"Managing the Dragon", by Jack Perkowski; a meta-review

"Managing the Dragon: Building a Billion-Dollar Business in China", written by Jack Perkowski, was released in South Africa in July 2009. Following a successful career as an American banker on Wall Street, Perkowski was ready for a new challenge. In the early 1990s, at the age of 42, he moved to China (with more than US$400 million in private equity financing) and opened a manufacturing business specialising in car components.

What is it all about?

"Managing the Dragon" provides Perkowski's insider view of China, answering questions such as: How can the Chinese build things so cheaply? Is China's growth sustainable? What is it like dealing with the government? What do the Chinese think of Westerners? What is it like living there?

The dominant themes in the book are that China is changing constantly; that the economy is fragmented and decentralised; that Mandarin is highly overrated as a business necessity; and that while everything is possible in China, nothing is easy.

Who is the author?

Jack Perkowski studied business at Yale and Harvard. He is chairperson and chief executive officer of Beijing-based ASIMCO Technologies, which currently has an annual turnover of US$500m and employs 12 000 people, most of whom are Chinese.

What do others say?

Reviews of "Managing the Dragon" have been mixed. Some feel that the book provides an accurate, practical and step-by-step guide to doing business in China; while others believe that Perkowski is simply one more arrogant Westerner packaging off-the-shelf information on China into a book that uses the word "dragon" in its title.

Perkowksi's claim that "Managing the Dragon" is "the first [book] that attempts to put in one place all of the lessons learned by someone who has experienced it firsthand" has drawn particular criticism, as has the fact that the cash injection he took to China is not a starting point from which many others would likely be able to venture into the East.

You may do well to read "Managing the Dragon" together with Tim Clissold's "Mr. China: A Memoir". "Mr. China" tells the story of the costly misadventures of Clissold's boss, an American investment banker who had never set foot in China before deciding to make a fortune there. Clissold's boss is none other than Jack Perkowski.

In summary, "Managing the Dragon" is likely to rehash some of what you already know about doing business in China, but also provides some new insights from an on-the-ground entrepreneur. At the very least, it will give you an excuse not to learn Mandarin.

"Publishers Weekly": "This book can be read as an inspiring story of business success, a personal journey or a case study in building a business that combines the best features of global management and finance with Chinese entrepreneurial energy and talent."

"Forbes": "When it comes to the business of making money in China, the real problem with today's legions of experts is that the best ones are likely not selling their recipes on television, the lecture circuit or the bookshelf. The Masters of the Universe who are making (or losing) enormous sums in China now aren't talking much about how they're doing it; they're too protective of their turf, and they're too busy making the next deal."

How do I get hold of it?

"Managing the Dragon" is published by Transworld Publishers. It is available at Exclusive Books at a recommended retail price of R148.00.