Koji OKUBAYASHI
Kobe University Rokkodai –cho
Nada, Kobe
Hyogo 657
JAPAN
ABSTRACT:
In the execution of the economic reform of socialist China in the 1980´s, the Chinese central government enhanced the principle of market economy for economic development. It promoted primarily privatisation of enterprises and introduction of foreign investment. In the 1980´s, special areas for economic development facing the seas were authorised by the central government and many joint ventures were established. These economic policies stimulated the rapid economic development of Chinese society and changed drastically both the life -style of Chinese people and the economic activities of traditional enterprises.
This paper intends to identify the basic changes of the life style of Chinese people especially in the economic – specific area and the changes of management style based on the author´s own experience of factory visits, lecturing and discussion with Chinese researchers and practitioners starting in 1992. The author visited Biejing, Tianjin and Chanchu in October 1992 for factory research, Shanghai in October 1993 for symposium on Chinese economic conditions, Guanzhon in February 1995 for symposium on Chinese – Japanese management comparison, again Beijing and Tiajin in October and Shanghai in December 1998 for comparative analysis of work organization between Chinese and Japanese manufacturing enterprises. The other information for this paper comes from the discussion with Chinese top managers at the lectures of Japanese management by the Association of Overseas Technical Scholarship in Japan.
KEY WORDS: life style, management style, Chinese economy, economic reform.
