Chunyang Tong, Internship Coordinator with Guest speakers
Description:
As China takes its place as a leading global economy, multi-national companies and firms throughout the world have a growing need for senior personnel with high quality management skills and special knowledge of China. This internship seminar provides students with an opportunity to learn first-hand about the development and unique features of business activities in the city of Shanghai, the economic capital of China. The combination of classroom learning with a weekly internship placement will help students gain a broader understanding both of their respective internship institutions and the institutions’ roles in the larger context of China’s economy. Students will also study research methods and write a final paper based on their personal experiences or case studies of their own internship placements. (3 Credits)
Prerequisites:
Basic business management knowledge
Learning outcomes:
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
Discuss Chinese economy and market evolution during the past two decades
Identify features of the Chinese market, including market segmentation, urbanization, integration into the global market, and the Chinese culture and legal system
Demonstrate insight into operational levels of business strategies, including “4P” strategies for doing business in China
Demonstrate critical analysis and oral presentation skills
Use primary source research by combining experience from their internships with in-class knowledge
Method of presentation:
Students are placed in a Shanghai-based business, NGO or other type of agency for 28 hours a week for the duration of the semester. The seminar will meet for 3 hours per week, for a total of seven sessions. Students will work on independent research projects related to their internship placement and present their research, both orally and in written form, at the conclusion of the semester.
Required work and form of assessment:
Attendance is strictly required. To facilitate an early start on the research paper and sustained engagement on a topic of his or her own choosing, each student will give a presentation on his or her research to the seminar and provide a written draft of the work in progress.
The final grade is based upon:
Class participation (15%)
Evaluation letter from the host organization (25%)
Student field placement portfolio and presentation, including:
Work journal (10%)
Research seminar presentation (15%)
20 page Final paper (35%)
INTERNSHIP PLACEMENTS:
Students will be placed across a variety of segments of the economy, including foreign companies, Chinese companies, educational institutions and NGOs. Placements will emphasize work on a specific project with discreet deliverables to one’s supervisor. Chinese language competence will play a significant role in placements, and may limit the ability to place a student in his or her desired industry.
The success of a student’s internship placement requires regular communication with and feedback between the student and the internship supervisor. Learning and skills stressed in the internship include deepening one’s understanding of contemporary China and the ways in which political, social and economic changes in the country manifest themselves in the workplace.
content:
Part One: Understanding China’s Economic and Financial Development
Students are introduced to ongoing evolutionary processes from the so-called Chinese centrally planned economy to the market economy. This unit will further explore, in a general sense, the fundamental and comprehensive effects of financial reform on economic development.
Readings:
Janamitra Devan, Micah Rowland, and Jonathan Woetzell (2009), A Consumer Paradigm for China, Mckinsey, August.
Joseph Johnson, Gerard J. Tellis, 2008, Drivers of Success for Market Entry into China and India”, Journal of Marketing, 72:1-13
Part Two: A Brief Introduction to Relevant Chinese Laws
Too often expertise in business activities is polarized. Professionals either have knowledge of the practicalities of how businesses operate or of the laws relating to them. Part two will provide internship students with a general description of Chinese laws and regulations related to business activities.
Readings:
The State Council Information Office, 2008: “China’s efforts and achievement in promoting the rule of law”, Chinese Journal of International Law, 7(2): 513-555
Hongying Wang (2001). Weak State, Strong Networks: The Institutional Dynamics of Foreign Direct Investment in China. pp 87-113
Part Three: Different Workplaces and Different Characteristics
This session will focus first on introducing the newly emerging characteristics of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Once simply treated as the historical legacies of the inefficient Mao-era command economy, and then abandoned with Deng’s reforms in the 1990s, SOEs have been reinvented as new and, to some extent, highly competitive economic players. To contrast the SOEs, we will investigate the significant contributions that the Foreign-Owned Enterprises (FOEs), the Joint Ventures (JVs) and private companies have made for China’s economic development.
