The Inovativeness of Chinese CEO’s

People sometimes ask to what extent my research results are applicable to organisations and countries other than the ones I’ve studied. In 'East meets West', a report that is just out, I found some relevant examples. This report offers the results of a study conducted by Hay Group over the course of eighteen months in thirty-seven Chinese organisations. The study was comprised of in-depth interviews and surveys of CEO’s and their direct reports.

They found that:

• Chinese leaders have a great sense of social responsibility that helps them attain positive business results.
• Chinese CEO’s are not only diligent in their goal of advancing society and their business relationships, but they are also eager to improve upon themselves. They have the ability and an appetite for continuous self-improvement. (Here I see a clear link with the eleventh design principle: developing competencies).
• Chinese leaders strive to build win-win relationships. For this reason, Western competitors may find many opportunities to develop mutually beneficial relationships (this, in fact, might aid in innovation, according to the fifth design principle).

With respect to innovation, the study states that the Chinese can no longer rely on their highly developed skills as adaptors and employ a low cost, mass market 'read sea' model. This will not make them a strong player in international markets in the long term. Anticipating this, the Chinese already aspire to a new 'blue ocean strategy' based on quality, innovation or other differentiating characteristics.

The Chinese are not very focused on markets and consumer needs and therefore they are not likely to seek new data concerning consumers’ needs or new trends. However, the seeking of new information is crucial to the process of innovation so there clearly is a need for Chinese CEO’s to look for new ways attaining this innovation. Hay Group's researchers suggest that the Chinese CEO’s could use their sense of social responsibility as an impulse for innovation so as to produce market driven innovation.

Read more:

• Download the full report 'East meets West'
• Read the article in scienceguide with respect to this study (in Dutch)