{"id":216,"date":"2011-11-22T09:42:27","date_gmt":"2011-11-22T14:42:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sdaconseil.com\/blog\/?p=216"},"modified":"2011-11-22T10:27:30","modified_gmt":"2011-11-22T15:27:30","slug":"field-trip-to-asia-1991-2011-from-the-end-of-colonial-asia-to-the-birth-of-modern-asia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/?p=216","title":{"rendered":"FIELD TRIP TO ASIA: 1991-2011, from the end of colonial Asia to the birth of modern Asia"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Marina Bay Sands, Singapore<\/p>\n

22 November 2011 (Manila, Singapore, Hong Kong)<\/p>\n

Twenty years is a short blip in the history of Asia.\u00a0 Yet this span of two decades marks an important moment of resurgence for the region.\u00a0\u00a0 In 1991, multinationals and their expats ruled the rooster.\u00a0\u00a0 Most of the countries were still entangled in the model of import substitution, current account crisis and shaky currencies.\u00a0 Old colonial buildings were still the main architectural attractions in most capital cities.\u00a0 Today, the crowd of expats has seriously thinned on the ground, pushed out by high costs of living and talented local managers.\u00a0\u00a0 Cutting edge buildings, such as the Bay Sands complex in Singapore, are now commissioned more often in Asia than anywhere else.\u00a0 Modern Asia is coming into its age.<\/p>\n

During the period of 1991 to 1995 I was fortunate to visit more than twenty Asian countries, from Pakistan and India, to Japan and China, to New Zealand and Australia.\u00a0 At the time Japan was grappling with its own terrible financial bubble and crisis.\u00a0 The young economic tigers (Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan) were the living proof that the export development model was the way forward for others:\u00a0 A mix of low costs, hard discipline, national dedication, disguised protectionism and export drives.\u00a0 Soon the rest of Asia followed suit, dumped import substitution, opened up and built export industries in electronics, garments, industrial goods and IT services.\u00a0<\/p>\n

1997 saw the transfer of Hong Kong to China, a last closing point in the colonial history of the region.\u00a0 Then Thailand became the epicentre of the notorious economic crisis that affected emerging countries across the world.\u00a0\u00a0 Caught short with insufficient currency reserves, Asian countries responded to the crisis by accelerating economic and financial reforms anchoring their export model.\u00a0\u00a0 The hard lessons of 1997 are serving Asia well in this current financial turbulence.\u00a0 China joined the WTO in 2001, and hence after demonstrated that the famous \u2018hockey stick\u2019 projections could actually occur for once in real life.\u00a0 The tide was by then turning in Asia.<\/p>\n

By 2005 it was becoming increasingly clear the Asia region had all in the elements in place to rival the European Union and the Americas in trade and competitiveness:\u00a0 a vast pool of cheap labour, technology creation and sophisticated manufacturing capabilities in the advanced countries, a growing middle class peppered across the region serving as a large Asian domestic market for scale up, and local financial centers that could oil the wheels of trade and commerce in the region. \u00a0Multinationals sped up their investments in off shore production, R&D and marketing and soon FDI was pouring in the region, notably in China.\u00a0 Thousands of cranes have in the past decade built modern infrastructures, from airports, to highways and port facilities.\u00a0 Investments into infrastructures and real estate have been a big part of the economic story.\u00a0 Modern skyscrapers have nothing to envy to North America.<\/p>\n

THE NEW MODERN ASIA<\/p>\n

Today a new modern Asia is taking shape and the economic challenge to western economies will not abate soon. \u00a0\u00a0There are now more than a dozen countries\u00a0challenging the West\u00a0on the road to higher value goods, hungry for market shares.\u00a0 Asian economies have built critical masses and their growth story benefits from positive reinforcements:<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Rather sound economic policies<\/em> are now focused on developing high value exports or protecting value chains, increasing productivity, keeping competitive exchange rates, and building up reserves.\u00a0 This stability reassures foreign investors targeting low cost export production or marketing for the domestic consumers.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 More investments and jobs<\/em> lead to growing middle class markets, which in turn attract more local and foreign investments.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 The new middle class<\/em> is young and tech savvy. For instance, call centers in the Philippines employ more than 600,000 young workers, most with graduate degrees. Their impact in Makati is clear in the cafes and shopping centers.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Managerial talent<\/em>: In Hong Kong, new CEOs of multinational affiliates are increasingly Chinese.\u00a0 Years of training and talent development are now bearing fruits.\u00a0 The expat crowd is now mostly found in financial centers or in offices playing a regional coordination role.\u00a0 These regional centers, traditionally located in Singapore or Hong Kong, are now even shifting activities to inland China.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Emerging champions<\/em>: Out of vast markets is emerging a new breed of champions, testing international waters in other emerging markets.\u00a0 The shelves of local bookstores include titles like The globalisation of Chinese companies, Strategies for conquering international markets, Chinnovation, How China’s leaders think, Start-up Asia, etc.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Technology agenda<\/em>:\u00a0 Asian firms have been adept at technology transfers, by all possible means. But the best of Asia are building their own technology.\u00a0 Samsung is the one rival barking at the heels of Apple. \u00a0\u00a0R&D spending is shooting up in Asia.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Innovation<\/em>:\u00a0 New markets call for new innovation patterns, with an emphasis on high value\/cost ratios (frugal innovation). Expect to see some those innovations to cross oceans.<\/p>\n

–\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Financial centers<\/em>: \u00a0Banking systems differ in Asia, bearing a different mix of private and state banks than in the West.\u00a0 There is no doubt that Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo form a powerful cluster in finance. \u00a0We should expect to see the rise of the Yuan as a weighty international currency within 5 to 10 years.<\/p>\n

DOING BUSINESS IN ASIA<\/p>\n

As much as Asia is luring a column of businessmen, it is still a high risk deal making area, where the rule of man overshadows the rule of law.\u00a0 The landscape is littered with broken dreams, broken promises and broken bank accounts.\u00a0 This is not a place for amateurs.\u00a0 Increasingly doing business in Asia calls on the strength of brands, minimum company size, market knowledge, and long term commitment.\u00a0 Successful partnering requires astute diligence work, and cultural fluency.<\/p>\n

There was a time when rules were written by Westerners in Asia.\u00a0 Now Asians have written their own and we have to learn to play by them. \u00a0This is the engine of growth for many international companies, as a great deal of them are expanding at a rate of more than 20% per annum in the region.\u00a0 Despite the predictable bumps, this is also the promise of modern Asia.<\/p>\n

Andr\u00e9 Du Sault<\/p>\n

ADS has visited, worked or travelled in Asia since 1985. Teaches ‘Doing business in Asia’ at McGill University.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Marina Bay Sands, Singapore 22 November 2011 (Manila, Singapore, Hong Kong) Twenty years is a short blip in the history of Asia.\u00a0 Yet this span of two decades marks an important moment of resurgence for the region.\u00a0\u00a0 In 1991, multinationals and their expats ruled the rooster.\u00a0\u00a0 Most of the countries were still entangled in the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[3,6,8],"tags":[70,71,17,26,94,95],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=216"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":223,"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216\/revisions\/223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=216"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=216"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sdaconseil.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=216"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}