One of the foremost world authorities on trust is Francis Fukuyama of the Rand Corporation. In his definition he refers to trust as “the expectation that arises within a community of regular, honest and co-operative behaviour.” When he discusses the Chinese in a management sense, he says that Chinese have a more difficult time than Westerners to become professional managers because of their inclination to deeply trust only people related to…

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By Navjot Singh

Prior to the conclusion of the twentieth century, Asia’s two largest neighbouring countries, India and China, were, with all due respect, not close in any economic, social or political ways. Relations have been improving since the early twenty-first century following four decades of hostility over a border dispute that resulted in a short conflict in 1962.

Thankfully, with the change of the times, there have been a number of key events to celebrate the re-emergence of Sino-Indian relations. In recent years, the Elephant (India) and the Dragon (China) have established friendship years (2006 and 2007 respectively), joint military exercises, and exchange visits by political figures as well as captains of industry. Economic and political ties have been boosted since the 2006 visit by President Hu Jintao to India, when a myriad of trade agreements were signed. On an equal footing in return, Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh’s first official visit to China in January 2008 was a progression on a similar visit by China’s President Hu to India, as the two nations agreed to pencil down eleven trade agreements which would boost trade to $60 billion by 2010 from the current 2008 level of almost $40 billion. Read the rest of “India and China: Neighbours, Global Economic Powerhouses, and Now Friends As Well” or post a comment

One of the hottest HR activities in China is executive coaching. While the “old China” might consider coaching a remedial process for executives who were failing, it is now being seen more and more as a reward for the best executives to help them progress on a faster track. This article covers the best way to select a coach in China and highlights some of the key competencies to look for in an executive coach here.

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After you have arrived in China, the following are crucial points to consider.

Choose your visiting time wisely
We always try to arrange plant visits at two time slots: 8:30 – 11:00 and 14:00 – 16:00. Compared to normal office times in the West, Chinese plants have different working hours. They start and close earlier and have a longer lunch break. You can only see the production…

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By Greg Bissky

“Don’t be polite? What type of advice is that for dealing with the Chinese? I always heard that the Chinese were very polite people.”

Well, the Chinese are very polite people, but it’s still good advice. Of course you should be polite, just Chinese polite not Western polite. There is a big difference.

First, a brief principle about politeness: The receiver of the action, not the sender, determines whether the action is/is not polite. In other words, when I speak to you, you decide if I am polite, not me. Being polite means adapting to whom you are with and/or where you are. To change an old saying: when in Rome the Romans decide what is polite.

Each culture develops unique rules of politeness and manners. Chinese decide what is polite in China, Westerners what’s polite in the West. It’s just common sense. Or it is until you go to China, try to be polite and you are not. Then it’s confusing. Worse is, the more you try to do everything you know how to be polite the more impolite you become. Then it goes beyond confusing. Read the rest of “Don’t Be Polite With Chinese” or post a comment