China mangelt es an qualifizierten Arbeitskräften

Produzieren in China könnte bald teurer werden, glaubt der Economist: Can China—population 1.3 billion—really be running short of people? In many of the most important parts of its booming economy, the answer, increasingly, is yes. Though China has a vast pool of unskilled labour, firms in the south now complain that they cannot recruit enough cheap factory and manual workers. The market is even tighter for skilled labour. As the economy grows and moves into higher value-added work, the challenge of attracting and retaining staff is rising with the skill level, as demand outstrips supply. The result is escalating costs for firms operating in China. “If you think that China is a cheap place for labour, think again,” says Vincent Gauthier of Hewitt Associates, a human-resources consultancy. The particular shortages mentioned most often are of creativity, of an aptitude for risk-taking and, above all, of an ability to manage—in everything from human resources and accounting to sales, distribution, branding and project-management. Though developing economies often encounter talent shortages as they start to grow, China's history has left it with some peculiar deficits. Its Confucian heritage, which emphasises rote learning and hierarchy, may partly explain why many graduates, despite good paper qualifications and English language skills, are often cautious about taking the initiative. Some firms complain that China's one-child policy has made it harder for them to find natural team-players. That there are few MBA programmes in China may not help either. Large parts of China's economy remain in thrall to the state, where loyalty to the Communist party more than business acumen drives career success. Jeff Barnes, “chief learning officer” at General Electric (GE) in China, says that the “issue we have is finding mid-level and top-level leadership. The Chinese talent is first-generation. They don't have role models. Their parents worked for state-owned companies.”