Corporate Governance Reform - Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited - Report Example

Corporate Governance Reform Contents Chapter I - Introduction 3 2 Company Overview 5 Chapter 2 - Methodology 7 2.2 Case Study 7 2.3 Data Collection8 2.4 Data Analysis 9 Chapter 3 - Analysis and Results 9 3.1 Analysis 9 3.2 Results 15 Chapter 4 - Conclusion 16 Reference List 18 Chapter I - Introduction Corporate governance is often described as the system through which a company is controlled and administered. In other words, corporate governance is also referred to as the set of customs, laws, policies and establishments impacting the way a company is being directed (Bebchuk, Cohen and Ferrell, 2009). It plays a critical role in defining the relationships between management, stakeholders and the board of directors of a company. In addition, the corporate governance of a company is indispensible in influencing how the company is functioning. According to Development Institute (2005), “the presence of strong governance standards provides better access to capital and aids economic growth.” Thus good corporate governance ascertains that the business operation of a company is transparent and fair and simultaneously enables the controlling authorities to hold companies accountable for their actions in the market. On the contrary, weak corporate governance leads a company towards corruption, mismanagement as well as waste of useful resources (Lin, 2001). Centre for Financial Market Integrity (2007) mentioned that “Corporate governance is critically important to a country’s economic growth and stability, because it provides the credibility and confidence that is fundamental to capital markets.” Hence, from the discussion it is evident that corporate governance is an important subject for a nation’s economy. The recent history of corporate governance and economic reforms in China has been marked as one of the important phases of the country as it started to focus more on the development of private enterprises and capitalism (Bebchuk and Hamdani, 2009). Moreover, China also succeeded to align itself with the international economy and has further sought to espouse Western-style administration mechanisms and legal principles pertaining to the function of its companies (Rand Corporation, 2008). The chronological development of the corporate governance in China has passed through four major stages. The first stage was from 1949 to 1983, where state-owned enterprises (SOEs) subjugated the Chinese economy and as a result, the state controlled and commanded almost every economical aspect (Bhagat, Bolton and Romano, 2008). During this era, the Western-style corporate governance also did not existed in the country. The second stage was from 1984 to 1993. This phase is characterised by commencement of the separation of enterprise and government in China. The Shenzhen Stock Exchange (SZSE) and the Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE) was also established in this epoch. Alongside this, the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) was also established as a government body to regulate the stock market. The third stage continued from 1994 to 2005, which is marked by the commencement of trialling the modern enterprise structures. The company law was also passed which mentioned the responsibilities and rights for the companies operating in China. Despite, the passage of company law, it had a far-reaching affect on the Chinese Economy and corporate governance and as a consequence, the state shareholders enjoyed overwhelming favouritism over single investors (Roe, 2002; Development Institute, 2005). The fourth stage as is currently in progress from 2006 onwards. During this phase corporate governance has witnessed colossal growths in China. It encompassed legislation that was aimed to form equilibrium of the power asymmetry among the individual or single shareholders and state shareholders. The current corporate governance system of china lacks credibility. This can be said from the fact that many of the Chinese companies are not aligning to the standard policies and regulations of the business as well as government (Tenev and Zhang, 2002). The corporate governance system also lacks transparency and accountability. Most of the people who are in authority are not acting according to the corporate standards (Jackson, 2011). In order to prevent any major economic crisis in China, it is very important to stop bad corporate governance in the country. In the recent past, many Chinese corporations have been involved in mergers and acquisitions. Changes in holdings and stocks and company policies get disrupted in the absence of proper governance policies and regulations (Cornforth, 2003; Shanghai Stock Exchange, 2003). This study seeks to throw light on the corporate governance reforms in a listed company of China. The company chosen for this purpose is Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited. Therefore prior getting into the other parts of the study, a brief overview of the company is presented below. 1.2 Company Overview The two companies selected for case study analysis are: 1. Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited 2. China Pharmaceutical Group Limited Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited is Chinese company involved in the business of manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceutical products (Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited, n.d.a). The company actually originated from Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Company and was restructured in the year 1996 (Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited, n.d.b). It was founded in the year 1951, but in 2008, it entered into a treaty with Alliance Boots and thereafter operated as a joint venture. The company is now jointly owned by the Alliance Boots (50%) and Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited (50%). It is presently headquartered at Guangzhou, Guangdong, China and is currently headed by Mr. Jinghui Yu, who also acts as the President and Director of the company. The company is one of the largest conglomerates of the nation. Guangzhou Pharmaceutical gains huge support from the Guangzhou Municipal Government and the Guangdong Provincial Government and this assistance help the company to prosper in the market and gain good reputation. The net revenue of the company as of financial year end 2012-2013 was RMB 16.9 billion. Moreover according to the reports, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited is the third largest pharmaceutical company in China in terms of the revenue. Some of the filed in medicine where the company is active are medical devices, prescription drugs, chemical reagents, over-the-counter drugs, glass wares and experiment equipment. The company mainly caters to drug stores, health care institutions, and retailers. Apart from manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceutical products, the company is also active in three different field i.e. trade, industry and scientific research (Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited, n.d.c). According to reports, Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited is considered as one of the largest companies of the Guangdong Province and is also adjudged as one of the elite companies belongs to this sector (Flannery, 2013). China Pharmaceutical Group Limited China Pharmaceutical Group Limited is one of the leading pharmaceutical companies in China. The company is a listed manufacturer of pharmaceuticals and drugs. The company is known for its contribution in the production of antibiotics and drugs and have been contributing to the overall economy of china (China Pharmaceutical Group Limited, 2013a). The company owns assets more than 3 million dollars and employees more than 11000 workers. Building bright future for everyone is the mission and motto of the organisation. The company is listed in Shanghai Stock Exchange and has 29 subsidiaries. Few subsidiaries which are directly controlled by China Pharmaceuticals include T. L. Investment Limited, Shijiazhuang P. Group Shijiazhuang Group, Zhongrun Pharmaceutical and Zhonghe Company. The company produces more than 430 varieties of synthetic and semi-synthetic antibiotics, biotechnology products, vitamins, pharmaceutical intermediaries, bulk as well as finished neutraceutical products and veterinary (China Pharmaceutical Group Limited, 2013c). The company has also forayed in animal products and bio-pesticides. Dongchen Cai is the current chairman of the company with 10 independent boards of directors (China Pharmaceutical Group Limited, 2013b). It has a private department for research and development where pilot production, testing and commercial production takes place. The quality assurance and quality control system of the company is rigorous. All the products and production techniques apply with the general manufacturing processes. The organisation has also been awarded and given recognition for its extensive research in the field of generic drugs and vaccines. Many of these researches and developments have been internationally recognised and patented. Chapter 2 - Methodology The methodology of a study plays a critical role in enabling a researcher to achieve the goals. It is a process adopted by researchers to address and find the results of a given problem on a particular subject matter or which is commonly known as the research problem (Saunders, Lewis and Thornhil, 2009). There are several methodologies which are being used by researchers around the world, however a particular methodology is chosen on the basis of the requirement of the study. In order to choose the most appropriate methodology, the researcher also need to consider research problems and along with that the resources available to him or her (Logie-MacIver, Piacentini and Eadie, 2012). On the basis of the combination between these two fields, the most effective and appropriate research methodology is ultimately formed. Eminent scholars such as Goddard and Melville (2004) emphasized on the fact that addressing the answered question or exploring things which are yet to be is known as research and the methodology followed for addressing the same is known as research methodology. The aim of the study is to analyze the corporate governance reform of listed company in china and for this purpose the listed company chosen is Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited. In order to address this objective, the study tried to develop a comparative case study of two companies in terms of their corporate governance. Once the case study for the same is developed, the study will try to compare those case studies. 