China Myths China Facts
Páginas: 4 (888 palabras)
Publicado: 21 de febrero de 2013
www.hbr.org
IDEA WATCH CULTURE
China Myths, China
Facts
by Erin Meyer and Elisabeth Yi Shen
•
With compliments of...
Reprint F1001B
IDEA WATCH CULTURE
China Myths, China Factsby Erin Meyer and Elisabeth Yi Shen
Chinese business culture is unique, but not in all the ways outsiders tend to assume. To identify
the most common myths, we interviewed dozens of North Americanand European expats as well
as some Chinese managers now working in the West, all of whom have spent at least three years
doing business in China. Our research uncovered three principal myths,perpetuated informally
through stereotypes and formally through management-training programs.
Anyone working with the Chinese will find a multifaceted, fast-changing culture. As one respondent notes,managers can tap Eastern and Western strengths alike by learning the nuances of both
business cultures and developing the flexibility to work in either one. “The Chinese will often pop
in to see you withno appointment,” says one executive. “I’ve learned I can do this, too. If I have 30
minutes to spare, I just make a quick call from a taxi and visit someone working in the area.”
COPYRIGHT © 2009HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Myth 1: Collectivism
Reality: Individualism
Wei Chen, a Chinese manager in Paris’s luxury goods sector, attributes the rise inindividualism to citizens’ suppression for many generations: “As a child I was punished for
stepping out of the box and told to ‘be average.’ But we have left this mentality with a passion. InChina, we are so eager to move ahead.
Westerners often feel our style is pushy and
aggressive.” An executive at a Canadian pharmaceutical company points out, “There is an
intense self-interest [inChina]—more important than company, community, or nation. It is
like nothing I have experienced in the West.
The U.S. is generally considered the most individualistic part of the world, but it has...
IDEA WATCH CULTURE
China Myths, China
Facts
by Erin Meyer and Elisabeth Yi Shen
•
With compliments of...
Reprint F1001B
IDEA WATCH CULTURE
China Myths, China Factsby Erin Meyer and Elisabeth Yi Shen
Chinese business culture is unique, but not in all the ways outsiders tend to assume. To identify
the most common myths, we interviewed dozens of North Americanand European expats as well
as some Chinese managers now working in the West, all of whom have spent at least three years
doing business in China. Our research uncovered three principal myths,perpetuated informally
through stereotypes and formally through management-training programs.
Anyone working with the Chinese will find a multifaceted, fast-changing culture. As one respondent notes,managers can tap Eastern and Western strengths alike by learning the nuances of both
business cultures and developing the flexibility to work in either one. “The Chinese will often pop
in to see you withno appointment,” says one executive. “I’ve learned I can do this, too. If I have 30
minutes to spare, I just make a quick call from a taxi and visit someone working in the area.”
COPYRIGHT © 2009HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL PUBLISHING CORPORATION. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Myth 1: Collectivism
Reality: Individualism
Wei Chen, a Chinese manager in Paris’s luxury goods sector, attributes the rise inindividualism to citizens’ suppression for many generations: “As a child I was punished for
stepping out of the box and told to ‘be average.’ But we have left this mentality with a passion. InChina, we are so eager to move ahead.
Westerners often feel our style is pushy and
aggressive.” An executive at a Canadian pharmaceutical company points out, “There is an
intense self-interest [inChina]—more important than company, community, or nation. It is
like nothing I have experienced in the West.
The U.S. is generally considered the most individualistic part of the world, but it has...
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