Strategies for Effective China Partnerships and M&A
Now, more than ever, is the time for foreign firms to grab market share and boost revenues through acquisitions and partnering in China. At a recent IMA China Management Forum […]
Catching the Next Wave of China’s Consumer Growth
China’s consumer market is poised for levels of growth that will outstrip even the past three decades. China already leads the world in e-commerce, digital payments, high-speed rail, and the […]
How One Firm Went Local to Tap China’s Growth Potential
Going local – by buying Chinese firms or inversely, bringing on Chinese owners – can boost the pace of organic growth in China for foreign firms. Often, firms that have […]
Corporate Survival in Asia Depends on Your Digital Strategy
There is no doubt that corporate survival in Asia depends upon how well organisations deal with digital transformation. As one Asia/Pacific CEO at a recent IMA Forum put it, ‘We […]
Getting HQ On Board the ‘China Train’
The primary job of the China CEO is to ensure that opportunities in China are maximised for the company as a whole. Getting HQ on board the ‘China train’ means […]
Artificial Intelligence Takes a Leap Forward in China
‘To compete in China, AI needs to be part of your thought process. While you may not be using it, your Chinese competitors most definitely are, and these include more […]
China CFOs’ Role Growing Beyond Managing the Numbers
In an ideal world, CFOs could set a sticker price, plug it into a financial model and have accurate profit predictions come out at the end. In China, however, where […]
The Ageing of China: The Conventional Wisdom is Wrong
China’s middle-aged and senior citizens present the most exciting growth opportunities in coming decades for consumer firms, and they are likely to be a valuable presence in future workforces. At […]
Why Are So Few Chinese in Global Roles … & Does it Matter?
Why are there so few Chinese executives in senior positions in Western multinational companies? Although India’s market size is smaller than China’s, Indians claim a far larger proportion of executives […]
Guiding Your Firm Through a China Crisis
The weight of being the legal representative in China is a heavy one. Crises are the toughest test of leadership skills and values that many CEOs face. And, that added […]
Are You Managing Your Data as a Strategic Asset?
Are companies only as valuable as their data? For many firms in China the answer is ‘yes’. For one global retailer in China, its customer loyalty program data is viewed […]
China Leads the Way with Digital Engagement
China is setting global best practice in social media and online shopping, with local digital strategies – once necessary for attracting Chinese consumers – now setting the standard for global […]
The Global Upturn Consolidates
Our growth forecasts for the 14 main markets in Asia Pacific continue to edge up, reflecting two broad forces. First, the global recovery is gradually picking […]
ASEAN’s Frontier Markets
The markets remain small, poor, and risky, but a dynamism is apparent in all three of ASEAN’s so-called “Frontier Markets” of Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar. Asia CEO Forum and […]
Building a Compliance Culture
MNCs need to pay closer attention to China’s anti-bribery laws, despite the fact that these laws are rarely enforced and are unhelpfully vague. At a recent China Management Forum […]
The Big Changes Boosting Global Growth in 1H 2017
Three big changes in 1H’17 are collectively paving a path for world growth to lift to a 6-year high, and prompting regional firms to rethink their business forecasts. The […]
The Transformation of China
Too often the discussion about China focuses on its growth figures when the real story lies in the massive transformation underway across key segments of the economy. Beijing continues to […]
Learning to Embrace WeChat & Weibo
Chinese consumers love ecommerce and mobile commerce in particular. By 2019, one in every three dollars will be spent online in China, the highest in the world. However, at […]
Philippines: the Five-Year Outlook
A solid market for many firms over the last five years, the Philippines presents plenty of risks and a poor operating environment, but also an undeniable, and sustainable, economic vitality. […]
China Embraces Robots in its Race for Productivity
China is embracing robotics with the same intensity that made it a force in high speed rail and renewable energy. China’s vast manufacturing sector is under pressure to automate, and […]
Market Transformation: Strategies for Tapping Asia’s Newest Growth Driver
Asia CEO Forum members recently discussed how innovation and new business models are recasting entire industries and helping companies reach new segments of consumers. Entrepreneurs across Asia have capitalised on […]
China’s Digital Transformation: New Solutions Are on the Horizon
The internet ecosystem that has flourished behind China’s firewall is populated by a mini-universe of consumer applications suited to the cultural and language preferences of Chinese users. At a recent […]
The Rise of Xi Jinping & his OBOR Initiative
How Asia will work from 2018 onwards was partly on show in May at the One Belt, One Road or “OBOR” meeting in Beijing. Chinese media set a new benchmark […]
Moving into China’s New Sweet Spot: The Mid-Market
With China’s mid-range segment growing faster than the upper or lower ends of the markets, a focus on the ‘sweet spot’ of the mid-tier segment – where quality, elevated pricing, […]
Is Digital Marketing in China Replacing the Sales Team?
