Seeing the Unseen: Behind Chinese Tech Giants' Global Venturing

In the last few years, we have seen a meteoric rise of Chinese tech companies across the world. Alibaba stock price movements unnerved investors globally, venture capitalists searched for the next Meituan or Pinduoduo in Southeast Asia and Latin America, and of course, Tik Tok, the most popular content platform in the world today, originated from China. The founders of such companies are typically credited with the “tenacity to rough it out,” the “courage to venture into the unknown,” and the “vision to take their companies to new heights.” However, the same can be said about Silicon Valley founders, or any successful entrepreneur. So, what gives Chinese founders and their companies the advantage in becoming multi-billion global enterprises? How does their leadership set strategies? How do they motivate their people? How do they move so fast and defend their turf in China’s hyper-competitive tech market? When they expand overseas, how do they determine what they keep and what they need to let go of? And most importantly, what do these things mean to you as a competitor, investor, regulator, or even as an executive or customer of such companies?

Seeing the Unseen: Behind Chinese Tech Giants’ Global Venturing answers these questions and delves into the fascinating world of Chinese logic that shapes how tech leaders make and implement decisions, many of which are seldom seen outside China.

In this book, you will gain an accurate, concise understanding of Chinese tech companies' reflections as they scale. You will understand the different generations of Chinese tech giants from Alibaba, Tencent, Baidu and Huawei to Pinduoduo, Meituan, ByteDance, Xiaomi and more.

In this Seeing the Unseen, the analysis behind the success and lessons learned is summarized into a unique framework that touches on People, Organization, and Product and Leadership (POP-Leadership). The book covers:

• How Chinese history, folklore and Mao Zadong’s political strategies have shaped the strategies of Chinese tech leaders, even today
• The mindsets of Chinese tech and internet companies and how they have evolved over the last two decades
• The unique business culture and leadership styles that steered these companies through uncertain and ultra-competitive periods
• How Chinese companies structure their organizations and products and how they remain agile as they scale
• The limitations of Chinese POP-Leadership, and what these companies must shed to keep up with international players in global markets
• How Chinese POP-Leadership is now becoming international, and how international players are leveraging these learnings
• How the worldwide expansion of Chinese companies will alter the business landscape in the coming decades

Chinese firms undertaking overseas ventures can challenge our thinking on global strategy and implementation. This book gives you a better understanding of these emergent players in the global arena.

GUOLI CHEN, PHD, is a Professor of Strategy at INSEAD, one of the world’s top-ranking international business schools. He received his doctorate in strategic management from Pennsylvania State University and is an expert in China strategy, value innovation, strategic leadership, and corporate governance.

JIANGGAN LI is the Founder and CEO of Momentum Works, a Singapore-headquartered venture outfit that enables digital economy across emerging markets through insights, community, and ventures. Momentum Works counts some of the top tech entrepreneurs from China, Southeast Asia, and the United States as investors. Its subsidiary Momentum Academy has been entrusted by corporates, startups, and investors for actionable insights and immersive learning experiences.