Surviving the 'made in China' stigma: Challenges for Chinese multinational corporations.

摘要

Since the 1980s, China's entry into world trade and investments has thrown the country into continuous exponential growth. Multinational corporations (MNCs), considerably valuable instruments of globalization, are significant contributors to China's economic success and development. However, as with any MNC, entry into new markets for comes with challenges such as little brand awareness and cultural, social and political clashes. In addition, as Chinese MNCs are in a nascent stage of development and expansion and also have distinctive obstacles which are particularly problematic. Unlike the brands "Made in Sweden" or "Made in Japan," in which the country of manufacturing more often has positive or neutral connotations, "Made in China" fails to positively capture consumer awareness in the Western marketplace. As consumers in this part of the world tend to group all Chinese manufacturers together, the image of one taints all. Whether Chinese MNCs already had good business and manufacturing practices or have begun to reform their practices, the question remains, can one high-profile company turn around consumer perceptions of Chinese manufacturers or service providers?;In a case analysis of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd., a telecommunication company, the study illustrates overarching challenges a typical Chinese MNC may encounter. Although seen by the Chinese government as a brand ambassador for future Chinese MNCs entering the global market, Huawei has difficulty in procuring and retaining M&A deals and clientele in advanced economies. Extensive media coverage and content analysis revealed that many news publications consistently reported negative associations of Huawei which in turn affected Huawei's relationship with stakeholders. Additional news coverage and research documented Huawei's public relations efforts, explored the company's opportunities, suggested public relations and communication strategies, and identified the implications of Huawei's emergence as an MNC.