

Dr. Juan Antonio Fernandez

China CEO II is dedicated to my familySydney and Schafer Wilson; Dorothy and Glenn Staley; Matthew, Larry and Sally Underwoodand to my beloved and excellent partner, Eric Desvallees. Their love provided me the power to complete this book. I am also grateful to CEIBS, my alma mater, as well as to Xi'an Jiaotong Liverpool University (International Business School Suzhou) and Sino Associates for the support of my colleagues.

Dr. Laurie Ann Underwood

It is my pleasure to endorse China CEO II, the latest China business book produced by Professors Juan A. Fernandez and Laurie A. Underwood. Both have worked and lived in China for more than 20 years, which has given them a first-hand, front-row view of the enormous changes that have transformed this county over the past two decades. In the space of time since our year 2000 MBA and EMBA graduates entered the working world, China has moved forward to become a leading global player across many fronts at onceas the world's largest exporter (and most populous nation), with the largest consumer base and the fastest growing one in terms of spending power, and now as a global leader of the digital revolution. Although rapid, China's economic progress has been steady as the nation shifted from serving as the factory of the world to an innovation powerhouse. MNCs in today's China face highly sophisticated consumers, fiercely competitive local players across nearly all industries, and a new population of local digital heroes who are changing the world order and giving China's younger generation a new set of life goals and priorities, as well as a new sense of home-grown pride. Taken together, China's multifaceted economic and social transformation is unique in the history of the world.

This book attempts to give readers a first-hand view into this multifaceted transformation through the lens of in-depth interviews with China CEOs and various experts on China. The 25 interviewees with China CEOs share their personal insights into succeeding in the new China. As a foretaste of what you will learn from of this book, some of the key qualities that the China CEOs deemed essential to success in China include passion and energy, speed of decision-making, clear vision, a shared framework, the ability to empower local teams, and the ability to make tough judgment calls in an environment of constant change and uncertainty.

Before closing, I would like to note two important trends that can be seen when comparing China CEO II with the original book published in 2006: the new book includes an increased number of Chinese CEOs and an increased number of women CEOs. Both trends are intensely positive not only for China but for the global business arena. The rise of more Chinese nationals into the top executive positions at MNCs is a positive trend that closely matches the goals of CEIBS. Likewise, the rise of more women into top executive spots in international companies in China is another trend to which CEIBS is deeply committed.

Let me conclude by reminding readers that China's importance in the world is growingand will continue to grow for decades to come. It is our hope that this book will serve as a bridge, closing the gap between China and the rest of the world by promoting better understanding, deeper collaboration, and more beneficial interactions with multinational companies. The goal of this book is to assist both foreigners working in China and Chinese executives working internationally to better communicate and better cooperate, to the benefit of all.

Dipak Jain, President (European)
and Professor of Marketing, CEIBS

Why did we decide to write China CEO II? Following the success of our first bookChina CEOreleased in 2006, we have been asked why we wanted to repeat the whole exercise again 14 years later. Why again seek interviews with top executives running large-scale operations for high-profile multinational companies (MNCs) in China? Was there really a need to write a new edition of the same book?

The short answer to this question is: yes. By 2020, the time was right to embark on