B2B Digital Marketing Growth Strategies in China
‘Everything will be digital.’ This is the mantra when marketing to Chinese consumers and buyers. The same forces of technological change that have transformed global B2C firms in China are […]
US-China Geopolitics: Uncharted Territory Ahead
How does one operate in a world where policies can be overturned overnight with a tweet? A recent IMA Asia meeting of Asia and China CEOs delved into the uncharted […]
Promising Outlook for Southeast Asia Manufacturing
2019 has been a bad year for global manufacturing and no less so in Southeast Asia. The pain for ASEAN’s factory sector is apparent in the region’s contracting Purchasing Manager’s […]
Optimistic Economic Scenario Bodes Well For Asia
In planning for next year, it helps to identify what went wrong in 2019. Two sets of headwinds stand out. The first problem has been escalating trade wars, which led […]
Coping With China’s Shifting Distributor Network
Distributing goods in China can be complicated and confusing. Although the China market is large, it is also highly fragmented. Achieving economies of scale can be elusive when distributors are […]
Does Your Company Need to Retool its Org Structure in China?
The outlook for globalisation has shifted precariously in the past few years as nationalism takes hold in many countries worldwide. The corporate pendulum swing from local autonomy to central control […]
Adapting to Sustainability Demands in ASEAN
Regulators, investors and consumers across Asia are becoming more demanding of companies’ sustainability efforts. At a recent IMA Asia Management Forum meeting, members argued that adapting to a new paradigm […]
Making the Case for China – Repositioning the Strategy
Despite political polemics and a slowdown in growth, the promise of the China market has never been greater. At a recent IMA Asia CEO Forum, a CEO with many years […]
How China’s CFOs are becoming more agile
Today, CFOs in China must navigate uncharted terrain marked by geopolitical uncertainties and ever slower growth. Looking back at last year’s data to forecast the future is no longer reliable. […]
Stepping Up Innovation in China
The pursuit of innovation is changing business models in China. MNCs are addressing competitive challenges by localising innovation efforts. At a recent IMA CEO Forum meeting China CEOs cited numerous […]
Infrastructure Spending Propping up ASEAN Construction
The IMA Asia ASEAN Demand Watch reports look at the latest trends in specific industrial sectors across ASEAN. Our reports combine insights from three sources: Interviews with IMA Asia Forum […]
Beyond the Hype: Getting Ready for China’s Social Credit System
China’s Social Credit System (SCS) will fundamentally change the way business operations are regulated in China. It’s time to move past the dire warnings of a dystopian future and manage […]
Consumers Are Not of One Mind in Southeast Asia
This article is based on the findings of IMA’s Asia Demand Watch – ASEAN Consumers. Consumer demand remains a key driver of growth in Southeast Asia, but demand trends are diverging. The divergence […]
Cracks Appearing in China’s Consumer Confidence
This article is based on the findings of IMA’s China Demand Watch – Consumers. Cracks are starting to appear in China’s resilient consumer confidence and steady retail sales performance. Constraints […]
B2B Digital Distribution: Finding the Missing Customer
E-commerce has blazed like a wildfire through China’s consumer landscape, seeding digital-first enterprises and pushing legacy businesses to adapt or die. Chinese consumers’ fast adoption of all things digital, from […]
When Will China’s Back Offices Catch Up?
Advances in financial technology have transformed how consumers buy goods in China. A few taps on the phone, and electronic payments are seamlessly transferred and recorded. But peer into any […]
China’s Ecosystems: Invest or Partner Your Way to Innovation
Following the example of China’s most successful private companies, many Western MNCs are working to participate more fully in their industry ecosystems in China. Companies, such as Alibaba and Tencent, […]
Compliance Redux: Vigilance is Essential in China
Seven years into China’s anti-corruption campaign, the pursuit of corporate malfeasance, conflicts of interest and fraud continues. After the 2014 GSK scandal, foreign firms were put on notice that a […]
Sustainability Matters to Business in Asia
Much of the economic success that Asia has experienced has fault lines in its development model. ‘Growth at all costs’ has created unintended consequences in Asia’s environment and society. Forty […]
MNCs are Restructuring Asia Pacific Operations (Again)
The push for innovation, the search for talent, and competitive pressures require that new entrants and long-established players rethink their Asia business strategies and organisation structure. Companies often restructure their […]