China Inc.--Book Review

The last two years of unfettered growth and hundreds of other books on the same subject seem to have supported Ted Fishman’s early optimism that this is indeed the Chinese Century.China Inc., one of the first in the China-will-soon-dominate-the-world genre, has all the great news and wonderful statistic that China supports and critics alike love to quote. The fast growth, the lack of IP protection, the leaps in education and income, the rise in prostitution and crime.This book interesting but not very deep. Lots of personal stories support the statistics but there is little in terms of actually doing business in China. This book tells you what you already know—that China has a ton of people, some serious social issues, and will change the face of the global economy for good or for will simply because it’s so big.Much better more balanced books include: One Billion customers, Made in China, and The New Chinese Empire.But there are some valuable take-ways. First, the Chinese know about the internet and are using it. If you (somehow) still believe that China is far away, Fishman says you’d better do a quick search on eBay and see how many sellers are working directly from China.Second, for good or for ill, China is taking the world stage and it would be wise for everyone to learn some Chinese or at least encourage your kids to do so.Third, no matter what your future is you’d better be better than competent at what you do. Competition is coming and it’s coming fast and in larger numbers than the world has ever seen. Keep learning and stay ahead in whatever industry you’re in.If you do read China Inc.—and it is an exciting, well written book—you should also check out The Coming Collapse of China just so that you have a balance to Fishman’s unabashed optimism.