Modern Mantra

2016-03-18   Source: China Daily

Chinese management styles are evolving to tackle complexity and change, says Austrian guru Fredmund Malik.

After more than a decade of collaboration, Fredmund Malik, an Austrian management guru, has found advocates of his style increasing in China.

In recent years, he has often advised Chinese officials on how to improve governance.

During a visit to the country in February, Malik was invited to a Beijing seminar attended by Premier Li Keqiang.

Malik gave a speech there and presented his book, Strategy－Navigation System for the New Complexity World, to the premier.

He was also invited by officials to give his opinion on the draft of the government's work report for 2016, which was delivered by the premier during the annual two sessions of China's top legislative and national advisory bodies.

"It's quite decent work to invest my time. That's important for this country, and it's a duty with great responsibility attached," says Malik, who gave his suggestions on issues including complexity in modern times and how to make China more innovative and entrepreneurial.

Born in Austria, Malik now lives in Switzerland－he's the founder and chairman of Malik Management Center, a management consultancy in St. Gallen, Switzerland.

His expertise is in analyzing and designing management systems.

"One can only understand the situation by looking at the whole picture, like a symphony orchestra should combine all instruments to reach harmony," Malik tells China Daily.

As one of the most recognized experts in management science globally, Malik is the author of numerous books on management theory, general management, strategy and human-resource development.

Besides studying theories, he has gained practical experience by working as a management consultant, educator, entrepreneur and member of several supervisory groups.

In 1998, Malik was invited by a ministry to pay his first professional visit to China to give management lectures.

Malik, who naturally paid attention to things related to his own field, learned that China was very dependent on the United States in terms of its management consulting and education.

"I believed China should not follow exclusively the US way, not even the Western way, but should develop its own way of doing it," Malik says.

He says though he found his holistic management ideas resonate with philosophies in Chinese culture and history, the country's modern practices were very much influenced by the US management system.

Speaking of his motivation to strengthen ties with China, he says he encountered strong interest in his management theory.

"The requirement for adopting a different kind of management to master complexity and change, and make leadership effective, had just begun in China."

Many of his European clients with branches in China asked his center to provide training and consultancy in China, too.

That's how he decided to establish a branch in Beijing in 2010.

Malik now visits China regularly every year and stays about 10 days each time to deliver lectures and conduct training programs for Chinese executives.

He has been invited by the Chinese government to give lectures to executives of large State-owned enterprises and officials at different levels around the country.

He has provided consultancy to large Chinese enterprises and has delivered many lectures at important institutions, such as the Party School of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and Tsinghua University. Malik has also published six books on his field in Chinese.

Recognized for his achievements, Malik has been appointed as a distinguished professor at several Chinese universities and as a consultant for governments in some Chinese cities. Over the years, Malik has also paid attention to development and reforms in China.

"Basically, everything from China interests me, such as its history, its size, modern China and how things are going on," says Malik, who reads the country's five-year plans, and reports and comments in media.

His personal interactions with Chinese executives from different fields have become a valuable experience for him.

"Listening to views from China and about China helps me understand the country better," says Malik, who has Chinese friends as well.

He says there are some misunderstandings between China and Western countries, and also some doubts about China in Western media.

But he believes the Chinese economy has made great strides.

One shouldn't be surprised hearing about some problems in a big country like China that has experienced development this fast, he says.

"Such a country has millions of organizations that need to be managed. The challenges must be enormous, too."

He observes that over the past years, the management of Chinese companies has improved in general but not at the same speed as that of the economy.

"There's some work to be done, and there's room for improvement in organizations' management," he says.

"This is what China needs, especially when there are fast changes and many challenges."