Every year or two, I like to write a book related to supply chains, business, or leadership. This past year, I have been working on a fun business novel that mirrors some of my own experiences. It is titled Caught Between the Tiger and the Dragon and will be out in April.

In my book, Rich Morrison, the main character who is appointed CEO of an American lingerie manufacturing company, is given very short notice that he has to outsource some of the company’s functions to China, as a cost savings measure . . . Sound familiar at all?

Rich overcomes many challenges along the way and discovers the importance of relationships and communication when partnering with companies in China, as well as in his personal life. This situation is played out across the U.S. daily, as companies learn to deal with cultural differences as their businesses go global.

I’ve seen first hand the ups and downs of conducting business in Asia, and the processes and ways of thinking that have yet to be perfected. So, I am sure that now is the perfect time for this book!

Since Asia and other low-cost countries are such a hot topic for businesses and folks are beginning to realize how truly global our economy is, I felt it was time to write a novel to help U.S. companies understand why some business fail and some succeed when moving manufacturing to China. And for many business leaders and decision makers, it will let them know that they are not alone in the problems they are facing.

I enjoyed using humor and suspense to tell such an important story and am looking forward to the book’s release. And I am finding that the business novel format is a really cool way to talk about the challenges that companies face today.

I’ll be blogging more about it later and providing some sample chapters. Meanwhile, do you have stories about outsourcing to China that you would like to share? I’d love to know what challenges you are facing in this area and how you are dealing with them.

Go!Go!Go!

Jim