1. How do you view China's economic performance in 2020 amid the COVID-19 pandemic?

The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the global economy and put intense pressure on countries around the world. China is the only major economy to expect positive GDP growth in 2020 and its GDP growth has rebounded rapidly starting from the second quarter, thanks to its successful control of the virus outbreak, orderly resumption of work and production, and the implementation of supportive government policies. With the pandemic under careful control and society returning to normal, the pre-existing innovation and digitization trend in China will continue to support its future economic growth.

2. How do you evaluate the Chinese government's efforts in epidemic prevention and control?

China's response to the COVID-19 outbreak and its measures to control the pandemic, including dealing with movements of a large population, shows the strength of its epidemic preparedness and management. The Chinese government has been continuously working on improving its epidemic response capacity to deal with future outbreaks since SARS. We see that comprehensive, strict and thorough control measures have been taken under strong leadership, with prompt decision-making and a people-oriented philosophy.

3. What are your comments on China's improvement of its business environment this year?

Considerable progress has been made in China over the past few years in terms of advancing reforms to streamline administration and optimize public services, and the pace of opening-up is accelerating even amid the global pandemic. In 2020, China reduced import tariffs on selected goods while the Foreign Investment Law has been officially implemented. Meanwhile, the country's new development paradigm of "dual circulation" encourages domestic and foreign markets to complement each other, creating a better business environment to spur higher-quality development.

4. What are your expectations for China's further reform and opening-up?

I believe that with the government's commitment to promoting higher standards of opening-up, we can expect a stronger business environment that is market-oriented, law-based and internationalized, reinforcing China's attractiveness to foreign enterprises and investments.

5. How do you view your company and the industry's performance in China this year?

As a global consulting firm operating in 35 different countries and with China representing one of our most important markets, we are facing many challenges just like many other international enterprises this year. Our business is slowly returning to normal through global collaboration and mutual support, and our clients continue to keep their faith in us.

Proximity to our clients is the key, and our consultants work hand in hand with them to jointly develop new approaches, to help them steer through this crisis and regain business confidence. As management consultants, we hope to create impact for our clients to achieve sustainable business success – both on how to navigate the crisis, and more importantly how to prepare for a ramp-up in the post-pandemic era.

6. Do you plan to deepen your company's footprint in China next year? If so, how?

China represents a critical part of our global footprint, and we have strong confidence for the great potential and resilience of its economy. Therefore, we will commit to continuing our sustainable and robust growth in China and serving our local and international clients here to achieve business excellence together. In order to provide our clients with new solutions to manage disruption and transformation in China, we will focus on our core values – empathy, entrepreneurship and excellence. Continuous emphasis on innovation and solutions, and the care of our people will be crucial to strengthening our resilience.