DOI: 10.5176/2382-5650_CCS14.23
Authors: Dr. Bernard Lee and Dr. Anthony Tsui
Abstract:
This case sums up the impact of Chinese culture on a global legendary corporation, Lenovo Group (Lenovo) which was founded in 1984. As of today, Lenovo maintains its position as the global PC market leader in terms of total number of PC production (IDC, 2013). Apart from the acquisition strategies, Lenovo also leverage on its Shared Value (SV) in China to enhance its image globally (Marquis and Yang, 2014). The typical SV adopted by the company is actually derived from the Chinese value of harmony. According to Porter and Kramer (2011), the strategy of Shared Value i.e. harmony is different from CSR in terms of differentiation. Lenovo has achieved the market leader position in the PC industry that has undergone varied changes and even disruptions. Contrary to the Western philosophy, Lenovo has adopted the Chinese philosophy of harmony, suggesting that man needs to adjust to the nature but not to conquer it (Yau, 1994). To play safe, Lenovo should stick to its IT products i.e. PC, notebook and tablet that have competitive advantage over its competitors. More importantly, to sustain its IT kingdom longer or in the long run, Lenovo’s Shared Value or Chinese value of harmony can also help create and deliver relevant value to the stakeholders in the long term.
In this case, firstly, the traditional strengths of Lenovo and direct sales model of Dell will be discussed. Then, the challenges of Lenovo will be explored. In addition to new moves of Lenovo, cut-throat price war and global presence of Lenovo in the computer industry will be described. More importantly, the Chinese value of harmony will be explained based on Chow (2007)’s model of comprehensive harmony. Furthermore, this case highlights the impact of the Chinese value of harmony on Lenovo will be discussed in depth. Nonetheless, this case recommends some teaching methodologies to teachers i.e. SWOT analysis, OBTL objectives and some tutorial questions for discussion in the class.
Keywords: Globalization; Chinese; Harmony; Value; Lenovo
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