Top 10 Chinese Management Books

Comprehensive online voting, expert recommendations and editorial opinions, measured by four indicators: classic level, industry/enterprise applicability, China applicability/urgent need, and popularity, "CEConline" magazine and CEConline The "Top Ten Chinese Management Books" recommended by the website were announced, and the list is as follows:

1. "Marketing Management" (10th Edition) (by Philip Kotler, Renmin University of China Press, 2001 edition); 2. "Competition" Strategy" (Michael Porter, Huaxia Publishing House, 1997 edition); 3. "The Fifth Discipline" (Peter Senge, Shanghai Sanlian Publishing, 1998 edition); 4. "From Good to Great" (Jim Collins) Author, CITIC Publishing House, 2002); 5. Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen Covey, China Youth Publishing House, 2002); 6. The Power of Change (John Cotter, Huaxia) Publishing House, 1997 edition); 7. "Building Evergreen" (Jim Collins et al., CITIC Press, 2002 edition); 8. "6 Sigma Management Law" (Peter S. Pande et al., Machinery Industry Press 2001 2001 edition); 9. "Reconstruction of Macros" (written by Shi Zhenrong, Shanghai Far East Publishing House, 1996 edition); 10. "The Great Failure" (written by Wu Xiaobo, Zhejiang People's Publishing House, 2001 edition)

We thank you for your active participation in voting and The managers and management experts who commented, and thanks to publishers such as CITIC Publishing House and Shanghai Sanlian Publishing House for providing sample books. The following five website users who actively provide book reviews will receive a set of "Top Ten Chinese Management Books" presented by the editorial department: Ma Guanghua, Shang Ming, Zou Qidong, Zhang Yong, and Pang Xiaodong.

1 "Marketing Management" (10th Edition)

Recommended reason: To truly become a "world factory", Chinese companies need to enhance their competitiveness through marketing, Chinese managers need to improve their competitiveness through this classic textbook by marketing master Kotler.

Reader's Comments:

A marketing bible, reprinted from edition to edition, widely adopted by higher business schools around the world, with countless halos and reputations, but these are not enough to show that it is not enough to enter the market economy soon. , How important are Chinese companies facing the challenges of global competition.

China has entered a buyer's market and the era of meager profits. Foreign companies are taking advantage of the WTO to enter the market. High-tech has transformed the traditional marketing model. Domestic companies must not only strengthen their local advantages, but also promote foreign companies to enter the top 500. The primary weapon is naturally "marketing". However, Chinese companies struggling to explore in the vast sea of commerce have gone through brand wars, advertising wars, price wars and even verbal battles, but they have not been able to achieve a few international big-name winners. Cold awakening in the frenzy, how much marketing knowledge and experience do we have in the era of knowledge?

Fortunately, Kotler has elevated marketing to a science, and we don't have to find a spark in the business battle after a bloodbath. This magic lamp can guide us to truly understand the value of marketing and even enterprises, rationally analyze market information, prudently conduct market segmentation, determine target markets and positioning, and form a far-sighted marketing strategy; and formulate three-dimensional marketing strategies. Marketing decisions, by integrating all resources inside and outside the enterprise, achieve the great cause of "marketing creates value".

This book covers everything a marketer needs, as well as inspiring business executives in any other field.

I have established a customer database and communicated with customers through E-mail and other means, which has influenced many people in terms of company and product image, market position, service level, etc., and some of them have become our loyal customers. users, and everyone else has a good impression of the company! This move is to comprehend the operational guidance of e-commerce and information dissemination under the new economic conditions in the book.

Taking advantage of others' strengths to complement their own weaknesses, we believe that Chinese enterprises will be able to gather their overall strength, strategize strategies, and win the market.

Facing the challenge of "customers will never be satisfied", Chinese enterprises will stand up and dare to answer: "Marketing is to create customer satisfaction!" (Ma Guanghua, SAP China Company Consultant)

2 "Competitive Strategy"

Recommended reason: This book has created basic tools for competitive analysis such as "Five Forces Analysis", and is the most classic book on corporate strategy.

Expert Comments:

"Competitive Strategy" is Michael Porter's classic work on management theory. As a professor at Harvard Business School and a recognized authority on competitive strategy, he proposes an analytical model of industry structure, the "Five Competitiveness Models" in this book. He argues that these five competencies (the existing competitive state of the industry; the bargaining power of suppliers; the bargaining power of customers; the threat of substitute products or services; the threat of new entrants) determine a firm's profitability. He also pointed out that the core of corporate strategy must be choosing the right industry and the most attractive competitive position in the industry.