Readings:
Suzanne Fox, 2008: China’s Changing Culture and Etiqutte, China Business Review, July-Aug
Hu, W.Z. & Grove, C. (1999). Encountering the Chinese, A Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. pp95-112 (decision-making)
Hussain, A. (2002), “Demographic Transition in China and its Implications”, World Development, Volume 30, Number 10, October 2002, pp. 1823-1834(12)
Part Four: The Cultural Fabric of the Chinese Workplace
Part four will help students make sense of the deeply embedded and uniquely Chinese cultural aspects of their work places. Several unique Chinese perspectives, such as “mianzi” (face) and “guanxi” (connections) will be intensely discussed and clarified. This session will explore these concepts, the importance and manifestation of these concepts, as well as how they affect individual behavior, organizational culture, decision-making and the cultural clashes between Chinese and Westerners.
Readings:
Jia, W. (2005). Facework as a Chinese Conflict-Preventive Mechanism A Cultural/Discourse Analysis. Retrieved July 23, 2007, from http://academic.mediachina.net/academic_zjlt_lw_view.jsp?id=4146&pepl e=48
John Child, Management and Organizations in China: Key Trends and Issues, Management and Organizations in the Chinese Context: pp 33-62
Part Five: Market Segmentation and Urbanization
This session equips internship students with knowledge of the unique features of market segmentation in China. Students are expected to gain insights into segmentation of the Chinese market due to ongoing market polarization, cultural changes and new market policies. Also introduced during this session is the impact of urbanization on the market potential and urban-rural disparity, with more emphasis put on the real estate market, currently one of the most intriguing issues in modern China.
Readings:
Peng, X.Z and Guo, Z. The Changing Population of China, 2000, Blackwell Press, ISBN-13: 978-0631201922.
Hong Chen, Chunyang Tong, Lixin Bai, 2009, Lenovo’s Dual Models, Jan. Harvard Business Review (China)
Part Six: Guidelines for Writing Internship Reports
Writing reports is one of the more formal ways of presenting results of a project. Reports can be written about any professional activity including experimental or test results, design proposals, economic feasibility studies and project summaries. They usually follow a single topic and are written for review by decision-makers or people affected by their work. The internship report is expected to be analytical rather than descriptive. It should contain accurate, factual information together with sound arguments and conclusions.
Readings:
Zhang Xin-an, N. Grigorios, Li Ly, 2008, The Myth of China as a Single Market, International Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 50, Issue 3, pp. 377-402
Wu, J.L. (2005) Understanding and Interpreting Chinese Economic Reform. ISBN: 1-587-99197-7.
Part Seven: Student Presentations
The final presentation serves as the summarization of the internship experience, insights gained and the topics are shared with the class. Students are expected to prepare slides to highlight their thoughts, and to clearly elaborate their major points. The presentation should combine the theory/thoughts learned from class with experience gained through the internship. Students should be prepared to ask questions of other students, and to answer questions put to them. Each presentation should be 30-45 minutes long.
Required readings:
Boye Lafayette De Mente (1994), Chinese Etiquette & Ethics In Business, page 16-29
Daniel H. Rosen (1999). Behind the Open Door. Chapter Three: Foreign Enterprises and Human Resources (p.85-p.120)
Dong, X.Y. & Putterman, L. (2000). China’s State-Owned Enterprises: Their Role, Job Creation, and Efficiency in Long-Term Perspective. Modern China An International Quarterly of History and Social Science, 26 (4), 403-447.
Gu, X.Y and Tang, S.L. (1995). “Reform of the Chinese Health Care Financing System”. Health Policy, Volume 32, Number 1, April 1995, pp. 181-191(11)
Hongying Wang (2001). Weak State, Strong Networks: The Institutional Dynamics of Foreign Direct Investment in China. p87-113
Hu, W.Z. & Grove. C. (1999). Encountering the Chinese, A Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. pp59-75 (making Chinese friends)
Hu, W.Z. & Grove. C. (1999). Encountering the Chinese, A Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. pp95- 112 (decision-making)
Hussain, A. (2002), “Demographic Transition in China and its Implications”, World Development, Volume 30, Number 10, October 2002, pp. 1823-1834(12)
John Child, Management and Organizations in China: Key Trends and Issues, Management and Organizations in the Chinese Context: Page 33-62
Peng, X.Z and Guo, Z. The Changing Population of China, 2000, Blackwell Press, ISBN-13: 978-0631201922.
Peng, X.Z. (2002). “Is this the Right Time to Change China's Population Policy?” (Working Paper) East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore
Rosen, D.H. (1999). Behind the Open Door. Chapter Three: Foreign Enterprises and Human Resources (p.85-p.120)
Wu, J.L. (2005) Understanding and Interpreting Chinese Economic Reform, . ISBN: 1-587-99197-7.
Recommended readings:
Boye Lafayette De Mente (1994), Chinese Etiquette & Ethics In Business, page 16-29
Daniel H. Rosen (1999). Behind the Open Door. Chapter Three: Foreign Enterprises and Human Resources (p.85-p.120)
Dong, X.Y. & Putterman, L. (2000). China’s State-Owned Enterprises: Their Role, Job Creation, and Efficiency in Long-Term Perspective. Modern China An International Quarterly of History and Social Science, 26 (4), 403-447.
Frolic, B. M. State-Led Civil Society. In Brook T. & Frolic B.M. (Ed). (1997). Civil Society in China. pp.47-67.
Gu, X.Y and Tang, S.L. (1995). “Reform of the Chinese Health Care Financing System”. Health Policy, Volume 32, Number 1, April 1995, pp. 181-191(11)
Gui, S.X. and Liu, X. (1992). “Urban Migration in Shanghai, 1950-88: Trends and Characteristics”, Population and Development Review, 18, No3, 1992.
Hongying Wang (2001). Weak State, Strong Networks: The Institutional Dynamics of Foreign Direct Investment in China. p87-113
Hu, W.Z. & Grove. C. (1999). Encountering the Chinese, A Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. pp59-75 (making Chinese friends)
Hu, W.Z. & Grove. C. (1999). Encountering the Chinese, A Guide for Americans.Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. pp95- 112 (decision-making)
Hussain, A. (2002), “Demographic Transition in China and its Implications”, World Development, Volume 30, Number 10, October 2002, pp. 1823-1834(12)
John Child, Management and Organizations in China: Key Trends and Issues, Management and Organizations in the Chinese Context: Page 33-62
Liang, Z and Ma, Z.D. (2004), “China's Floating Population: New Evidence from the 2000 Census”, Population and Development Review 30 (3), 467–488.
Lin, Y.T, My country and my people, 2000, Foreign Language Teaching and Research Press, ISBN/CIP: 7560014224
Ming-Jer Chen (2001). Networking and Guanxi, Inside Chinese Business: A Guide for Managers Worldwide, Page 45-65
Paul N. and Alfred L. Chan. Chinese Youth and Civil Society: The Emergence of Critical Citizenship. Civil Society in China. pp149-171
Peng, X.Z and Guo, Z. The Changing Population of China, 2000, Blackwell Press, ISBN-13: 978-0631201922.
Peng, X.Z. (2002). “Is this the Right Time to Change China's Population Policy?” (Working Paper) East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore
Rosen, D.H. (1999). Behind the Open Door. Chapter Three: Foreign Enterprises and Human Resources (p.85-p.120)
Sachs,J.D. and Woo, W.T: “Understanding China's Economic Performance”
Tang, S.L., Bloom,G., Feng, X.S., Lucas,H., Gu, X.Y. and Segau, M. (1994). “Financing health services in China: Adopting to economic reform”. IDS Research Report 26, Institute of Development Studies, Brighton
The American Embassy in China. Chinese NGO’s – Caring a Niche Within Constraints. A January 2003 report from Embassy Beijing. Retrieved July 10, 2007 from http://www.usembassy-china.org.cn/sandt/ngos.htm.
Wu, J.L. (2005) Understanding and Interpreting Chinese Economic Reform, . ISBN: 1-587-99197-7.
Yang,G. Environmental NGOs and Institutional Dynamics in China, the China Quarterly, 2005
Notes:
This course is offered during the regular semester and in the summer. For summer sections, the course schedule is condensed, but the content, learning outcomes, and contact hours are the same.
Brief Biography of Instructor:
Professor Chunyang Tong is currently working as an Associate Professor in the School of International Business Administration, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE). He obtained his Ph.D. in Business Administration from the Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California (USC), in 2007. Prior to his Ph.D. study in the U.S., worked as a Project Manager at the China State Power Grid Company for four years, with a background in electrical engineering.
He has taught courses in the fields of Operations Management, Supply Chain Management and International Marketing at the undergraduate level at SUFE (China) and USC (US), and a seminar on stochastic modeling for graduate students in SUFE. His research areas are Supply Chain Management, International Marketing, and Service Management. His research works have been published in internationally recognized academic journals.
As China takes its place as a leading global economy, multi-national companies and firms throughout the world have a growing need for senior personnel with high quality management skills and special knowledge of China. This internship seminar provides students with an opportunity to learn first-hand about the development and unique features of business activities in the city of Shanghai, the economic capital of China. The combination of classroom learning with a weekly internship placement will help students gain a broader understanding both of their respective internship institutions and the institutions’ roles in the larger context of China’s economy. Students will also study research methods and write a final paper based on their personal experiences or case studies of their own internship placements. (3 Credits)
Basic business management knowledge
By the end of the course, students will be able to:
Students are placed in a Shanghai-based business, NGO or other type of agency for 28 hours a week for the duration of the semester. The seminar will meet for 3 hours per week, for a total of seven sessions. Students will work on independent research projects related to their internship placement and present their research, both orally and in written form, at the conclusion of the semester.
Attendance is strictly required. To facilitate an early start on the research paper and sustained engagement on a topic of his or her own choosing, each student will give a presentation on his or her research to the seminar and provide a written draft of the work in progress.
The final grade is based upon:
INTERNSHIP PLACEMENTS:
Students will be placed across a variety of segments of the economy, including foreign companies, Chinese companies, educational institutions and NGOs. Placements will emphasize work on a specific project with discreet deliverables to one’s supervisor. Chinese language competence will play a significant role in placements, and may limit the ability to place a student in his or her desired industry.
The success of a student’s internship placement requires regular communication with and feedback between the student and the internship supervisor. Learning and skills stressed in the internship include deepening one’s understanding of contemporary China and the ways in which political, social and economic changes in the country manifest themselves in the workplace.
Part One: Understanding China’s Economic and Financial Development
Students are introduced to ongoing evolutionary processes from the so-called Chinese centrally planned economy to the market economy. This unit will further explore, in a general sense, the fundamental and comprehensive effects of financial reform on economic development.
Readings:
Janamitra Devan, Micah Rowland, and Jonathan Woetzell (2009), A Consumer Paradigm for China, Mckinsey, August.
Joseph Johnson, Gerard J. Tellis, 2008, Drivers of Success for Market Entry into China and India”, Journal of Marketing, 72:1-13
Part Two: A Brief Introduction to Relevant Chinese Laws
Too often expertise in business activities is polarized. Professionals either have knowledge of the practicalities of how businesses operate or of the laws relating to them. Part two will provide internship students with a general description of Chinese laws and regulations related to business activities.
Readings:
The State Council Information Office, 2008: “China’s efforts and achievement in promoting the rule of law”, Chinese Journal of International Law, 7(2): 513-555
Hongying Wang (2001). Weak State, Strong Networks: The Institutional Dynamics of Foreign Direct Investment in China. pp 87-113
Part Three: Different Workplaces and Different Characteristics
This session will focus first on introducing the newly emerging characteristics of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Once simply treated as the historical legacies of the inefficient Mao-era command economy, and then abandoned with Deng’s reforms in the 1990s, SOEs have been reinvented as new and, to some extent, highly competitive economic players. To contrast the SOEs, we will investigate the significant contributions that the Foreign-Owned Enterprises (FOEs), the Joint Ventures (JVs) and private companies have made for China’s economic development.
