This article has the potential to impact and influence the manner in which a prospector would go about finding the mountain in question. It (the article) provides some very basic tools for conducting business in China. It not only reiterates the notion that as Americans we must put aside our ethnocentrism, and provides insight into why and how our Chinese counterparts approach and conduct business. If these guidelines are to be taken seriously, it requires us to not only abandon our own methods, but we must become our counterpart in our ideas, thought patterns, and adapt the same motivations for the outcome. The profit potential of the Chinese markets is widely known, but the manner in which to go about tapping those markets has been somewhat of a mystery. The mystery deepens with every failure incurred by what we in the west consider unstoppable giants in our own culture. Never before have companies needed to be more prepared for entering new markets as they must with China. Not being prepared, or being ill prepared to negotiate in China has swift and irreparable consequences. The successful companies are those that have implemented the guidelines (to some extent) outlined in the assigned article.
The author of the article is forthright in making his point that American managers must not expect to use the same techniques that work in the western world and apply them to business in China. Instead, there are some basic guidelines that every reader must understand before attempting to negotiate in China. The first being that American managers, to be successful in China, must first step out of their cultural comfort zone and be open to a new paradigm of thought processes. Eastern and western cultures are on opposite ends of the spectrum, and those culture differences create vast gaps in our belief systems, areas of value, and strange if not uncomfortable methods for obtaining our individual objectives. Successful American companies will accept these differences and learn to use them to their own advantage.
The Dissertation on American Companies & Globalization
American Companies & Globalization American companies working with International companies are rumored to believe it is hurting the U.S. economy by outsourcing jobs to other countries because of cheaper labor. Contrary to widely held public opinion, the expansion of offshore manufacturing and other activities by U.S. based multinational businesses benefits the domestic economy, and has not ...
The second guideline is that a Western businessperson must have clear objectives before beginning a negotiation with the Chinese. Knowing their own objectives should not be confused with needing to dictate the course to be taken to obtain the objective. In fact, remaining flexible is an extremely important attribute that must be maintained at all times.
Thirdly, Conflict should not only be expected, but be used as a tool for encouraging and maintaining dialogue, hence the need to remain flexible. By remaining flexible, the inevitable conflict will not catch the American manager by surprise, but will instead be seen as a progression in the negotiation process. American managers should be comfortable in dealing with conflict and should not let emotion enter the negotiation.
The last technique from the article to be pointed out deals with honour. As with all eastern cultures, honour is an extremely important aspect of everyday life that must be maintained at all times. The most critical commodity to be respected in China is the dignity of your counterpart. If the eastern counterpart losses face, or is on the verge of losing face, the Chinese will cease negotiation and business will be stopped and not be resumed.
To gain additional insight into the Chinese business philosophy, one needs to simply look at the basic underlying influence of their culture, which are the martial arts. The term martial arts, which has become synonymous with self-defense and fighting styles such as Karate or Judo, among others, has its real meaning in the understanding of all forces present in any situation (military or business) and utilizing those forces to your own advantage. As an example, the martial art style of Judo was created by the Chinese thousands of years ago. Its purpose was to perfect the idea of using your opponents strengths (and subsequent weaknesses) against them, without ever yourself throwing a punch or kick. One way this is accomplished is by letting the opponent develop a false sense of superiority, then redirecting the energy of your opponent, contained in the form of a punch or kick, and letting the laws of inertia take over. The momentum of such an energy is increased because your opponent expects (now, more so than before) contact to be made, but by stepping aside or dodging the energy, the momentum of the misdirected energy will throw the opponent completely off balance, thereby making them, in turn, very vulnerable to a counterattack. This basic philosophy is played out in the form of deception when negotiating, as discussed earlier. The false sense of security made possible by means of deception leads to complacency and reduces ones guard against attack, or in this case, negotiation. When the anticipated outcome, brought about by complacency, is instead replaced with a completely unexpected counter-attack, the immediate reaction is based on emotional response, which leads to the downward spiraling ability to control emotion, which in turn reduces the ability to think clearly, which in turn leads to the complete collapse of good judgement and will certainly bring about (partial or complete) defeat.
The Essay on Cross Cultural Negotiations Negotiation Business Training
Cross cultural negotiation is one of many specialized areas within the wider field of cross cultural communications. By taking cross cultural negotiation training, negotiators and sales personnel give themselves an advantage over competitors. There is an argument that proposes that culture is inconsequential to cross cultural negotiation. It maintains that as long as a proposal is financially ...
An American manager must never allow complacency to take the place of caution and down right paranoia when dealing with a Chinese counterpart. The consequences can be devastating.
This article is an excellent tool for getting acquainted with the basic strategies used in the course of Chinese business. I would encourage any reader to use it solely as an outline and then encourage one to read Sun Tzu’s book and also study the military strategies of the Chinese over the centuries, because those same strategies used in victory on the battlefield against foreigners are the same ones being used on the new battlefield of today, called business.