Michael Porter also put forward three basic competitive strategies corresponding to the industrial structure: cost leadership, unconventional and target agglomeration, and explained that due to the limitation of corporate resources, it is often difficult for companies to pursue more than one strategic goal at the same time. Chinese entrepreneurs are already very good at competing at low cost. To achieve this goal, first of all, enterprises must carry out large-scale and intensive production, so as to minimize product costs and create conditions for enterprises to win a dominant position in the market. For example, Galanz, known as the "price butcher", has created a miracle. In 2000, its microwave ovens accounted for 30% of the global market share. The main risk of cost leadership strategy comes from imitation by latecomers. Therefore, Chinese enterprises must have new ways of competition, such as product, technology or business model innovation to improve profitability and level. Porter provides a systematic way of thinking for this type of strategy, expounding on which points an enterprise should establish competitiveness, which has a strong guiding role for business practice.

One point I must point out is that this classic focuses on the structure of the industry and gives less consideration to building long-term competitive advantage through corporate transformation. For Chinese entrepreneurs, the significance of this book is to clarify the importance of corporate strategic thinking, and it is a must-read for Chinese entrepreneurs. (Sun Yongling, President of Shanghai Boyi Men Consulting Co., Ltd.)

3 "The Fifth Discipline"

Recommended reason: Its greatest contribution is not to promote the movement to establish a learning organization, but to provide "system thinking" that can be called brainwashing for Chinese enterprise managers (the "fifth discipline") new way of thinking.

Reader Comments:

Creating a good learning environment and atmosphere is good for business organizations. Its ideal state is that the organization has the concept and mechanism of lifelong learning, making work learning and learning work. Peter Senge compares the individual IQ with the group IQ in "The Fifth Exercise", and found the regular "group mental retardation". The overall synergy is greater than the simple sum of the parts. The sharing and interaction of information resources can form a multi-feedback and open system, which is beneficial to everyone in the organization. Therefore, the establishment of a common vision is very important. It is the source of team vitality, the key to strength cohesion, and the magic weapon for winning the market.

"In-depth talk" is another compelling point of the book. Group mental retardation stems from the lack of in-depth conversation. If an organization cannot see the opinions of others, the group will be mentally retarded, and decision-making mistakes will inevitably occur. Therefore, only by seeing each other's thinking clearly and consciously eliminating habitual defenses can the potential group wisdom and the common vision of the organization be realized. Outstanding groups are good at spreading conflict and allowing ideas to flow. In an open state, in-depth understanding can be achieved. Many complex issues have no infallible explanation. In the process of establishing a common vision, committing to adhere to certain basic human principles, so that self-interest no longer dominates thoughts and behaviors, and regaining basic human values, will help reduce internal disputes within the organization and maximize the balance of organizational interests. The ability to be inclusive and the concept of integrating the overall situation is the sixth practice in the future.

Making good use of time is another highlight of the book. It puts forward four new points: that money can become time; improve the process rather than the part; family and work are not trade-offs but a win-win relationship; and correct the wrong concept of time and so on. To change the erroneous view of time that as long as you are active, it is a good thing, and working non-stop is efficient, and review how much time you spend on thinking. In addition, the book proposes three types of social disabilities: spatial blindness, time blindness, and relational blindness. The quality of relationships affects productivity, and even more so the quality of families. (Chief Information Officer of Shangming Qingdao Jinjing Co., Ltd.)

4 "From Excellent to Excellent"

Recommended reason: In Jin Yong's martial arts novels, "excellent" heroes in the arena can benefit from practicing "Nine" Yin Zhen Jing has transformed into a "excellent" martial arts master with kung fu secrets such as "Yin Zhen Jing" -- this book is the "Nine Yin Zhen Jing" for enterprises that pursue excellence.

Reader Comments:

In the past, most business management books were filled with hero worship, dazzling technology, and dramatic stories of rapid growth. The reports of "Winning Channel", "Brand is King", "Technology Leader", "Myth", "Innovation", "Revolution" seem to have remedies and panacea that can "rejuvenate" a series of criticisms in the process of enterprise development; it seems to be excellent Excellent leaders, advanced technology, great vision, and strong culture are the killers of different companies. People are always looking for the "only important thing" that appears when a company develops a breakthrough.

China's economy is in a critical period of change. There are many vigorous, but ultimately short-lived companies (there have been too many such companies emerging in China in recent years), and there are many intersections that are changing, and I don't know where to go. company of. Good to Great is a book that emphasizes sticking to simple things well ("the Hedgehog Principle"). Even in the ever-changing and complex times, "crawl first, then walk, then run" is still a successful and effective way to run a business.

