Civil Servant Training Curriculum: An Introduction to Business Administration

Author: Wang Tingting
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2004-01-01
Features: Look at the rankings of the most competitive countries in the world in recent years, and several Nordic countries are almost always on the list. A well-known international enterprise is a common feature of these countries. For example, Sweden has Ericsson, Volvo Cars, IKEA, and ABB Group, while Finland has Nokia, which dominates the global telecommunications market, along with numerous high-tech companies. Established Western developed countries, as well as emerging industrial nations like South Korea and Singapore, along with regions such as Hong Kong and Taiwan in China, all have numerous well-known large enterprises operating worldwide, profoundly influencing the course of the global economy. The competition among nations is reflected in the competition among their enterprises. As a developing country, China is still in the process of transitioning to a socialist market economy. Over the past two decades of reform and opening-up, Chinese society and the economy have experienced an ultra-high-speed development phase and are now beginning to embark on a new path of stable development. Marketization of the economy has become an irreversible trend, and whether it is state-owned enterprises, rural collective enterprises, or private enterprises, they are gradually becoming true independent market economy entities. On December 11, 2001, China officially became a member of the World Trade Organization, integrating more deeply into the global economic system, and China's social and economic development will proceed on a broader and deeper international scale. In the new stage of development, what is more important is not large-scale, extensive construction, but rather emphasizing economic quality, living standards, and a development model led by technology and knowledge capital. In this process, the government must quickly complete its functional transformation to serve the development of the market economy and to facilitate the participation of various market entities in competition, particularly to serve the enterprises that play a role as producers and providers of material production means and material living means in the national economy. Specifically, the role of the government is to create a favorable political and legal environment for the survival and development of enterprises, provide necessary infrastructure, and promote fair competition and healthy development among enterprises through various economic policies and legal means, thereby creating conditions for the growth and international competitiveness of Chinese enterprises. The new historical mission, the continuous deepening of the reform system, and greater openness constitute a new public management environment, and structural changes have placed urgent demands on the corresponding adjustment of the knowledge structure of the public management workforce: not only is it necessary to enhance management concepts, but it is also essential to possess stronger observation, judgment, and comprehensive management capabilities. As civil servants working in government departments, they are the specific bearers of the government's functional transformation. Only with knowledge of business management can they better understand corporate behavior, provide various services, and better fulfill their duties as civil servants. Business management knowledge is vast and complex, but limited by space, we can only provide a general introduction to its main aspects here to give readers a basic framework of understanding of business management. Therefore, this book focuses on introducing the general principles and basic knowledge of business management, including corporate strategic management, organizational design, marketing management, corporate accounting, financial management, production and operations management, human resource management, and technology innovation management. Given that government training textbooks often lack an introduction to management thought, we have specifically included a chapter overviewing the evolution of management thought and its development in the contemporary era, hoping to help readers improve their management theory literacy and also to serve as a guide for those who wish to further study management theory.