2.2 Case Study In life science and social science, case study is an exploratory, descriptive or explanatory analysis of the group, event or the phenomenon. Case study method is one of the useful tools used for presenting data in an organized form. Employment of case studies for the purpose of researching is one of the most challenging ways associated with social science endeavour (Bussell, 2000). As a research method, case study is being used by the researchers in a number of situations. For example, case studies can even be used in the economics, in which the arrangement of a given organization or industry of a region or a city can be investigated. The biggest advantages of a case study research are that it allows collection of detailed and in-depth data about the area of concern. Such in-depth data about the subject matter is often difficult to get when it comes to other research methods. Another advantage of using case study is that the data collected is richer and help researchers to adapt new ideas and simultaneously produce novel hypothesis which can be tested further (Kotler, 2004). On the other hand, the disadvantages of a case study research are that the data collected through this mechanism cannot be necessarily generalized for the entire population. Hence it is evident that the data collected for the longitudinal case studies is not relevant or particularly useful for other researches. In addition to this, there are case studies which cannot be rational or rather are not scientific. Lastly the most upsetting fact pertaining to the use of case study is that through case study research it becomes difficult to draw the most appropriate cause/effect relationship. 2.3 Data Collection Data collection is one of the fundamental tasks of a research study, as without data one cannot draw conclusion to the study. Data collection is defined as the process which encompasses collection and organizing the data for the study (Alam, 2005). Besides, without collecting data, the subjected cannot be explored and the conclusion cannot be established with authenticity. The data collection process used by a researcher is mainly divided into three different activities namely pre collection activity, collection and presenting the findings of the data. Thus before collecting the final data, pre-collection activity is one of the vital tasks and is one of the crucial steps of a research process (Korvin and Shipley, 2001). A researcher can collect data from two different sources namely primary source and secondary sources. The primary sources allow researchers to get more close to the actual events, ideas or the phenomenon. Thus primary sources offer the first-hand testimony or direct confirmation pertaining to the subject or phenomenon under investigation. Usually primary data is collected with questionnaire survey, focus group interviews, and observation to name a few. The secondary sources of data on the other hand are the types of data which has been already collected by someone else and is not meant directly for the present subject of concern. The sources of secondary data include internet sources, books, journal articles as well as other authentic reports. In this context of the data which will be put into practise or will be used to address the research objectives is secondary data. Therefore it is evident that data for this project will be collected from the sources such as internet, books, journal articles and online databases. 2.4 Data Analysis Data analysis is another critical aspect of a research study. It is also referred to as the backbone of the study. The conclusion of the study or the answers of the research questions is also established on the basis of the result of the analysis. Similarly for this study also, the data analysis chapter will play pivotal role in addressing the research questions. This study is aimed at analysing the corporate governance reforms of a listed company in china. Therefore to analyze the extent of reform the study will consider the historical data and will also encompass the corporate governance of another company so as to create a comparison analyses. In order to do as mentioned earlier, the study will consider the development of case studies. Chapter 3 - Analysis and Results 3.1 Analysis This chapter of the study will enumerate the findings from the research and will discuss its implication. Moreover, the collected data will be also used to develop case studies of the two companies will then compare the results. Corporate Governance: Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited has in two listed companies of China namely Guangzhou Baiyunshan Pharmaceutical Company Limited and Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Company Limited and in other 30 companies which are spreads across China. The company is primarily engaged in the manufacturing and marketing of pharmaceutical products which are manufactured in China as well as medicines which are manufactured in overseas countries. In addition, the company also sells hygienic materials and medical apparatus. Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited has been strictly following the company law and is trying its level best to comply with the rules and regulations pertaining to the People’s Republic of China. The listing regulations of the Shanghai Stock Exchange and the Securities Law of the People’s Republic of China, pertaining to the rules and regulation of CSRC and along with that the HKEx which continually endeavours to better and enhance the management structure of a company as well as regulate the functions of a company (Bebchuk and Neeman, 2010). The board of directors for the company are the one responsible for monitoring and reviewing the corporate governance practices of the company so as to ensure the company complies with the corporate governance code (Adams, Hermalin and Weisbach, 2010; Abbott, et al., 2008). Hence, the process for the company is highly streamlined. Now in terms of the changes or reforms in the corporate governance of the company, the following are the changes or reforms that took police in the company in the recent years. The reforms are highlighted below: - Separation of human resources, business and assets, financial and organizational arrangement