General Observations, Conclusion, Finally..., Thank you!

General China Observations

• I saw several women bus drivers in Beijing which made me think about the men-women equality. After some questioning around to people around, I got to know that women have been in the work-force for quite some time and they have almost the same rights as men. Very impressive.
• Women entrepreneurs at the Shopping markets
• Friendliness of waiters at restaurants and shops
• A number of foreigners in Beijing – How do people feel about them? Are foreigners welcome? My impression was that they are welcome. Are foreigners from a certain country more favorable than the others? Do shopkeepers prefer certain nationalities over others?

Conclusion

• After this trip to China, I think that India has much more opportunities to grow, and I will go back immediately after the completion of my degree. But the question is: should I get a working experience in the USA or get on the field experience in India and understand the market personally.

• The Government control can drive the growth and at the same time, tie the country down and have a negative impact on the people, economy, and the environment.

• Amongst the local Chinese companies (Beijing Capital Tire and Wahaha) - common thing is the inefficiency in production due to the lack of managerial skills. This is a common problem for many local companies, but these companies understand the local market very well so that works as an advantage.

• Chinese people are more brand conscious than one would think. Example of Wahaha having restaurants, water, soft drinks, clothes, etc. Diversifying under the same brand name is a very common practice in Asia. Japan is already a mature and developed market and can be excluded from this generalization.

• Western things work here in China. Strategies are the same but the implementation and the tactics are different and suited to the local market. Examples are Siemens and DuPont.

• MNCs and locals need to learn from each other. The market is big enough for both the players to co-exist at the same time.

• China has undergone severe westernization and its youth live by Starbucks, KFC, and McDonalds and visit clubs that play western music.

• IP issue: local firms copy now and then they innovate later on. This will force the Chinese governmentt to protect the local companies. This will benefit the local companies and the MNCs who need to protect their IP. This can be explained by the pharmaceutical industry in India and other industries in Japan.

• As pointed out by several speakers, building relationships is one of the most important and critical factors for success while doing business in China. Relationships with the government at the local, state as well as the federal level, relationships with local experts who understand the market, as well as relationships with customers can go a long way in sustaining and growing the business.

Finally …

The entire world has set its eyes on China for the Beijing 2008 Olympics. Words cannot describe enough of what we saw in the entire 16 days. The Olympics might be a good time to portray a positive image which the government is trying real hard to build. I guess I will have to buy an HDTV next year to immerse myself in the true Chinese experience.

Thank you Prof. Lin, Prof. Eng and Prof. Ali for making this a memorable trip by sharing your knowledge.

Thank you Cathi and Anie for logistics and handling.

Thank you to Team Babson for sharing knowledge, asking questions and moreover being great friends during the entire trip.