Fifty years ago, China started a project known as The Great Leap Forward. It was a social and economic plan organized by Chairman Mao Zedong (Tse-Tung)  to rapidly transform Mainland China from a primarily agrarian economy into a modern, industrialized communist society. It failed in both economic and humanitarian terms, resulting in at least 14 million deaths caused by famine.

A half century later a new great leap forward is progressing quietly and without fanfare as Chinese companies are embarking on new product designs of their own without waiting for cues or direction from Western companies.

What's Different Now?

At the risk of oversimplification there are several quick explanations. There are growing numbers of young, technically educated Chinese nationals who formerly would have pursued technical careers outside of China and they are remaining there. There is an apparent critical mass of domestic consumers to support a growing economy built on increasingly more sophisticated products and services. And finally, these elements are developing in response to market demand rather than government decree.

Challenges in the Chinese Market
Chinese manufacturers will likely initially focus inwardly on supplying developing Chinese domestic demand and outwardly to supplying foreign markets that can use their goods and services.  Clearly, there are many challenges on the horizon for business in China. Here's a short list:

• Air pollution and water pollution in China are gaining awareness as national health challenges.
• Continued rapid economic growth may fuel a revolution of rising expectations where workers expect increasing wages and improved living conditions. Can the government meet or manage those expectations?  How might those factors create changes in the Chinese political and economic governance and policy?
• Internal demand for new products will continue to grow. Like the new large cities which are developing at amazing speeds. The city of Shenzhen progressed from a fishing town of perhaps 75,000 people 25 years ago to a city now more populous than New York City. Imagine the challenges of scaling infrastructure to meet this rapid growth over an immense nation. Consider the governmental and economic challenges that it poses for local, regional, and national levels of government to manage such growth wisely and harmoniously. The types, styles, and nature of new products will challenge the best futurist to determine the winning new products. 
• We do know that high lead content in toys and unsafe pet foods, as examples, have created a quality and safety backlash on a global scale.

One thing that each of the above scenarios has in common is that they revolve around considerations beyond the control of individuals and businesses in the West.  While they merit some level of awareness and attention, they are not the primary focus of product development in the Western world.  Rather, the focus shifts to factors we can control.

What Western Product Developers Control

1. Manufacturing Cycle Time: Imagine changing internal processes to speed the steps of receiving an order, coordinating the production effort, and getting an in-spec product out the door.
2. Delivery Promptness: Consider telescoping the time it takes from receipt of a customer order to its delivery at destination.
3. Delivery Reliability / Dependability: Being able to regularly meet customers' delivery schedules on time and as ordered is an attribute that customers value.

In short, Western companies must "own" the relationship with their customers. At the very least they should be able to meet customer needs and exceed or anticipate them where possible. With typically higher overhead operations, Western product developers must work smarter and continue to deliver value to customers.