from the shareholders: - The Company now operates as an integrated business structure and with autonomy and is therefore independent from its shareholders who are on the controlling seats. • The company attempts to sustain a strong independency in the areas of payroll and personnel management and staffing which has a strong impact on the overall management system of the company (Bebchuk and Fried, 2003). • The company is also capable of supplementary production system, independent production system as well as other related facilities. In addition to that the company has also established an independent sales and purchase system for itself (Chen, 2001). • The company embraces its own comprehensive and independent organizational structure. The organizational structure of the company embraces the Supervisory Committee, the board and other departments which are operating independently and anonymously within the organization. • The finance department of the company is also independent and functions independently. Most interestingly the company has also been able to set up an independent financial management policy for itself. The taxes have been paid properly and along with that it has separate bank accounts (Allen, 2005). 1. Establishment and Enhancement and establishment of the company’s control system Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited has shown its strong commitment towards the promoting, reinforcing and establishing the internal control system. As per the “Application Guideline for Corporate Internal Control” and “Basic Norms of Corporate Internal Control”, the company has established a number of management system so as to comply with the guidelines of the above two institutions. In order to provide dimensions to its new regulations, the company has established numerous changes in management system such as procurement, capital, production, sales, research and development, production, quality, assets, fund raising, budget, investment, financial management, human resource, information disclosure and external guarantee. 3. The setting up of the company’s accountability system related to material mistakes in the information discovery at Annual report In order to increase the accountability of the report system and to make sure that mistakes are minimized in the generated annual report, the company has established unique accounting management system, shareholding patterns and policies (Qi, Wu and Zhang, 2000). This system covers specific financial and account management areas such as budget management, cost and expenses, capital, inventory taking, preparation of financial reports, assets and accounting of files. This unique accounting and fundamental system of management is strictly followed by the company at all levels. The accounting division has established rational positions at all levels of the organization and has delegated specific and clearly defined management authorities and job duties as well as policies for investor protection (La Porta, et al., 2000). The division has also restricted any undertaking of positions which are found incompatible and it control chances of financial risk to the company. 4. Optimization of the internal system and amendments of corporate governance codes The company has performed a review of the internal control systems in order to fulfil the social obligations as well as successful preparation of the accounting files. In order to priorities the social responsibility policies of the company, a review has been done. The company has strict policies for corporate responsibility and has been participating in the community campaigns. In order to increase its participation as well as contribution in the social reforms policies, the comp-nay has revised its share of budget in case of corporate social responsibility. Specific amendments were made in the code of corporate governance and major board rules of the HKEx. This was done in order to safeguard the interests of the shareholders as well as the investors of the company. 5. Optimization and improvement of the bonus mechanism In order to maximize the bonus mechanism and make it continuous and scientific, many reforms were made in the policies as well as association articles. The functional and accounting division prepared a strict monitoring mechanism and made it a transparent system. The company also established a policy in which future changes and amendments will be notified to the employees, investors as well as stakeholders. These will help in better preparation and understanding between the company and its various stakeholders. 6. Establishment and enhancement of internal control, supervision and inspection departments In order to review the internal control management system of the company and establish any reforms or amendments, the board of directors established an audit committee. The audit committee will be supervising measures control. This audit committee will be performing supervision and inspection of the internal control system of the company in order to increase its soundness and effectiveness. 