In 2011, Haier, China's leading appliance manufacturer, had over $20 billion in worldwide sales and had only been named the top refrigerator manufacturer worldwide. This case describes Haier's rise over three decades, from a defunct refrigerator factory in China's Shandong province to an international player with $5.5 billion in foreign sales. Haier had followed a nontraditional growth strategy of entering the USA as a market player along with the developed markets of Europe before venturing into nearby Asian markets and Middle Eastern markets.
Looking ahead to the following decade, Haier CEO Zhang Ruimin saw likelihood for Haier to grow through product diversification and additional market penetration in both developed and emerging markets. He and his colleagues would depend on their experience of getting numerous businesses, entering and keeping new markets, restructuring the organization, and managing hundreds of subsidiary companies all over the world. They would need to find out which skills could be used abroad and which of the lessons learned from the international businesses of Haier ought to be executed in China.
PUBLICATION DATE: August 21, 2011 PRODUCT #: 713C11-PDF-CHI
This is just an excerpt. This case is about STRATEGY & EXECUTION
