Lanxess local unit's chief Ming Cheng Chien,knows what it takes to succeed on home turf
Ming Cheng Chien, 60, CEO, Greater China,Lanxess, the German specialty chemicals maker,has worked in the United States and Europe formore than 30 years, but that has not made himany less Chinese, or Shanghainese, to be precise.He does not tire of emphasizing that many of hisachievements are related to the significant growthin China.
"Over the years, the discussion over Chinastrategy has been intense among the topmanagement as the China market becomes moreand more dynamic. The company managementdiscussed long-term success in China, and theconclusion is, we must have our business live inChina, grow with China, and serve the Chinamarket with tailor-made products," said Chien.
He said when in China, it is very important to understand what the country needs as thechallenges a foreign company faces differ from country to country. But as one of the earliestChinese students to study abroad after the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), Chien knows onlytoo well how to tackle the culture conflict.
In the decade-long chaos, most Chinese youth gave up studies, but some such as Chienpersevered, reading whatever books they could find, little knowing that this could change theirlives. As it transpired, Chien spent time then on his hobby of learning English. "To this day, itremains the most magical thing that has changed the script of my life."
In 1977, when China re-established the college entrance examination system, he enrolled intoShanghai's East China Normal University to study French.
"Learning English during the hard times provided me a surprising chance of catching up withthe education when the universities reopened. And that was one of the most crucial momentsin my life."
In 1979, Chien pursued higher education in the US, shifting from French to chemicalengineering. His academic performance was brilliant.
Chien said his generation had a strong motivation to study because they wanted to make upfor the lost time. "When the door was open to learn new things, there was such eagerness tocatch up."
That love for study has not diminished. He has been learning German ever since he joinedLanxess in 2008.
Chien said he finds China a more flexible and dynamic market compared with Europe and theUS. "China is still a developing country. As a result, we see changes in policies andregulations, but this we have to accept, because we are not fully developed. But then, this isalso why we have growth opportunities in China."
Lanxess has a relatively short history of 10 years. It was spun off from German companyBayer. It is now the world's No 1 synthetic rubber producer, with its business coveringindustries like engineering plastics, intermediates and specialty chemicals.
Lanxess's assets in Asia-Pacific soared to 35 percent of the global figure last year, from only5 percent a decade ago. And China contributes more than half of its Asia-Pacific businessand 13 percent of global revenue.
As the CEO of Lanxess China, Chien said he is aware of the chemical industry's concerns inChina: oversupply and stricter requirements on environment protection. "As a result of the fastgrowth of the automotive industry in the past 20 years, the more than 600 tire producersacross China are under tremendous pressure both externally (in the form of higher barriers toexports) and internally (in the form of tough environmental regulations)."
So, Lanxess is focusing on manufacture of "green" tires and water treatment. "Tire producersstruggling to survive have to follow the trend of making more and more green tires. They arethe high-end tires with higher performance and higher energy efficiency."
