The Mao of Business

by Peter Levenda

In the past 20 years there has been an avalanche of books and articles on doing business in Asia, using what are commonly referred to as "Asian values." Most of these books rely upon the works of the Chinese classics, such Sun Tzu's The Art of War, or by classical Japanese authors such as Musashi's Book of Five Rings.

Peter Levenda, a seasoned trader with more than 20 years of experience dealing extensively (and successfully)...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0826428517
• ISBN13: 9780826428516
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: Continuum
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.4" x 7.9"

Customer Reviews

Why Jimmy Wales Wears a Mao Jacket

Whenever Peter Levenda brings his insight to bear on a fresh set of ideas, I drop whatever I am doing and pay attention. Here, he has chosen to write a fairly straightforward 'business book' that will clearly serve its target audience (American businespeople seeking to do business in China) very well. The book is a roadmap for small-to-medium sized firms to establish a beachhead in China. It's loaded with practical wisdom and if you want to sell stuff in China (or buy labor), this is a good introduction. However, like all of Levenda's books, the material's significance is deeper than the title suggests and, as such the book's appeal is broader (i.e. extends to 'big idea' weirdos like me). Levenda contends that to understand the contemporary Chinese mind, one must understand Mao (or at least understand how the Chinese understand him). Better still, it turns out that the early Mao was a organizational and strategic visionary. Mao the strategist stressed decentralization, use of local wisdom, exploitation of local resources, knowledge through practical experience (techne), and a general preference for networks over hierarchy. The fact that these anarchistic virtues no longer leap to mind when one thinks of Mao today is one of the reasons this book is so interesting. The man Levenda terms the "good Mao" had a real philosophy. Levenda explains that, according to the contemporary Chinese narrative, it was the violation of the principles of that philosophy that turned him into the tyrannical, paranoid, murderous, reactionary "bad Mao." Regardless of whether this interpretation has any validity, the Quotations from the Chairman do contain remarkable insights, and they are relevant to anyone engaged in a competitive enterprise. If the only lesson to be learned here were how to make money in China, the book would be worthwhile, but there is a lot more going on. Not unlike Jimmy Wales in his trademark Mao jacket, Levenda is attempting to reappropriate the spirit of 1968 and the "heroic guerilla" within the context of the post-1991 suit-and-tie world. (Hypocritical? Only if you're some doctrinaire Marxist.) Along the way, Levenda shows us a good time, with jokes, personal anecdotes, and the cultural/historical insights that only a seasoned cleric can bring to the table.

when china awake the world will tremble

the book that everyone interested in doing business in china should read! not only has the book good timing, it is based on the author's actual involvement with every aspect of trade with China since 1980's. this book is the real deal.