Synopsis
Many western companies went East and started subsidiaries also in China to use large costs reduction potentials and to get new market shares at potential 1.3 billion customers. This hype was justified with the resulting success of the companies and the raise of China to the world's biggest economy. Starting new business in China is not only related with success and increasing profit, because before being successful, a functional factory has to be set up. This includes the setup of a suitable and efficient Quality Management System (QMS) and the according Knowledge transfer. This sounds easy, but not all of the enthusiastic firms made it through the built-up phase. This Study researches the theoretical background of Chinese business environment, according to the High Level Structure needs of the ISO 9001, and then compares the culture and also investigates the individual network system. This theoretical analysis is then merged with the quantitative and qualitative results of an expert survey, of German experts of companies with comparable industrial products and QMS. The result is that the cultural differences are big enough to be considered, when making the strategy plan. Especially hierarchical and group social differences make it necessary that the right people have to be prepared to be send to the subsidiary for a certain period. For the Quality topics, the focus should be on the freedom for process adjustments, content of inspection plans, audit strategies, supplier management and failure analysis. Here has to be created and trained a more sensitivity not only to push colleagues or suppliers, but also to develop them. Cost pressure makes it necessary to produce also more complex products in China, why the suppliers also have to be fit for this new challenge. In the end it can be said that the successful startup mainly depends on the right people, placed in higher hierarchical positions, who train the new colleagues on site continuously and with great patience.
About the Author
Thomas M. Fasser graduated as Dipl.-Ing. (FH) in mechanical engineering and started directly as quality project engineer and later quality project manager in a setup of a new subsidiary in China for a component producer of the automotive industry. Influenced by the new experiences he got very interested in the dynamic social system of Knowledge Transfer and its resulting demands. After short time, the most important question, does the receiver get the sender's information became central to solve issues. To improve his knowledge he graduated at the same time as MBA in General Management and also accomplished several QA and Auditor trainings. After completing the built up, he switched to a position as Quality Manager for an Workshop Equipment Producer, but later returned to the automotive sector as Quality Manager of a turning parts producer at one plant. There he followed later as Global Quality Manager for the group. He loves travelling the world to gain new experiences of people and cultures to improve his understanding of social systems and the demands to make the business run.
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