This book provides a novel theoretical framework to explain the real source of competitive advantage of Chinese manufacturing. More importantly, such a framework can be generalized to analyze the potential of catch-up for large emerging economies in the globalization era. The book also provides insights for policy makers to rethink their design of policies.
The rise of Made-in-China products has been widely attributed to low labour cost advantage and imitation advantage. However, as these two advantages are nearly innate to all late-developing countries, they cannot be regarded as the key factors that drive the rapid growth of China's manufacturing industry, or China's economy, over the past few decades. In this book, the author proposed a theory 'the catch-up ladders theory', to explain the rise of China's manufacturing industry. The manufacturing advancement of any country is in essence a process of catching-up in both market and technology, during which enterprises will form a ladder-like holistic structure due to their differences in capabilities, technology and market positioning. In light of this, the continuity of the catch-up ladder will greatly determine the catch-up efficiency of an industry and even a country at large. Such a perspective is more applicable to large emerging economies, especially those with over one hundred million population and thus huge potential domestic market demand.
Contents:
Miracle of China's Economic Growth:
The Birth of a Growth Miracle
The Rise of China's Manufacturing Industry: A Historical Perspective
How to Interpret the Source of Advantages of Made-in-China?
Catching-Up Ladder: A Brand New Way of Interpretation
A Unique Market
'Cold Start' in Early Catching-Up
Are Chinese Enterprises Facing Globalization or Localization?
The Market Ladder:
A Market Ladder with Diversity
An 'Easy Mode' of Catching-Up
How was the Market Ladder Formed?
The Dynamics of the Market Ladder
Continuity: The Key to the Catch-Up Ladder
Underlying Competence for Competing in the Chinese Market
The Technology Ladder:
Why Does the Technology Ladder Matter?
How is the Continuous Technology Ladder Formed?
Continuity, Continuity, Continuity!
Another 'Invisible' Technology Ladder
An Indispensable Instrument in Global Industry Gaming
Decomposition and Recombination in Technological Catch-Up:
The Cold Start Paradox in Technological Catching-Up
Learning in Technological Catch-Up: Decomposition and Recombination
Strengthen Decomposition and Recombination Capabilities via Purposive Business Strategies
The Role of Universities and Academic Institutions in Deconstructing Technology
Innovation Generated from Imitation
Never Underestimate the Significance of Manufacturing Ability in the Transformation from Imitation to Innovation
Never Ignore the Value of Implicit Innovation
Seize the Time Window of Catching-Up
Competing in a Good-Enough Market:
A Good-Enough Market is Becoming More Important Than Ever Before
Two Types of Good-Enough Markets
How to Survive in a Good-Enough Market
Product Development Strategy in a Good-Enough Market
A Good-Enough Market is Different from the Bottom of a Pyramid Market
The Shanzhai Phenomenon: The Symbiosis of Positive and Negative Factors
Dynamic Shift in a Good-Enough Market
China's Advantages in the Field of Complex Product Systems: