Technology management under China's economic reforms

This paper describes the main features of China's economic and industrial reforms and considers the key strategic issues which determine effectiveness in the transfer and management of technology.It is based on investigations being carried out by a team of British and Chinese researchers.These involve studies within government and other agencies as well as case study analyses of state-owned and joint venture enterprises.A particular aspect of the investigations is that they concentrate on the situation in the traditional industrial areas of China which, unlike the Special Enterprise Zones, have not so far experienced the same levels of foreign investment and are seen as being more problematic in terms of their ability to absorb modern manufacturing technology.The paper addresses three key issues that have emerged as being relevant across the areas of study: i) the formation of enterprise groups as a means of developing and facilitating technology transfer, ii) the need for flexibility and diversification in response to emerging competitive and market conditions and iii) implications for industrial policy and enterprises of multiple imports of the same or similar technologies.