7. Self-assessment of the internal control management system. The internal control system was established by the board of directors in order to supervise the corporate governance policies and system of the organization. However, it is important to account and measures the credibility of the internal control system itself. In order to assess the viability of the internal control and supervision division, the company established a work plan for the year 2012, to assess the guidelines of internal control. The company used questionnaires and controlled tests in order to evaluate the crucial control points of the organization. A rectification plan was established for identified deficiencies in the control evaluation. According to this rectification plan, further implementations were established. Independent areas of audit such as procurement management, expenses, project management, scientific research management and execution of contract were covered during the reporting period. This new policy ensured full and strict implementation of regulations and rules of the organization, reduction of operational risks, strengthening of internal control, optimization of resource allocation and improvement of management and operation (Broadman, 2001). Apart from that, the company also established specific requirements for the investigation, reporting, accounting and handling of laws and regulations breach by workers and employees. Organized and strict implementation of the above rules and policies ensures a transparent internal control system. 8. Separation of different business and functional departments The company operations consists of its own integrated and autonomous business structures which is independent from its controlling shareholders. The human resource department of the company consists of independent functions such as payroll management, personal management, staffing, recruitment and selection. Remuneration to all senior executives and staffs in performed under the direct payroll of the company. The company has maintained strict guidelines for the acquisition and maintenance of its assets and capital equipments. The organization has an independent and established production system, separate facilities and other supplementary systems. The sales and purchase system s of the company are independent and almost all products are trademarked. The company is very strict with the quality and standards of its products and services. Thus, it ensures that majority of its end products as well as the facilities and maintenance departments are properly certified and scanned (Audit Commission. 2003). Almost all the registrations and trademarks of the company are valid and entered under the trademark and supplement trademark licensing agreements. The organizational system is comprehensive and independent. The supervisory committee, board of directors and other departments operate autonomously and independently. Further, most of the decision making techniques and integrated manufacturing and production units are handled independently by the different departments. The controlling shareholders of the company are independently managed and are not supervised by any other department or functional unit. The finance department is independent with different functional financial management and accounting policies. In order to streamline the financial matters and make faster transactions, the company has maintained individual bank accounts and an independent tax payment system have been established. Corporate Governance: China Pharmaceutical Group Limited The second company which has been taken for case study comparison is China Pharmaceutical Group Limited. It is one of the well known pharmaceutical companies in China. The company is listed in the trading corporation of China. It has a complete ownership which has transformed the overall governance pattern in its years of establishment. The corporate governance of China Pharmaceuticals reflects management, authority and equality in shares (China Pharmaceutical Group Limited, 2013d). The company does not organize any specific meeting for shareholders. The board of directors holds general leadership and responsibility of overall governance and delegate responsibilities and duties to the general managers in their specific departments. Single vote and veto system is implemented for board meeting and choosing board of directors. General Managers are assisted by deputy general managers in their work duties. A strict managerial division of labour is established, looking after the policies and regulations of the company. This division is strictly followed by the employees, workers as well as mangers. Looking at the changes in policies and regulations in business as well as government, China Pharmaceutical Group Limited have made many reforms and amendments in their corporate governance policies in order to gel with the external environment as well as comply with the standard regulations and rules (Jas and Skelcher, 2005). 1. Reforms in corporate sustainability and policy Corporate sustainability is an integral part of China Pharmaceutical Group. In order to achieve long term innovative solutions and success, the company is engaged in strict governance of it policies. The commitment of the company is evident by the numerous participation of the company in campaigns, projects and initiatives around the globe. Responsibility and care are the two major concepts practiced by the company. With the objective of achieving continuous improvement, the company follows strict guidelines and regulations in areas such as environment safety and health care. 2. Remuneration and nomination of board of directors The organization’s remuneration committee is responsible for review and reformation of the remuneration policies. The committee is involved in determination of remuneration packages of the executives and non-executives directors and recommending the changes in the development of remuneration. In order to make the remuneration process more transparent and acceptable, the committee made few amendments in the process. The responsibilities and performance of the individuals are taken into consideration for the new policies. The overall performance of the group as well as current market practices are also determined in order to set standards in the remuneration policies. The objective of the revised remuneration policy will be to attract, retain and motivate key executives who are essential for the future development and growth of the organization. During the initial years, the company did not establish any specific nomination committee. However, as a result of changes in government policies and many association articles, the company board can change the power from any director or person to another one. Also, the company has full authority to fill any urgent vacancy in the boards or in case of any addition in the board. 