the traditional social conscience, the Communist political ideology, and
the new-found freedom to get rich big and fast. The concept of social
responsibility with a stakeholder perspective therefore allowed the
Chinese business leaders to reconcile and balance their feelings of social
conscience with their desire to legitimate the making of profit.
The influence of Western theories and practices
Of the twenty-one executives who held the notion of pursuit of
excellence, twelve said they had learnt from role models like com-
panies in Japan or the United States. Of the eleven executives who held
the notion of specialization, seven talked about the influence of the
practices of contemporary companies. Moreover, all of the seven are
in industry sectors such as telecommunications services, software
development, electronic engineering, etc. Their companies had been
in fierce competition with local or foreign competitors. Of the eleven
executives who had adopted the notion of scientific management, nine
mentioned the influences of modern management practices in famous
companies or management theories.
Modern business management has benefited from the Western pio-
neers’ thoughts. Starting from the late 1890s and the early 1900s,
Western managers expected their organizations to function like well-
oiled machines, putting emphasis on scientific management and pur-
suing effectiveness and standardization. Max Weber emphasized the
importance of establishing standard operating procedures in organiza-
tions, impersonality, specialized division of labor, authority hierarchy,
lifetime employment and rationalization (see Wren, 1994 ). In order
to increase production efficiency, Taylor ( 1947 : 66–71) emphasized
specialized division of labor where managers at every hierarchical
level are in charge of their own work, and workers only need to
engage in routine work with standard operating procedures. Fayol
( 1949 ) developed a framework for studying management and clearly
indicated the role of managers. His fourteen principles of management
are still used as guidelines for contemporary management practices
(see Wren, 1994 ).
Our executives acknowledged that they had been influenced by
these Western management thoughts and practices. They realized that
they had to do their best in reducing costs, increasing their quality of
customer service, and strengthening their R&D, in order to gain a
competitive advantage, especially over their international competitors.
Chinese traditions and Western theories 263