China is packing the changes of decades into a few short years, and in doing so, is causing a heightened sense of urgency [read fear] in the rest of the world.  But China’s pace is not one of immediacy, and certainly not urgency.  When you go to China, as I have done twice now, you instantly feel the vibrancy, the sense of possibility, and the clear intention of speed. China is a goal-oriented society, and one focused on getting where it is going… FAST!  But the Chinese understand that a fast, focused pace of work is not the same thing as urgency.

Take their race towards renewable energy.  Everyone knows that the next great global industry will be clean power and energy efficiency.  And China is intent on dominating that growing, high-technology industry, becoming the market leader in clean energy technology for the rest of the world.  They have recognized the market potential for clean energy and are putting their focus on speed-to-market.

While the U.S. is bogged down in political rancor and disputes over the validity of climate science, China has had a national renewable energy mandate for 5 years.  China’s target is to increase the use of renewable energy—particularly wind, hydro, and biomass—to 16 percent of total energy production by 2020.  At the China Power 2009 Conference, where I was invited to speak on Fatigue Risk Mitigation in Nuclear Power Plants, officials reported that China already had reached 85% of its target goal in three years.   So, they set a new goal of 20% renewable energy together with increased energy efficiency.  The state power companies in China now charge higher electricity prices to the least efficient industrial concerns and lower prices to the more efficient ones —  market-driven strategies applied in China to yield energy efficiency as rapidly as possible.

The story of one Chinese company’s race to crack the code on coal gasification is a lesson in time-driven business strategy.  At Zhenzhou Taida, engineers and scientists voluntarily put themselves on round-the-clock work teams while they endeavored to develop affordable coal gasifiers.  And by doing so, they succeeded in reaching their production goals more than a year ahead of schedule.  China has the third largest coal reserves, behind the U.S. and Russia.  Its need for energy and electricity is escalating daily, and with no oil industry or known natural gas reserves, it is racing to become the pre-eminent “clean coal” producer in the world.

Perhaps it is the horrible smog in eastern China that is a key driver for their entrepreneurial behavior in the clean energy market space.  But, in fact, the Chinese way of combining longevity-thinking and a fast pace of work simply is what today’s highly-competitive marketplace demands.  China clearly understands that being fast and forward-leaning is the right recipe for becoming a global economic powerhouse.

© 2011, Susan L. Koen, Ph.D. – All Rights Reserved

Tags: Always-On World, Global Economy, Pace of Work, Round The Clock, Speed, Sustainable Performance, Time-Driven Work