Leadership
MEET THE CHANGE MAKER
The degree convinced him to pursue a career in professional services. Upon graduation, he quit engineering and joined Deloitte’s London office, where he trained as a chartered accountant. His clients included Chinese companies in the UK as well as multinationals. In 1996, he joined Deloitte China and progressed to a string of executive roles, including Chair of Deloitte’s Global Chinese Services Group. Over the past four decades, John has witnessed China’s economic transformation and the opportunities this brought, with investment flowing both ways. He has overseen a series of overseas Initial Price Offerings (IPOs) for Chinese companies. He has also helped French mobile phone firm Alcatel, chemicals giant BASF, and car manufacturers Fiat and General Motors to operate in China. “I’ve seen China change from a low-cost labour market to a really strong economy with a rapidly growing middle class,” says John. “It’s been exciting to help multinationals invest in China, and also help a large number of Chinese companies invest overseas.” In the early days, Chinese companies expanding abroad required an insider’s view of global business rules. John’s work at Deloitte included brokering relations at home and abroad, and educating Chinese companies in business and accounting requirements overseas. If Chinese business culture errs towards a more collective approach, the West revolves more around the individual, he believes. “To make things happen, you need to find ways to ensure everyone can work well together,” he says. “At Deloitte, we have played a major part in educating Chinese companies to become successful
international businesses. “At the same time, multinationals coming to China need people to support them and understand the culture and differences in how things are done. “I believe my knowledge gained from Warwick Business School, my training in London, and my background put me in the right position. It has been my privilege to witness the transformation.” Aside from his day job, John has been a strong supporter of young careers and has been pivotal in creating opportunities for WBS students and alumni. He arranged for Deloitte to sponsor and support students, offering them research topics and work opportunities within China as part “I never knew starting a second career could be so demanding and exciting” of their degrees. He also liaised with major employers so visiting students could develop a deeper understanding of how business was done. And when graduates returned to China, he put them in touch with business networks and communities to help with job hunting. Five years ago, John became chair of the WBS China and Hong Kong Alumni Network. It has grown in reach and size, creating a vibrant community among a handful of China’s major cities. Former students from China now occupy senior roles across many sectors, offering alumni access to a well-connected network with regular events and meet-ups. “That can help them get closer
to whatever community they are interested in – financial services, for instance – and find information or share opportunities. We can really help each other,” says John. Last year, John retired from Deloitte at the age of 62, a year after receiving an Honorary Doctorate from WBS. However, he remains busy. He channelled his leadership experience to set up a business to coach executives in soft skills, which he has acquired in spades over the course of his career. “I never knew starting a second career could be so demanding and exciting,” he says. The Chinese economy has become shakier in recent years, in line with the global downturn and rising protectionism. But John believes this is all the more reason to pursue an MBA – not least because Chinese students benefit from a warm welcome at WBS and a cosmopolitan mix of students. “Warwick has a good range of nationalities, and it’s very important to gain exposure to international communities. Business will always be international, whatever the geopolitics,” he says. John believes it’s the duty of businesses to maintain a spirit of dialogue and collaboration for the benefit of younger generations. “Nowadays, the media is so one- sided that young people get a skewed picture,” he says. “Whenever our alumni get the chance, they should talk in China about their experience overseas. When they are abroad, they should share what living in Shanghai is like. We all learn from each other.”
A new dawn John Hung helped broaden China ’ s horizons
W hen working with multinational businesses in China, professional services executive John Hung quickly learned that one meeting was not enough. “For every meeting, we actually needed three – one for overseas investors, another for the Chinese owners, and the third to sit them together and ensure that each was in agreement.”
This was at a time when ownership of foreign invested companies in China was more restricted, which made for a delicate balancing act. John was working for national and global clients in a range of management roles at Deloitte China, where he became Vice Chairman. Company ownership rules might have changed since then, but the need for collaboration remains. John cut his management teeth on an MBA at Warwick Business School in 1986 and believes he was the first student from China or Hong Kong to
complete the course. “At alumni events in China, I have never come across anyone older than me,” he laughs. Before embarking upon his MBA, John was an ambitious engineer from Hong Kong who’d been working between London and his homeland for five years. WBS appealed because it was a young and vibrant business school. “It was an intense course,” he says. “I knew I needed to learn the language of business and principles of management.”
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