China's Leap into the Information Age

This book provides the first in-depth analysis of how four innovative Chinese electronics enterprises-the Stone Group, the Legend Computer Group, the Founder Group, and the China Great Wall Computer Group-transformed the Chinese computer industry over the past decade. It explains how indigenous Chinese business enterprises that grew up during the era of economic reform gained the high-technology capabilities and modern marketing know-how to compete domestically and internationally with powerful foreign multinationals. Through case studies based on first-hand access to company records and personnel, the author reveals how, building on technological capabilities accumulated during the central planning era, the institutional transformations of the economic reform era unleashed a unique pattern of organizational learning and innovative enterprise. The author also draws out the implications of the developmental experience of the Chinese computer electronics sector for understanding the institutional and organizational foundations for a successful transition from a centrally planned economy toward a market-oriented one.