China and Chocolate: East Meets West 17
business organizations. The first major challenge was finding
the right leaders for their China organizations. Few compa-
nies at the time had an internal bench of management talent
that had practical experience in China. Most companies,
therefore, faced an either/or proposition: either send an em-
ployee who knew the company and the business but didn’t
know China, or hire someone who knew China but didn’t
know the company and the business. It was the single most
important decision that the Big Five chocolate companies
would need to make, since their China business leaders, and
the continuity and quality of leadership that the companies
were able to sustain over time, had a profound impact on the
ultimate outcome of ...