ABSTRACT
China's rising importance as an economic and political power makes it crucial for Western business to understand what drives Chinese managers and leaders. It examines the values and motivations of Chinese managers, drawing on interviews and Schwartz Values Survey (SVS) data with Chinese Generation X executives. According to news accounts and academic research, the talent war in China is as fierce as ever and is one of biggest challenges to competitiveness of multinational corporations (MNCs) in the country. Most MNCs do not have enough local leaders to manage their expanding businesses in China and IBM China admitted to losing half of its potential business as a result of not finding sufficient staff in some locations. Effectively managing talent requires that management understands their employee's values and motivations. Research demonstrates that personal values held by manager's impact their decision-making and ultimately influence organizational performance. All respondents are considered to be high potential managers and were working while enrolled in the Executive MBA programme.
