Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Got any Bright Ideas?

In his address to the 17th National Party Congress of the Communist Party of China, President Hu Jintao urged his people to move forward in innovation.

He mentioned the fields of science, technology and medicine, as well as business. The Chinese leader wants the country to be an innovator, not a follower. It echoes the development path of Japan, Taiwan and Korea.

But in order to encourage and stimulate new ideas, free thinking should be encouraged early on, instead of forcing children to conform to the status quo. And at the office, top-down management is prevalent here. It's the boss who has the 'creative' ideas which he assigns his underlings to execute.

And the staff aren't allowed to question or suggest something different. They must do what they are told.

It's not exactly a nurturing environment.

And that's why many of my colleagues find work a bore. They just want to get their tasks done and get out of the office.

Which begs the question: How can innovation happen when creativity isn't the order of the day?

2 comments:

ChopSuey said...

Have you seen this?!?!

China warns travellers about Vancouver's crime problem
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
CBC News

China's Foreign Affairs Ministry in Beijing has released an advisory warning travellers to Vancouver to beware of the city's crime problem.

The warning, aimed at Chinese travellers and delegations planning trips to Vancouver, said there have been recent thefts at Vancouver International Airport and popular sightseeing spots around the city that have resulted in lost property, travel disruptions and other difficulties.

Unknown said...

for thousands of years the chinese have been living under a feudal system. the king /emperor/leader is the supreme commander, much like the american president or the canadian prime minister nowadays. this traditonal thinking has to be dissolved with time. the present younger leaders understand this but difficult to change in a short time. democracy will come one day but not now. the chinese people are not mature or well educated enough yet.