Video
The competition for leadership talent in China remains intense, but the dynamics are swiftly changing. As economic growth slows, the pool of experienced leaders is growing. Stephen Shih, a partner with Bain's Organization practice, discusses the key trends that will affect Chinese companies in the coming years.
Read the China Leadership Report >
Read the transcript below.
STEPHEN SHIH: Two stories dominated China's business scene over the last 15 years: astonishing economic growth, and an intense battle for talent. Both of those are changing. Economic growth is slowing, and there is now a larger pool of experienced leadership talent in China.
Bain partnered with LinkedIn to analyze a proprietary database of 25,000 business leaders in 220 different major companies across 18 different industries. This China Leadership Report provides a more nuanced view into who China's business leaders are, and the key emerging trends that will impact companies over the coming years.
China's business leaders are highly educated, globally minded and young. Over 60% have post-graduate degrees. Nearly half have studied overseas, and the average age is 39.
We also see interesting trends in mobility, digital roles, regional leadership roles and woman in leadership. The trends in mobility, in particular, are very interesting. The data shows that business leaders in China are very mobile. Over 40% have changed companies in the last five years. And of those, over half have changed industries.
HR leaders and CEOs should also note that the flow of talent is strongest away from multinationals and toward domestic companies. This is just one example of how even as the competition for leadership talent in China remains intense, the dynamics are also changing.