1. Understanding the implications of China's Five-Year Plan is critical in cementing relationships with business partners and regulators.
It is an important way for businesses to demonstrate their commitment and show that they are making a positive contribution to China's long-term development. Executives should consider how they can include the Five-Year Plan in their marketing and PR strategies, with particular reference to aspects such as people management and R&D.
2. China has had a laudable record in meeting or exceeding many of its targets in previous five year plans.
This time around we see a greater focus on social as well as economic targets. This may entail more implementation challenges at the local level which businesses operating in a particular area need to be aware of.
3. The Five-Year Plan projects sustained increases in minimum wage levels and calls for increased pension provision for many employees.
Businesses need to fully assess the implications for their operations and human resources planning as they grow.
4. As a next step in the process, each province, municipality and ministry will now need to develop its own Five-Year Plan with implementation measures.
As this cascading effect gets underway, implications in specific regions and industry sectors will become clearer and some could have direct impacts on operations, costs or future opportunities, for particular businesses.
5. There is likely to be encouragement for foreign direct investment into specific sectors and regions.
This could take the form of tax incentives or other favourable policies, although the plan also notes the need to ensure foreign acquisitions will be subject to security reviews.
6. Organisations should consider how they can invest in energy saving measures and help in meeting local level targets for energy reduction and green energy adoption.
This can be a good way for businesses to build goodwill at a local level while managing their costs and environmental footprint.