ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on what may account for China's success in economic growth by analyzing the growth, development, current position, and future prospects of firms in its emerging domestic private sector. It shows that the domestic private sector comprises traditional private firms, household businesses, village-and-township enterprises, and privatized state-owned firms and their spin-offs. The book provides a global perspective by comparing the different development paths of the private sector in different regions of the world and offering a unique account for the path taken by China. It uses an 'entrepreneur-bureaucracy connection perspective' to explain the importance of local and state official involvement for the private entrepreneur. The book highlights some key research directions that would be useful in advancing knowledge about these firms as well as contributing to global management knowledge about firms in different economic, political, and social-cultural contexts.
