Three Themes of the Article ``strategic Management Thought in East Asia" by Rosalie Tung Which Outlines Twelve Core Themes in East Asian Strategic Management

Introduction

It is estimated that Asian economies will represent almost two-thirds of the world's GDP by the year 2050. The potential of Asia is unmatched. Businesses endeavouring to succeed in Asia need to understand the motivations and cultural distinctions in the Asian business community. This paper focuses on the three themes of the article ``Strategic Management Thought in East Asia" by Rosalie Tung which outlines twelve core themes in East Asian strategic management. The themes discussed in this assignment are flexibility, intelligence and information gathering, and patience.

Flexibility

A key tenet of Sun Tzu's philosophies is the importance of remaining flexible in order to adapt to changing conditions and fortunes; the stratagem applied depends on the current conditions (Tung 1994, p. 214). During the execution of a business deal, the ability of a firm to be flexible and adapt can dictate the success or failure of the deal. Western firms need to be flexible with their approach to conduct business in Asia and take into account cultural differences. A key example of this is the approach to signed contracts. While Westerners expect variations to a signed contract to be in the form of written contractual variations, some Asian cultures expect contract terms to vary in response to changes in circumstances without formal variations (Tung 1994, p. 215). Western firms need to understand the Asian approach and use it to their advantage.

During my personal experience with telecommunication companies the business environment has undergone continual change in response to consumer demand and competitive pressures. A company must be able to adapt to changes in its environment in order to survive. This flexibility is particularly necessary when dealing internationally. Firms that are able to accommodate continual change are far better placed to transact internationally and be successful.

Gathering intelligence and information

In today's globalised market, firms with superior cross border informational resources have a significant competitive advantage. In conducting business in East Asian countries is particularly important to source all possible intelligence and information available. Many Western firms have sought to achieve informational advantage by partnering and collaborating with local firms. This approach used by global companies helps them to understand the local environment and gain access to information about local markets that would otherwise be difficult to obtain.

East Asian businesses often conduct business more slowly than their Western counterparts. They use this time to understand the true meaning of business proposals (Tung 1994, p. 215). This strategy of steadily gathering intelligence is viewed as most important when the "terrain" is unknown and thus will certainly impact Westerns firms dealing in East Asia. Cultural differences can play an important role in business negotiation. Misunderstandings between parties can occur frequently during a deal. Resolutions to these issues can be recorded as "Lesson Learns", to help both Western and East Asian firms