The transformation from an excellent company to an excellent company is a cumulative process, a step-by-step process, and a systematic project in which all factors work together. The transformation from good to great is definitely not a one-off process. Great companies don't come from one decisive action, one great plan, one killer idea, one good fortune, or a flash of inspiration.

On the contrary, the process of transformation seems to endlessly push the giant wheel forward in one direction, the wheel keeps turning, the accumulated kinetic energy is getting bigger and bigger, and finally there is a breakthrough at the turning point, and it jumps over. The Chinese are too smart, react too fast, and keep coming up with new moves, but they don't necessarily work. So at Huawei, we emphasize the principle of "rigidity first, then optimization, and then solidification". Accumulating from the little improvement, the seemingly simple things are done with strict discipline to perfection, but in the end it makes a big difference. (Zou Qidong, Manager of Overseas Optical Network Product Sales Department, Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.)

5 "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People"

Recommended reason: Manage yourself first, and then manage others -- this is the most classic book on "self-management".

Expert comments:

Today's China is in an era of pragmatism and eagerness for success. Due to the pressure of schedules, enterprise managers are often too busy to meet urgent needs, and cannot calm down to do longer-term and more sustainable solutions. Comprehensive thinking and planning is true for itself and for enterprise development.

"Inner deficiency disorder" is becoming a disease of the times for contemporary Chinese professional managers! Their own quality of life and the endurance of the corporate ships under their leadership and management are thus overshadowed.

Is there a panacea? Have.

Be aware that ideas are guidelines for behavior. Our words and deeds do not start with ideas. The power of ideas is like putting on a pair of sunglasses, which can make the whole world change color. Therefore, sincerity is the foundation of success. Being a person and doing things depends on a sincerity, responsibility and tolerance. Then, the individual is clean and upright, and the enterprise is united.

The root cause of "inner deficient disorder" is lack of self-cultivation and biased concepts, so that they place too much emphasis on life skills and ways of doing things, that is, how to do things, but neglect to care about why. If you are eager for quick success and fishing, you can be very proud for a while, but if you can't solve the problem of self-cultivation in time, it will not last for a long time.

In the same way, mere conception without skill will not become a device. We see a lot of "good guys" but they don't succeed because they don't have the skills.

In the book "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People", Dr. Stephen Covey emphasizes character cultivation and systematically introduces the skills of dealing with others, which is a classic. He shares his own personal experiences and feelings with readers, which is convincing. I highly recommend that aspiring professional managers spend a small amount of time reading this book as an investment, which will pay off handsomely. (Li Chongji, general manager of Watson Wyatt Shanghai Company)

6 "The Power of Change"

Recommended reason: Managers often have two responsibilities of leadership and management at the same time, in this book It was clarified for the first time.

Expert Comments:

Let me start with a metaphor Stephen Covey mentioned: "A group of workers clearing the underbrush in the jungle. They solve real problems. Managers write policies behind them, Introduce technology, determine work progress and subsidy programs. Leaders climb the tallest tree and look around..."

It seems clear: the workers' job is to clear the underbrush, and the manager's focus is on effectiveness , and the task of the leader is to judge and decide which piece of jungle to cut down.

John Cotter, the preeminent authority on "Leadership and Change," states in "The Power of Change: The Difference Between Leadership and Management" that a leader's job is to orient a company, integrate Managers, motivating and motivating employees, whose purpose is to produce change; and managers, whose job is to plan and budget, organize and allocate people, control and solve problems, and whose purpose is to establish order.

According to this standard, it can be said that almost all enterprises in China owe a lesson in the relationship between leadership and management.

The in-depth analysis of the differences between leadership and management in "The Power of Change" not only brings the latest international business concepts to China, but also provides a systematic and operational basis for Chinese enterprises from concept to implementation. For Chinese companies that are increasingly entering the center of the international competition arena, whoever receives, understands and uses such information earlier will be able to take a step ahead in this "war" that is taking place at their doorstep. Likewise, the professional managers with the most open mind and learning ability will also become the winning "generals".

It should be noted that after companies and managers are emphasized on the difference between leadership and management, they should not be separated and opposed. They have different functions, such as the palm and the back of the hand, which complement each other. The better we understand the difference between the two, the better we can help us make the most of it. (Li Chongji, General Manager of Watson Wyatt Shanghai Company)

7 "Everlasting Business"

Recommended reason: For a very small number of outstanding Chinese companies, this book provides a plan to build a century-old business ; For the vast majority of Chinese enterprises, this book has created a dream - a dream is better than no dream.

