Reflection on an actually exciting trip to China

Another wonderful trip to China came to an end, and I am writing this post targeting to share some of what I experienced to anyone that is working or is interested in international management and cross cultural communication.

Make no mistake, I am not an expert in Chinese culture nor am I in any other culture. I am only passionate about international management and enthusiastic in embracing the adventures that come along with it. I am very lucky that till today I had the opportunity professionally to cooperate with numerous nationalities.

How to improve communication across different cultures

To work towards achieving a global mindset and to improve your cross cultural emotional intelligence, you need to be exposed as much as possible to different cultures and make a genuine effort to connect and to motivate other cultures. In order to succeed, you need to be sensitive to the local cultures and try to understand the cultural stereotypes. What works well with one culture will not work with another. This is important for the performance of a team when you are part of a diverse team, or when you are dealing with international customers. It is not only having the confidence to deal with a different culture, but you need to make sure that you adapt, including your body language and speech that should match the different culture. It is very beneficial to concentrate and think ahead how you will be able to connect with the new culture before the meetings.

Make sure that during the meetings you are present, and look for the spoken and unspoken communication. It doesn’t matter which nationality you have at the other side of your table, make sure to read facial expressions, gestures, touching, posture, and tone of voice. You need to read the room if you want to succeed in communication. Practice a bit, and you will be amazed from what you can read around you. If there is something you don’t understand or you are not able to analyze, simply ask your local partner. Use open body gesture and talk with the palms up to signal welcoming and trust.

Do you agree with me in this one?

Five practical etiquette tips for doing business in China

1. It is important to be proper professionally dressed to show status, and you can ask your local partner prior a meeting or dinner, how to be dressed. In some of the south provinces of China, the outer appearance is not important.
2. Exchange business cards like everywhere in the world. Make sure you give and receive the card using both hands. When you receive the card spend some seconds to read it, as the Chinese do.
3. It is a huge advantage to be able to say some very basic words in Chinese, when you meet new people in a meeting as they appreciate it a lot. Also when you have to speak in a larger audience, it is a simple entry point to get connected and be welcomed by the audience.
4. Dinner

• Always wait to be appointed where to sit in the table. This is my favorite part as once I wanted to tease them, and then immediately someone said ‘Alex, no, you sit here!’
• Chinese expect you to try the different foods that are on the table. Remember the important is to show them that you try. If you are the main guest on the table, the host will rotate the table in front of you, so that you try from each single dish.
• Don’t be surprised if it feels like the whole menu is on the table (the menu looks like a book because it contains pictures with the food), as this is done to please the guests.
• Drinking can be difficult sometimes, when they offer you the local alcohol ‘Baijiu’, and you need to participate in every toast. In Chinese the word ‘ganbei’ is used which means bottoms up. Almost every person on the table will come to toast in person with you. In one of the dinners, the host asked me ‘shall we drink white wine’? And I replied yes. I was expecting white wine, but then instead ‘Baijiu’ showed up on the table, and I asked again ‘didn’t you say white wine?’, and the reply was ‘yes, this is white wine!’.
• In general you will notice that the whole day anywhere you go, you are offered tea which is the equivalent of water. Chinese prefer to drink hot water.
• Some provinces use specific rules for where to sit on the table. The most important guest will sit on the right side to the host, and the second most important guest on the left side. During toasting, you might have to do three rounds of ‘bottoms up’ with the host, and then another three with the second host, as part of the tradition.
• When someone toasts to you and they keep the glass with both hands or with the second hand below the glass, this is done to show respect, and during the toast, the glass is kept at a lower position than yours.

5. Meetings

• Depending from the level of the attendants from your company, the Chinese will bring high level ranked people or not in the meeting.
• During the meeting usually only the highest rank from the Chinese side will speak, unless if someone else is asked by them.
• Most of the times you can hear the mobile phones ringing during a meeting and they pick up the phone as normal.
• Be punctual in meetings. I have been impressed by the punctuality.
• The handshake is not as strong as it is in the West.
• You will be appointed where to sit.

What is important for doing sales in China?

I asked our sales leader, which advice would you give me as a foreigner if I want to sell to a Chinese customer?

1. He mentioned the most important is your personality. If they don’t like you, they will not do business with you.
2. Be honest.
3. A good product is necessary.
4. Last one comes the price.

Fundamentals how to convince global customers

1. Know the global & local market, be an industry expert, know your competition (weaknesses and strengths) and know what is the unique value your products bring to the customer.
2. Connect with the customer. If you don’t connect, it will be more difficult to influence.
3. Talk with passion, as this reflects in the way you talk and it is visible in your eyes.
4. The customer’s problems are my problems. Think of customers as you are working in the same company together, and what can you achieve together as one.

Any other recommendations?