3. Establishment of audit committee for review of financial progress The new audit committee has been established in order to provide independent and responsible review of financial progress of the company. The committee also provides review of the internal control systems of the organization. 4. Establishment of the internal control systems The independent board of directors is responsible for internal control systems of the organization. For measuring the effectiveness of the control policies, a review of the policies and regulations is established. During the recent financial years, the company made few changes in the review policies. This was done in order to make the policies and control system more transparent and visible. The new internal control system reviews the policies of financial reports as well as compliance and operational controls, material controls and functions in risk management (Heracleous, 2008). Also, qualifications and experience of staffs and employees, resource adequacy, finance and account reports, budgets and training programes are also monitored on a regular basis. Based on the review results, the committee takes subsequent measures for further enhancement and effectiveness of the internal control system. 3.2 Results In order to analyze the corporate governance reform, the study considered that the previous corporate governance being followed by the company and also the corporate governance of other established companies within the same industries. The study developed a case study of corporate governance of both companies and tried to compare them. The companies were found to have made significant changes and reforms in their corporate governance policies. It was also found out that companies have started to give more importance on auditing and internal control systems. This can be due to current changes in the financial and government policies. Chapter 4 - Conclusion Corporate governance is an area of high interest in economics, management, finance and other fields and it is difficult to apply any one conclusive policy or regulation to all government sectors (Clarke, 2003). Hence the discussion of corporate governance in every context is beyond the capabilities of this study. Instead, the topic chosen for this study is the analysis of the corporate governance reforms in a Chinese pharmaceutical company. The company which was chosen for this purpose was Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Holdings Limited. According to the analysis, it has been found that corporate governance reforms are the restrictions on the contracts imposed by the outside authorities. This is a blessing in disguise as it comes with advantages as well as disadvantages. The biggest advantages of maintaining strict corporate governance is that it will allow the company to remain in the positive lights of the country. Most of the western companies, especially in developed economies would prefer working with organisations with clean image. Thus, it can be said that good and qualitative corporate governance can be a doorway to international partnerships and collaborations. However, corporate governance comes with few disadvantages also. Many times, the rules imposed avoid the organisation in making successful deals. Many corporate policies do not integrate with the sector or government they are planning to collaborate. At the fundamental level, corporate governance deals with issues of control and authority. In the two case studies evaluated above, it was found out that both the organisations had to make significant changes in their corporate governance policies. These policies were affected by the change in overall national and international change in business environment as well as changes in stakeholders and investors perspective. Corporate governance is a chain bonding the relationships between management, stakeholders and board of directors of an organisation. Thus, any change in investors or stakeholder’s sentiment will have a direct effect on the overall functioning of the organisation. In order to protect the interests of shareholders and investors, proper functioning of corporate governance is of utmost importance. However, during the establishment of these regulations and policies it is very importance to note that every aspect of the organisation is taken into consideration. The objective of good corporate governance is fair treatment and the boards of directors as well as the management should ensure that no one is treated unfairly during these policies making. Thus, with the help of a good governance policy, organisations will be able to achieve national as well as international growth and development. Reference List Abbott, S., Smith, R., Proctor, S. And Iacovou, N., 2008. Primary care trusts: What is the role of boards?. Public Policy and Administration. 23(1), pp. 43-59. Adams, R.B., Hermalin, B.E. and Weisbach, M.S., 2010. The role of boards of directors in corporate governance: A conceptual framework and survey. Journal of Economic Literature, 48, pp. 58-107. Alam, I., 2005. Fieldwork and data collection in qualitative marketing research. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal. 8(1), pp.97 – 112. Allen, F., 2005. Corporate governance in emerging economies. Oxford Review of Economic Policy. 21, pp.164-177. Audit Commission. 2003. Corporate Governance: improvement and trust in local public services. London: Audit Commission. Bebchuk, L.A. and Fried, J.M., 2003. Executive compensation as an agency problem. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 17, pp. 71-92. Bebchuk, L.A. and Hamdani, A., 2009. The elusive quest for global governance standards. University of Pennsylvania Law Review, 157, pp. 1263-317. Bebchuk, L.A. and Neeman, Z., 2010. Investor protection and interest group politics. Review of Financial Studies, 23, pp. 1089-119. Bebchuk, L.A., Cohen, A. and Ferrell, A., 2009. What matters in corporate governance?. Review of Financial Studies, 22, pp. 783-827. Bhagat, S., Bolton, B.J. and Romano, R., 2008. The promise and peril of corporate governance indices. Columbia Law Review, 108, pp. 1803-82. Broadman, H.G., 2001. The businesses of the Chinese state. World Economy, 24(7), pp.849-877. Bussell, H., 2000. Qualitative methods and analysis in organizational research: A practical guide. Learning Organization, 7(3), pp.169 – 170. Centre for Financial Market Integrity. 2007. A comprehensive business reporting model: Financial reporting for investors. [online] Available at< http://www.cfapubs.org/loi/ccb> [Accessed 26 August 2011]. Chen, J., 2001. Ownership structure as corporate governance mechanism: Evidence from Chinese listed companies. Economics of Planning, 34, pp. 53–71. China Pharmaceutical Group Limited. 2013a. Introduction. [online] Available at < http://www.cpg.hk/eng/about_cpeic_e.htm> [Accessed 24 August 2011]. China Pharmaceutical Group Limited. 2013b. Board of directors. [online] Available at < http://www.cpg.hk/eng/investor_e.htm> [Accessed 24 August 2011]. China Pharmaceutical Group Limited. 2013c. Major products. [online] Available at < http://www.cpg.hk/eng/about_product_e.htm> [Accessed 24 August 2011]. China Pharmaceutical Group Limited. 2013d. Corporate governance. [online] Available at < http://www.irasia.com/listco/governance.htm> [Accessed 24 August 2011]. Clarke, D.C., 2003. Corporate governance in China: An overview. China Economic Review, 14 (5), pp. 494–507. Cornforth, C., 2003. The governance of public and non-profit organizations: What do boards do? London: Routledge. Development Institute. 2005. The importance of corporate governance. [online] Available at < http://developmentinstitute.org/topics/corpgovernance/> [Accessed 26 August 2011]. Flannery, R., 2013. Chinas Top pharmaceutical companies in 2012. [online] Available at < http://www.forbes.com/sites/russellflannery/2013/07/24/chinas-top-pharmaceutical-companies-in-2012-list/> [Accessed 24 August 2011]. Goddard, W. and Melville, S., 2004. Research methodology: An introduction. Lansdowne: Juta and Company Ltd. Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited. n.d.a. Corporate structure. [online] Available at < http://www.gpc.com.cn/englishweb/EW02.htm> [Accessed 26 August 2011]. Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited. n.d.b. General situation. [online] Available at < http://www.gpc.com.cn/englishweb/EW01.htm> [Accessed 26 August 2011]. Guangzhou Pharmaceutical Corporation Limited. n.d.c. R&D system. [online] Available at < http://www.gpc.com.cn/englishweb/EW09.htm> [Accessed 26 August 2011]. Heracleous, L., 2008. What is the impact of corporate governance on organisation performance? Corporate Governance: An International Review. 9(3), 165-173. Jackson, E., 2011. Why Corporate Governance is So Important to China. [online] Available at < http://www.forbes.com/sites/ericjackson/2011/07/06/why-corporate-governance-is-so-important-to-china/> [Accessed 24 August 2011]. Jas, P. and Skelcher, C., 2005. Performance decline and turnaround in public organizations: A theoretical and empirical analysis. British Journal of Management, 16(5), pp.195-210. Korvin, A.D. and Shipley, M.F., 2001. Sample size: achieving quality and reducing financial loss. International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 18(7), pp.678 – 692. Kotler, P., 2004. Marketing management. Prentice–Hall: International La Porta, R., Lopez de Silanes, F., Shleifer, A. and Vishny, R., 2000. Investor protection and corporate governance. Journal of Financial Economics, 58(1-2), pp.3-27. Lin, C., 2001. Corporatisation and corporate governance in China’s economic transition. Economics of Planning, 34 (8), pp. 5–35. Logie-MacIver, L., Piacentini, M. and Eadie, D., 2012. Using qualitative methodologies to understand behaviour change. Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 15(1), pp.70 – 86. Qi, D., Wu, W. and Zhang, H., 2000. Shareholding structure and corporate performance of partially privatized firms: Evidence from listed Chinese companies. Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, 8 (1), pp. 587–610. Rand Corporation. 2008. The Evolution of Corporate Governance in China. [online] Available at http://www.rand.org/pubs/research_briefs/RB9405/index1.html. [Accessed 26 August 2011]. Roe, M., 2002. Corporate law’s limits. Journal of Legal Studies, 31, pp. 233–271. Saunders, M., Lewis, P. and Thornhil, A., 2009. Research methods for business students. New Jersey: Pearson Education. Shanghai Stock Exchange. 2003. China corporate governance report. Shanghai: Fudan University Press. Tenev, S. and Zhang, C., 2002. Corporate governance and enterprise reform in China. Washington, DC: World Bank and the International Finance Corporation. Read More