China’s unique digital environment, combined with its considerable market size and large base of early adopters, present a strong case for giving more autonomy to local marketing teams. The Great […]
Charting Strategy in the New, New China
For years, economic growth has consistently surpassed Chinese government predictions but this time is likely to be different. At a recent China CEO Forum meeting we were joined by […]
The Yuan: A Leaky Balloon
The question on the minds of China CFOs is how much further the yuan will depreciate against the US dollar? After a decade of gains the picture is starkly different […]
Consumers Underpin Asia’s Growth; Policy & Capex Set the Speed Limit
Over recent decades, Asia’s growth has increasingly been defined by domestic demand, particularly from consumers. Consumers now dominate in Asia’s growth outlook, but the story varies enormously by country. Japan […]
A Global Recovery… but Rising Geopolitical Risk in Asia
Many indicators suggest that the global economy entered a broad upturn in the last quarter of 2016. If it runs through mid-2017, it will be the best upturn since global […]
China’s Mixed Outlook
While demographics play a major role in China’s slowdown, so too do policies to rebalance the economy toward growth driven by consumers, services, and higher value-added industries. Rebalancing is essential […]
Asia’s Growth & Riding the Global Recovery
We’ve lifted our global growth forecast for 2017 to reflect a broad global demand recovery, which is particularly notable in the Euro area and quite a few emerging markets outside […]
Going Local to Drive Growth
In the latest edition of CEO Dialogues, we sat down with China CEO Forum member Phyllis Cheung, Chief Executive Officer of McDonald’s China, to talk about the disruptive forces that are […]
Proving Value to Chinese Customers
In the latest edition of CEO Dialogues, Asia CEO Forum member Rebekah Lemm, General Manager Asia Pacific for Intralox, talks about facing off against aggressive local competitors in China. Below is an […]
A Global Leader Adapting to Local Tastes
In the latest edition of CEO Dialogues, we spoke with China CEO Forum member Haiyan Wang, Managing Director of Kellogg China, about success in China and delivering products highly-tuned to local […]
Innovating for China with Local R&D
Increasing foreign investment in local China R&D is a must; however, it must be done carefully and with eyes wide open. This was the conclusion from a recent Asia CEO […]
China’s Millennials Need a Different Kind of Manager
Developing middle management talent for leadership positions has become a major concern – and puzzle – for MNCs. Managers born prior to 1980 grew up in a tumultuous period when […]
China’s Chairmen Need Successors
We have entered a period of generational change among Chinese POEs that raises the risk of doing business with these firms. The Asia CEO Forum took up the issue, with […]
A Race to “Go Local” in China
While many MNCs selling B2B came to China following global clients, today the opportunity is to tap the potential of China’s sophisticated domestic firms and customers. The playbook for going […]
Digital Disruptions Take Hold in Southeast Asia
Transportation, logistics, retail and gaming are just the first industries to be hit by the rush of digital technology that has brought to the fore, fresh, ambitious entrepreneurs seeking to […]
The Key to Asia’s Outlook
The key to Asia’s outlook lies in consumer demand, mostly in the emerging markets of China, ASEAN, and India. One of the most important variables for business planners will be currency […]