By Kyle Long

J.P. Morgan’s recent decision to hire Elaine La Roche as its China vice-chairman may have not been a difficult one, given her qualifications as a former chief executive of China International Capital Corporation.

Leading the large, successful, foreign-owned investment banking business left no shadow of a doubt on her capabilities, with many public decisions and achievements made through her run.

But what about companies looking to hire candidates without such an extensive and verifiable paper trail of credentials? Read the rest of “Hiring From the Unknown” or post a comment

By Frank Mulligan

When a company sets up operations in China they appear to be faced with two distinct choices: ‘going local’, or imposing the dominant business culture of their organization.

It’s not an easy choice, and there are no clear cut answers as to which route will bring you the best results. In the absence of a definite conclusion it can become a battle of wills to see which culture will win.

Choose the local culture and you will be in a position to motivate local staff more effectively, but much of the operations of the business will become opaque to non-locals. Things will get done but not necessarily the way the Headquarters wants them to. What you gain in effectiveness, as defined locally, you lose in visibility. Read the rest of “Think Global, But …” or post a comment

By Nannette Ripmeester

In this issue I am venturing beyond European borders to China, a fast growing marketplace. But starting operations in a new market is not easy.Will you move your own people to the new location or will you start hiring locally? And if you hire locally, how do you attract the best candidates and what do these new recruits expect?

Campus recruitment

Kevin Ng, Partner at the Beijing office of Deloitte, is clear about the type of graduates Deloitte targets. “We will only approach the first-tier universities in China to be assured of quality graduates,” he says. “We conduct campus recruitment to introduce our firm and the attributes of graduates we are looking for.” Read the rest of “Eastern Promise?” or post a comment

By Gregory Sy, Grandall Legal Group

V. Termination and ‘Layoffs’

1. Under what circumstances can an employee be terminated without notice?

An employer may terminate an employee without requirement for notice in the following situations:

- during the probation period, if the employee is determined to be unfit for the position;
- employee materially breaches employer’s rules and regulations;
- employee engages in serious dereliction of duty, graft or corruption causing substantial damages to the employer’s interests; Read the rest of “Guide to Employment Law in China – 2008 (Part II)” or post a comment

By Gregory Sy, Grandall Legal Group

I. Employment Law Legislation

1. What legislation governs employment law in China?

Employment law in China is governed by a relatively comprehensive set of laws, more recently supplemented in late 2007 to strengthen workers’ rights.

Major laws include:
- Labour Law of the People’s Republic of China (1994) (“Labour Law”)
- Labour Contract Law of the People’s Republic of China (2007) (“Labour Contract Law”)
- Labour Arbitration and Dispute Resolution Law of the People’s Republic of China (2007) (“Labour Arbitration Law”) (effective May 1, 2008) Read the rest of “Guide to Employment Law in China – 2008 (Part I)” or post a comment