Expert Comments:

The authors have conducted extensive surveys of long-lived companies in the West and Japan, and they have found that only 18 companies can qualify as what they define as "visionary" companies. That is, those companies that are highly regarded and influential in the industry, those companies with many leaders, diverse products and services, at least 50 years of history, and long-term outstanding performance.

While these companies are in different industries, Collins and Porras have found that they have certain commonalities that are often different from the traditional image of good companies in people's minds. They found that these "visionary" companies had the following characteristics:

They didn't necessarily start with a great business idea; they didn't necessarily have great, charismatic leaders; they had pragmatic idealism; they Believe in and uphold a set of core ideas that guide people's behavior, but for them there is not necessarily a right or wrong idea; they are not afraid to pursue bold goals at critical times in history; they do not worry about defeating their opponents, Instead, they focus on challenging themselves; they have a sect-like culture; they are led by leaders who have grown from within.

After this book went public in the U.S., the above conclusions surprised many managers, because at that time, the media always fell at the feet of visionary and charismatic business leaders, making people believe that only these people can lead the company out predicament. However, when these figures are withdrawn from the stage, the business cannot continue to be successful.

In China, there are people who can get rich quick, but few people have the vision and the courage to promise that their company will become a "visionary" company. Because a "visionary" company means having a core idea, backed up by robust structures, processes and systems. In my opinion, today's Chinese business people are mostly ambitious and aggressive, but lack the vision to achieve "visionary" companies. Their knowledge is still in their mouths, but they don't know how to act, and the lessons learned in "Building to Last" are enough for them to benefit a lot. (Chairman of Xie Zuqi Gaofeng Management Consulting Co., Ltd.)

8 "Six Sigma Management Law"

Recommended reason: The best elaboration of the most influential management method since the 1990s, its emphasis on data is expected to change the management genes of Chinese enterprises.

Expert Comments:

This book is a must read for Chinese managers who want to improve organizational performance and achieve the desired results. As a management consultant who has provided consulting services to more than 70 companies in China, I have seen firsthand the huge need for many Chinese companies to improve organizational performance, such as improving quality, customer loyalty, increasing market share, and reducing costs. This book provides a clear and easy roadmap for building the right 6 Sigma project foundation and gaining support from collaborators and business leaders.

The point I want to make is that business leaders must recognize that Six Sigma is not just a simple quality improvement program, it requires clarity on company strategy, company goals, cross-functional collaboration, and employee competency development. 6 Sigma also requires effective change management to ensure successful project implementation. The concepts and tools presented in the book provide very important practical guidance for the implementation of Six Sigma in China. (Sun Yongling, President of Shanghai Boyi Men Consulting Co., Ltd.)

9 "Reconstruction of Macros"

Reason for recommendation: The first and only international brand creator of the Chinese himself has no experience in entrepreneurship and management. price experience.

Editor's comment:

Shi Zhenrong is a reverse thinking person. From the very beginning of Hong Kong's establishment, he insisted on breaking the conventional thinking and doing the opposite. For example, on the issue of "unique skills" in dealing with enterprises, he aimed at conventional thinking: "Enterprises have unique technologies and are more competitive", and proposed that "opening unique technologies enables companies to maintain competitiveness for a long time." His thinking logic is: The opening of technology will lead to the popularization of products, so that enterprises can expand the economic scale, reduce costs, and increase profits, and then invest the profits in more inventions to make more money. In this book, reverse thinking like this can be seen everywhere. For Chinese entrepreneurs who are thinking about the future of their companies, Shi Zhenrong's way of thinking undoubtedly has a little effect.

Shi Zhenrong wrote in the book that once, he shared his experience with a group of entrepreneurs, saying that the tuition fees paid by Hongyi were countless, and one entrepreneur present said with emotion: "Mr. Shi's experience is more than a thousand 10,000!" This book is a summary of those experiences.

10 "The Big Loss"

Recommended reason: The most comprehensive and profound observation of the rapid decline of a once-prosperous local enterprise.

Editor's Comments:

In China, it is difficult to find a group of enterprises that "go from good to excellent", but there are many examples of "from good to failure". In the past, so many once-excellent enterprises have suffered "big failures" one after another; in the future, it can be asserted that the "excellent to failure" enterprises will far exceed the "excellent to excellent" enterprises. Therefore, learning how not to fail and not die is more practical than learning how to excel. As a Chinese entrepreneur said: success is to live.

This book claims to be "the only MBA-style lesson plan on Chinese enterprise failure so far." Because the author lacks in-depth management knowledge and necessary research training, the evaluation of "MBA-style lesson plans" is unworthy of its name. But fortunately, the author's own voice does not cause too much interference in the book, and his accurate observations and records as a reporter provide readers with space to think for themselves.