Business Management in Mainland China

Above: Beijing Botanical Garden has ISO9000 and ISO14000 certificates. They also have this tall formalistic artwork Zhuo Sheng (Grow Strong) by Mitsuaki Sora, 2002. It reminded me about Chinese business management. Photo gallery below.


Business Management in Mainland China
FOREIGNERS NEEDED IN CHINA

In a Beijing seminar last week it was estimated that China has about 3000-5000 professional managers. During the next 3 years China will need 75000 managers more.

CHINESE MANAGERS
Chinese who work in foreign companies often think, that managerial position means just fame and good compensation. After being appointed to managerial position, reality opens. Fighting for company goals would be preferred but Chinese managers often end up to game play on how to keep their position. Key reasons:

1. Capabilities and vision
2. Responsibility
3. Balance between internal relationships

Why is it especially hard for a Chinese to be a manager? Like everywhere, new managers might find it challenging to handle their position. But in China there are extra complexities.

ENERGY & BALANCE
Chinese managers need to use big part of their energy to balance between their internal relationships. That can become time consuming part of manager's job, meaning company's business becomes lower priority.

FAILURE in balancing between internal relationships has serious consequences. Chinese work for their manager rather that their company. Chinese teams may have members who want to leave their Chinese manager more than their company. Message at that seminar was that 40% of Chinese professionals have prepared better offer from another company. Other top reasons for leaving were limited opportunities, lack of recognition, and compensation.

In many business roles Chinese are much better fit than foreigners. Doing sales is such, mainland Chinese customers are not comfortable with foreigners. Chinese sales person knows how to build and take care of Guanxi, relations and can master customer treats in local way.

GUANXI - RELATIONS
Guanxi is deep-rooted in mainland Chinese culture. It is much more than connections or networking. It is the basic construction element of social structure in China. Now Guanxi has become part of Chinese market economy while in the hard core of Chinese business culture.

For Chinese managers it is only natural to build and use Guanxi also inside their organization, not only with their customers and with their partners.

In Chinese SOEs Guanxi dominates inside the company and in the business. In foreign MNCs, Guanxi is used towards external directions like sales or partnerships, but internally western rational way should dominate. In Chinese privately owned companies level of Guanxi varies but mainlander owned/run companies Guanxi rules.


Epilog
CHINA NEEDS FOREIGNERS FOR EFFICIENT BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

Chinese have tolerance and they accept if foreigners behave differently. This gives foreign managers the advantage:

- Making direct questions
- Demanding clear communication and reporting
- Having harder push towards project milestones
- Priority of the business goals

Foreign managers need not to master Guanxi, they need not to seek balance between internal relationships, not even if there were several layers of management to communicate with. But foreigners should learn about it, then keep business goals as their priority.

Foreigners can have good contribution in China:

- Financial control
- Partnerships coordination
- Business development
- Sales coordination
- Project management
- HR

REQUIREMENTS FOR FOREIGNERS
To succeed in China, foreigners need to have good professional ethics and carry company values and principles. They should never loose the business focus, efficiency, and speed in decision making.

Foreigners should be eager to learn China market conditions and environment.

They should be willing to communicate and spend time with locals. And patience to repeat their message, just to repeat. Because Chinese are detail oriented, foreigners should use details and minimize conceptual approach in meetings and presentations. They should have and show genuine flexibility and respect towards Chinese people and build trust.

FOREIGNERS AND GUANXI
Foreigners can't and are not expected to handle Guanxi, it's pure Chinese art. For foreigners it's enough to learn about Guanxi but let Chinese work it in sales and partnership.


BeijingMan aka Kippo

List of BeijingMan Postings

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Beijing Botanical Garden
PICTURE STORY - GARDEN WITH ISO9000 and ISO14000

Beijing Botanical Garden is 50 years old. It's located at Western Hills, about one hour drive from Beijing center. These 45 pictures were taken by Canon 20D with EF-S 10-22mm zoom. Click to enlarge.

Above-1: Beijing Botanical Garden has become target for new Chinese car owners. Me first! Big red Chinese character at the gate means good luck.

Above-2: At the entrance Beijing Botanical Garden is carved to stone. Ticket office.

