Zhang Ruimin (張瑞敏)

 Company: Haier Group (海爾集團(tuán))

Industry: Home appliance

Position: CEO

Age: 62

Zhang Ruimin is considered one of the most influential and respected business figures in Asia for his work in turning Haier, a little-known, bankrupt refrigerator manufacturer, into the world's fourth-largest white appliances company during the past 15 years. He combined Western management experience with traditional Chinese philosophy and created a new management model not only for Haier but for many other Chinese companies. In 2010, Haier's revenue reached 140.53 billion yuan (US$22.11 billion), and achieved a profit of 4.52 billion yuan (US$712.39 million).