Introduction: China's Managerial Revolution

In recent years, the reform of Chinese management has been high on the PRC government's agenda. Since 1978, China has been moving from a command economy to a socialist market economy. As part of this process, it has had to turn its economic cadres into managers. In this edited collection, we first look at the ways in which the Dengist market-driven management model has been introduced, first at the macro level and then at the micro, enterprise level. Then we look at how old state-owned ‘dinosaur’ firms are being reformed, which has potentially enormous implications for managers. The ‘contract responsibility’ system, another theme we analyse, has, for example, increased managers' autonomy in decision making. We also look at specific examples of such reforms in the construction industry and in sales management. In addition, themes such as setting up a joint venture, managerial and organizational learning, as well as managers' motivation and HRM, are discussed.