When in China Do as the Chinese Do

Abstract

Before embarking on the adventure of doing business in China, in my opinion it would be beneficial for expatriates to familiarize themselves a little with Chinese history (at least recent Chinese history) as socio-political factors have affected not only Chinese people and their mindset, but also how expatriates have been able to interact and operate within the Chinese context. Every decade in China since the 1960s seems to have been characterized by very different types of expatriates, operating in distinct social and business contexts. Most expats have only read about the Cultural Revolution, which took place from the mid-1960s to the mid-1970s, and this time saw very few truly pioneering foreign businesspeople in China. Those early years were difficult for foreigners going to the Middle Kingdom: very little information was available on doing business in China, the linguistic and cultural barriers seemed even higher than today, and the Chinese often ostracized expatriates. On the other hand, the small number of Western players in the country meant great opportunities for most of them. The Middle Kingdom started truly opening up to foreigners in the early 1980s, when the expatriate community was very close-knit, everyone knew everyone, and foreigners were in most cases required to reside in ‘golden ghettos’ of expatriate compounds and hotels.

Tell me and I’ll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I’ll understand.

Chinese proverb