For centuries, the East has been doing business with the West, leading to a dynamic fusion of cultures and exciting business deals. Even the setback of the Asian financial crisis in 1997 failed to dampen the enthusiasm of Western and Asian companies and business leaders looking to expand their fields of operation. Special Blend, says author Lynette Lithgow, is about the men and women who provide positive models of good leadership as Asia moves towards a global standard of corporate governance. Concentrating on Southeast Asia, Lithgow, a former CNBC anchor, delves into the past, present and future of a number of key economic countries in the region. She covers Japan, which she describes as a nation of contrasts, South Korea (back from the grave), India (Asia's lumbering elephant), Hong Kong (a place like no other), Singapore (one man is an island) and Malaysia (Dr Mahathir's new dilemma). The Philippines, Thailand and Indonesia also come under scrutiny. She also speaks to a number of business leaders about their views of their particular country and how they do business there. 'Since the onset of the financial crisis, Asian corporate heads have been persistently pilloried for poor management, for their shortsightedness, their immaturity, their willingness to succumb to corruption, cronyism and nepotism,' Lithgow writes in the introduction. 'Crony capitalism has been a way of life in Asia for decades and it seems disingenuous to blame it for the crisis when foreign investors had been aware of it, profited from it and been undeterred by it when the going was good.' Lithgow says Special Blend aims to explore Asian management styles through the successes of corporate titans, while at the same time heeding the lesson of failure. The book examines 'The Asian Way' and looks at the many different ways, Asian ways, of managing business across the region, she says. 'It looks at how management styles in the region have evolved through their different and varied philosophical, cultural and historical backgrounds,' she says. 'It compares managers in Asia to those in the West and looks at where the styles of the two have merged.' Special Blend is a fascinating insight into doing business in Asia. Lithgow - a veteran journalist of 25 years in Britain and Asia - has researched her topic well, and it is clear she knows what she is talking about after so many years in the region. Globalisation has brought the world closer, and this fusion of cultures can only help our understanding of how to take our business global. With Special Blend, we might even learn a thing or two about how to do this the right way. Special Blend Fusion Management from Asia & The West By Lynette Lithgow Published by John Wiley & Sons