Readings:
Suzanne Fox, 2008: China’s Changing Culture and Etiqutte, China Business Review, July-Aug
Hu, W.Z. & Grove, C. (1999). Encountering the Chinese, A Guide for Americans. Yarmouth, ME: Intercultural Press, Inc. pp95-112 (decision-making)
Hussain, A. (2002), “Demographic Transition in China and its Implications”, World Development, Volume 30, Number 10, October 2002, pp. 1823-1834(12)
Part Four: The Cultural Fabric of the Chinese Workplace
Part four will help students make sense of the deeply embedded and uniquely Chinese cultural aspects of their work places. Several unique Chinese perspectives, such as “mianzi” (face) and “guanxi” (connections) will be intensely discussed and clarified. This session will explore these concepts, the importance and manifestation of these concepts, as well as how they affect individual behavior, organizational culture, decision-making and the cultural clashes between Chinese and Westerners.
Readings:
Jia, W. (2005). Facework as a Chinese Conflict-Preventive Mechanism A Cultural/Discourse Analysis. Retrieved July 23, 2007, from http://academic.mediachina.net/academic_zjlt_lw_view.jsp?id=4146&pepl e=48
John Child, Management and Organizations in China: Key Trends and Issues, Management and Organizations in the Chinese Context: pp 33-62
Part Five: Market Segmentation and Urbanization
This session equips internship students with knowledge of the unique features of market segmentation in China. Students are expected to gain insights into segmentation of the Chinese market due to ongoing market polarization, cultural changes and new market policies. Also introduced during this session is the impact of urbanization on the market potential and urban-rural disparity, with more emphasis put on the real estate market, currently one of the most intriguing issues in modern China.
Readings:
Peng, X.Z and Guo, Z. The Changing Population of China, 2000, Blackwell Press, ISBN-13: 978-0631201922.
Hong Chen, Chunyang Tong, Lixin Bai, 2009, Lenovo’s Dual Models, Jan. Harvard Business Review (China)
Part Six: Guidelines for Writing Internship Reports
Writing reports is one of the more formal ways of presenting results of a project. Reports can be written about any professional activity including experimental or test results, design proposals, economic feasibility studies and project summaries. They usually follow a single topic and are written for review by decision-makers or people affected by their work. The internship report is expected to be analytical rather than descriptive. It should contain accurate, factual information together with sound arguments and conclusions.
Readings:
Zhang Xin-an, N. Grigorios, Li Ly, 2008, The Myth of China as a Single Market, International Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 50, Issue 3, pp. 377-402
Wu, J.L. (2005) Understanding and Interpreting Chinese Economic Reform. ISBN: 1-587-99197-7.
Part Seven: Student Presentations
The final presentation serves as the summarization of the internship experience, insights gained and the topics are shared with the class. Students are expected to prepare slides to highlight their thoughts, and to clearly elaborate their major points. The presentation should combine the theory/thoughts learned from class with experience gained through the internship. Students should be prepared to ask questions of other students, and to answer questions put to them. Each presentation should be 30-45 minutes long.
This course is offered during the regular semester and in the summer. For summer sections, the course schedule is condensed, but the content, learning outcomes, and contact hours are the same.
Professor Chunyang Tong is currently working as an Associate Professor in the School of International Business Administration, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics (SUFE). He obtained his Ph.D. in Business Administration from the Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California (USC), in 2007. Prior to his Ph.D. study in the U.S., worked as a Project Manager at the China State Power Grid Company for four years, with a background in electrical engineering.
He has taught courses in the fields of Operations Management, Supply Chain Management and International Marketing at the undergraduate level at SUFE (China) and USC (US), and a seminar on stochastic modeling for graduate students in SUFE. His research areas are Supply Chain Management, International Marketing, and Service Management. His research works have been published in internationally recognized academic journals.