Business Culture
Street level businesses face multiple challenges including the need to secure permits and licenses in a society which expects an exchange of favors and benefits at all levels. Establishing, growing and protecting a successful business requires practical street-smarts guided by a market-tested moral compass.
Olya Eastman talks about the nature of business in China. She says the experience of conducting business in China is similar to that in Russia. In both countries “Guanxi”, or “relationships”, are instrumental to conducting business. However, China distinguishes itself thanks to friendly people and a constantly improving level of transparency.
Dr. Hora Tjitra explains how to unlock the potential of multicultural teams in China, which according to his research perform either considerably better or considerably worse than mono-cultural teams, but rarely the same. A deep appreciation of your team's cultural assets can give your company the edge to succeed in China's dynamic market.. He discusses how managers who learn to correctly identify and leverage cultural differences among team members can gain a competitive advantage inside and outside their organization, especially in large, complex projects.
The CEO in China faces two major responsibilities. The first is to explain the local realities to the senior management regionally and at headquarters. The second is to manage government relations in China. Both tasks involve bridging different business cultures and languages. Success or failure hinge on managing both processes well.
China is more efficient and open than it has ever been, but the government still has a heavy hand in the market. No analysis of China’s financial markets is realistic unless it accounts for distortion in favor of government policies and goals. Distorting effects of Chinese business culture and intense government involvement in the market are facts of business life in China. Mr.
Adaptation is the key to success in China. Taking a trusted business strategy from the old-world and copy/pasting it into China would be like taking a dinosaur to a horse race. When entering the China market, Victor Wong recommends that companies “assume they’re going to Mars” and develop completely new tactics and strategies if they expect to survive in China's competitive and constantly evolving market. He focuses on the value of talent, and describes how he prefers building a small, high performance team rather than an army of hundreds.
