Explaining the CBS
Pierre Eloy joined 1421 Consulting Group almost one year ago. He has been in China for 14 years and has worked in Southern, Central and Northern China. His career revolves mainly around managing foreign investment in the construction sector. In Xiamen he set up and developed a production site. In Xian he restructured and integrated a new acquisition for a cement factory. In Beijing he managed a start-up in green materials. Before his China experience he was a product manager for Prayon, a leader in phosphoric acid and derivatives, in Liege, Belgium. Pierre has graduated from the renowned Kellog University’s MBA program. He helped develop a tool to scan foreign SME companies in China for critical risks and what corrective actions could be taken to counter these risks.
With 1421 Consulting Group, Vistra and R&P Lawyers you developed the Chinable Business Scan (CBS). Could you please give an introduction of this new product?
The Chinable Business Scan is a tool to do a quick check-up on China based companies’ strengths and weaknesses to operate successfully. China is increasingly adapting to international business. This change results in rules and regulations, as they are more strictly enforced. Some companies feel they might not be up to date and are not ready for this stricter enforcement. The CBS can help to getting an overview of the areas that might need adjustment.
How does the CBS work?
Once a company wants to do their check-up, we organize a kick-off meeting. Afterwards, a senior consultant and a junior consultant will visit the company for 2 or 3 days and gather information, based on an extensive questionnaire. A team of consultants, lawyers and accountants will then process the information for another 2-3 days. One final day is planned to present a summary of the results to the client, so they know exactly which areas are up to date and which areas are at risk. It can be seen as a pre-check by us before a government checks up if everything they enforce is followed. Our CBS creates awareness of risks and we can give tangible advice on how to respond to this accordingly.
For which companies is the CBS suitable?
With the combined knowledge and expertise of the teams of 1421, Vistra and R&P lawyers we made the tool suited for SME’s in China. As Peter Pronk (the CEO of 1421) often tells, only 20% of foreign companies make it past the three year mark in China. These companies might still want to adapt to the stricter enforcements. We have adapted the scan for very small, small and medium businesses.