June '20
The IUP Journal of Case Folio
Archives
Learning to Lead in China: Antonio Scarsi Takes Command
William A Fischer
Professor, IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland. E-mail: bill.fischer@imd.org
E-mail: debapratim@icmrindia.org
Rebecca Chung
Research Associate (Former), IMD, Lausanne, Switzerland. E-mail: info@imd.org
The case, presented in an interesting cartoon format, describes the first week after Antonio Scarsi (disguised), an expatriate executive, takes on the role of CEO in a poorly performing and demoralized domestic Chinese company. Although Antonio had extensive China experience, including considerable language capabilities, he knew little about this company, in which he was the only non-Chinese employee, and had never before worked outside of the support network of a major multinational corporation. He aimed to turn around the company in six months. His challenge was how to learn about the firm as quickly and effectively as possible and signal his intentions to revitalize it to the employees.