Above-3: Beijing Botanical Garden. Ticket office. Area ticket 10RMB = 1EUR or 1,25USD. Area ticket plus visit to glasshouse 50RMB.

Above-4: Beijing Botanical Garden. Visitors.

Above-5: Beijing Botanical Garden. Visitors.

Above-6: Beijing Botanical Garden. Gimme, gimme!

Above-7: Beijing Botanical Garden. A lot to walk.

Above-8: Beijing Botanical Garden. Symmetric setup.

Above-9: Beijing Botanical Garden. Round setup.

Above-10: Beijing Botanical Garden. Mixed setup.

Above-11: Beijing Botanical Garden. Pink army.

Above-12: Beijing Botanical Garden. DnB team.

Above-13: Beijing Botanical Garden. Bots, or maybe botanical walkers?

Above-14: Beijing Botanical Garden. Ice cream or drinks?

Above-15: Beijing Botanical Garden. Towards the glasshouse.

Above-16: Beijing Botanical Garden. Towards the glasshouse. In 1990s that building was one of top 10 architectures in Beijing.

Above-17: Beijing Botanical Garden. At the glasshouse.
Chinese don't say "Smile", they say QieZi meaning eggplant (munakoiso).

Above-18: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.

Above-19: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.

Above-20: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.
Original Camels.

Above-21: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.
Witnessing uninterruptible focus during no-customers moment.
1/3: View from north.

Above-22: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.
Witnessing uninterruptible focus during no-customers moment.
2/3: View from west.

Above-23: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.
Witnessing uninterruptible focus during no-customers moment.
3/3: View from south.

Above-24: Beijing Botanical Garden. Inside the glasshouse.
Green balls hug was not allowed - blue sign KEEP OFF, PLEASE.

Above-25: Beijing Botanical Garden. Drivers probably got paid based on how many people they managed to transport. Speedy process.

Above-26: Beijing Botanical Garden.
Driver looks like a Fangio, drives a like a Fangio, is he a Fangio!

Above-27: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical visitors.

Above-28: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical visitors.

Above-29: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical visitors. Bridge view.

Above-30: Beijing Botanical Garden. Visitors and views. Bridge view.

Above-31: Beijing Botanical Garden. No swimming, no fishing, no skating.

Above-32: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical visitors.

Above-33: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical garden.

Above-34: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical garden.

Above-35: Beijing Botanical Garden. Botanical garden.

Above-36: Beijing Botanical Garden. Support for new.

Above-37: Beijing Botanical Garden. Support for old. Shufu, shufu.

Above-38: Beijing Botanical Garden. Sunset, soon.

Above-39: Beijing Botanical Garden. Sunset, soon.
Walking around took about 4 hours.

Above-40: Beijing Botanical Garden. Bot? Or maybe a botanical visitor?

Above-41: Beijing Botanical Garden.
DIALOGUE
Bot:
Beijing Botanical Garden has ISO9000 quality system certificate and ISO14000 environmental management system certificate.
What do they mean to you? What's your take?
Tree:
Thank you for coming to see me. Thank you for asking! Most importantly, it is water supply. Now it is regular. No more under mercy of mother nature... And my belt, it's new, looks better! Before ISO certificate, belts had 2" iron nails. 2" is really no fit for me! These nails are more convenient. Shufu as we say.
Bot:
ISO means friendlier stay?
Tree:
Yep! ISO certificates are friendlies!
Bot:
Thank you.

Above-42: Beijing Botanical Garden. No, I am not sitting on one. At this inspiring spot I was thinking about business management in China and Guanxi 2.0 when Chinese globalization part two starts.

Chinese businesses are expanding globally. Will Guanxi, or let's call it Guanxi 2.0 become global business behavior? Chinese will surely try it and it will work in parts of the planet. But will rational western sales-process/buying-process interaction be able to hold? To be seen.


Beijing Botanical Garden
+ One hour drive, Botanical views, flowers and trees
+ Good place to observe Chinese people having fun
+ Near western hills, nice environment
- Arrogantly speeding cars inside the garden, unbelievable!

*** OK TO VISIT BUT VERIFY YOUR INSURANCE FIRST ***


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© BeijingMan aka Kippo 2008, 2009