Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
12th out of 22 books
—
6 voters
One Billion Customers: Lessons from the Front Lines of Doing Business in China
Companies from around the globe are flocking to China to buy, sell, manufacture, and create new products, but as former Wall Street Journal China bureau chief turned successful corporate executive James McGregor explains, business in China is never quite what it seems. One Billion Customers offers compelling narratives of personalities, business deals, and lessons learned,...more
Paperback, 352 pages
Published
September 4th 2007
by Free Press
(first published October 1st 2005)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
300)
I met the author in person and he's a very interesting individual who has some very good perspectives on the dynamics of China business. His book is written in a "case-study" format: each chapter is a story about a company and how it went well or horribly wrong. There is a bullet point summary at the end of each chapter summarizing all the chapter's insights. Very good reference for international executives who work and/or negotiate with Chinese business and government leaders on a regular basis...more
I think James McGregor did an absolutely fantastic job in writing this book. As a novice to the Chinese system, I found his assessments both level-headed and helpful. I found his stories extremely engaging and continually as I was reading it, I found myself showing the cover to my roommates and saying, "This book is phenominal." I believe that this is a good read for anyone - I have no intentions of getting into business with China - at least not anytime soon - but even in the act of travelling...more
Decent book, lots of case studies. Unfortunately, it tries a bit to hard to boil the business mind down and oftentimes the metaphors are ridiculous. "Chinese business is like a dumpling..."
What this author tries so hard to do is find a root cause, something central to the Chinese business mind. Unfortunately, the Chinese like all societies work on a number of co-existing contradictions that can't ever make perfect sense and may vary from one person to another. Still, for anyone frustrated with h...more
What this author tries so hard to do is find a root cause, something central to the Chinese business mind. Unfortunately, the Chinese like all societies work on a number of co-existing contradictions that can't ever make perfect sense and may vary from one person to another. Still, for anyone frustrated with h...more
Read because I thought I might be doing business in China, which I haven't as of yet, but essential for any Westerner taking the risk of doing so.
Good summary of the experiences of people doing business in China.
China could be the next frontier to focus on
view 1 comment
A fun read.
This was probably the best book on China I've read so far. It may have been because it was the first book on China economics I read, but I don't think so. It was interesting, well written, contained lots of great insights, and very informative. It is 2 years old and on the China timescale that may make it outdated, but I would still definitely recommend it to anyone about to move to China or interested in the economics over here.
Sep 05, 2007
Lis
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
business students
Repeatedly mentioned corruption as part of doing business in China, like other business books on China. It talks about China as a market and not just a factory, unlike many other business books on China.
I had to read books on the subject for business school. It's not something I really enjoy reading about, so my star rating is not truly fair.
I had to read books on the subject for business school. It's not something I really enjoy reading about, so my star rating is not truly fair.
Old (in lightning-fast China time, anyway) but great. Felt like reading a collection of quick, entertaining Harvard Business School case studies, but about companies in China. McGregor's palpable glee when he recounts the standoff between Reuters/Dow Jones and Xinhua, which he was directly involved in, was especially fun to read.
Facts, facts, facts! I learned a lot about the backgrounds of some of the major players in the up and coming economic war. Although I did not agree with everything the author talks about, nor did I agree with the numerous spelling mistakes, this pretty much sums it up.
a great book to learn about contemprary China. Not only about the Chinese business culture, but also about its history, its ideology and its people. The author's understanding of today's China is profound and accurate. Thumbs up!
Broad perspective blended with case analysis, delivered in an entertaining manner, painted an accurate picture of how business is conducted in China.
Incredible insight into China and its business culture.
A little too generic, but a fun read
Do business in China!
Facinating read
Apr 21, 2013
Wilson Tomba
marked it as to-read
Apr 13, 2013
Nancy
marked it as to-read
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
to-read-added-spring-2013
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
