Bulletin Number Three 1985

the background of China's quest for technological improvement and economic efficiency by reorganizing and integrating her enterprises according to the principles of specialization and coordination; and (2) examines the format, features and problems of the integration. Empirical evidence shows that operating 'synergy' exists in those integrated enterprises. In the second paper, 'Developments in Managerial Decision-Making', the authors discuss the expansion of enterprise autonomy and changes in the managerial decision-making. A framework of the decision-making structure was developed and a number of severe constraints were analyzed, in particular, the changing balance of power between the factory director, the Party secretary, the workers' congress and the trade union within the enterprise. It was found that contradictions exist within the new structure of decision-making but, given a period of political stability and sustained economic growth, there should be sufficient surplus to mollify discontent. Technical Entrepreneurship in Hong Kong: an Exploration —Tuan Chyau & Danny S.N. Wong The study of entrepreneurs or entrepreneurial spirit has always been a popular subject for researchers in management, economics, and the social sciences. Although they may be looking at the problem from different angles, most of their works have been focused on the contributions of the entrepreneurs to the social and economic system. Studies focusing on the business formation process and management problems faced by the entrepreneurs, particularly based on Hong Kong data, have been rare. For this reason, we started this project in the fall of 1982. The objective of the study is to investigate the internal and external factors contributing to the formation of the business by the entrepreneur; the problems encountered during and after the formation; and the causes for his success. In particular, we addressed ourselves to the following questions: 1. Does a typical entrepreneur possess a characteristic which makes him different from other individuals? Under what kind of environment was he brought up? What type of people are more inclined to be entrepreneurs? 2. What are the economical and environmental factors which impress upon the entrepreneur to set up his own business? Are these factors unique to the Hong Kong entrepreneurs? 3. Is there a general pattern from conceptualization to final formation of the entrepreneurship? Are there common problems? 4. Do the background and experience of the entrepreneur make a difference in his managerial style and vision for success? Hopefully, answers to these questions will not only provide us with a detailed picture of the local entrepreneur, but also provide some evidence to resolve the most debated question of whether an entrepreneur really has certain special backgrounds and characteristics which make him a risk-taker, or he is just another by-product of the economic development process, or both. With funding from the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia (through Chung Chi College), we spent three months during the summer of 1983 interviewing the founders of forty- six small manufacturers. A large volume of information has been gathered and analysed. Comparisons between our results and those of western researchers were made. To differentiate between the entrepreneurs and other individuals, we had also collected comparable information on fifty-six executives through questionnaires. Furthermore, in order to assess the impact of different economic systems on the result, the same questionnaires were also sent to fifty-one managers and executives of state enterprises in China. Owing to practical reasons, we could not conduct similar interviews with founders of private enterprises of China. However, a study using similar approach had been conducted by Professor Ye Chun-sheng of South China Institute of Technology in Guangzhou. Professor Ye kindly agreed to share his results with us for comparison purposes. Hopefully this will make our cross-sectional analysis more meaningful. We expect to complete the necessary analysis shortly. Nevertheless, based on the analysis made on the local data, the following observations can be made: 1. The local entrepreneurs come from more or less similar backgrounds as those of western countries, although they are generally younger. Their education level is above the average level of the general public of Hong Kong but still lower than those of the European or North American entrepreneurs. 2. Local entrepreneurs tend to possess better managerial experience than, although 22 RECENT DEVELOPMENTS