In September 1997 the central government transferred Miao to the government-owned Dongfeng Motor Corporation to lead its turnaround effort. Then China's second-biggest carmaker, Dongfeng had 120,000 employees and lost over 500 million yuan in 1998.[1] Miao implemented radical reforms at Dongfeng, adopting Western management methodology and establishing alliances with foreign carmakers Nissan and PSA Peugeot Citroën.