Why do Chinese state-owned enterprises routinely respond to central-level goals and policies in different ways, and why do their reform trajectories often vary significantly across firms and over time? This book introduces a leadership approach to studying the politics, process, and outcomes of economic reform in China's public sector. Using a series of in-depth case studies, Wendy Leutert analyses the exercise and effects of leadership in Chinese state-owned enterprises. She uncovers the 'intra-organizational politics of reform': the daily dynamics of cooperation and conflict between leaders and their subordinates inside public-sector organizations. She also identifies common tactics that Chinese state-owned enterprise leaders use to execute their agendas and ways their subordinates respond. Updating and expanding existing knowledge, this book highlights the growing global consequences of leadership in Chinese state-owned enterprises and why leadership remains vital for understanding China today. 'This title is an engaging read on the Chinese economy and governance. It is highly recommended, accessible to most audiences, and suitable as an undergraduate textbook.' D. Li, CHOICE An original study of the role of leadership in state-owned enterprises in economic reform in China. Wendy Leutert is Assistant Professor and GLP-Ming Z. Mei Chair of Chinese Economics and Trade at Indiana University. She has a Ph.D. in government from Cornell University, a M.A. in international relations from Tsinghua University, and a B.A. in political science and philosophy from Wellesley College. In 2022 she was awarded the Emerging Scholars Policy Prize from University of Pennsylvania Perry World House and Foreign Affairs.