First time business trip to China: what are best customs + practices, what to expect, etc?

[Ruben von Zwack]

Hi all,

 

I am helping a colleague organise her first business trip (and first trip ever) to China, Shanghai in specific. I have been to China a few times, but always for leisure and never for business, so I am not sure what the best practices and customs are in that context. It will be the first "real life" meeting of our company + them. Maybe some of you can tell me what to expect and if, or how, we should prepare?

 

When clients from the US visited us, they brought everyone a little gift. But that was an exception. Most of the time, even if someone flies in in from afar, we don't even take them for dinner after work, just call them a taxi and send them to their hotel room, and that's it. Same (=just routine) when someone from us visits partners in London or Paris.
How will it be with Shanghai, from your experience?

Thanks!

[Lu]

Your colleague will be taken on lunches and dinners, that's for sure. Chinese business people want to hang out with their business partners. It says so in all the how-to books and it's actually true. Some people like to 'test' foreign guests with weird food; some like to treat them to weird food (I was offered something with foie gras last time. Did not see that coming, in China), but generally, most food will be normal and also extremely tasty. If colleague has any allergies/things she does not eat, let her hosts know as early as seems reasonable. It's most convenient if colleague can eat with chopsticks. Her hosts can probably get her a knife & fork if she needs them, but it's easier if she can just use chopsticks.

Colleague should get Wechat beforehand and get a little familiar with it, because everyone will want to add her. Used to be that people were advised to get business cards, because everyone in China was always exchanging business cards, but in my (limited) experience business cards have been completely replaced with Wechat. If your colleague happens to have cards, it won't hurt to bring them along though.

Something unexpected will happen: she'll need to give a speech, or have some kind of commitment that suddenly pops up. Best if she can mentally prepare for something to happen and not make plans that can't be moved.

Most people won't speak any English, or perhaps only Yes and No. Perhaps the people she is meeting with do speak English, but people outside on the street won't.

 

That's all from me for now. Others will have more advice.

[Ruben von Zwack]

Thank you Lu!

 

I am really happy to hear this. I'm glad she won't have to eat her first ever dinners in China alone.

I'll ask her about allergies and if she has any, I'll write those down for her in Chinese.

 

Yeah, I won't make plans for her that can't be moved. I was thinking of just giving her a short list of activities and places that I really liked in Shanghai, like sight seeing at the bund, a city tour by bus, the Taiyuan garden, stuff like that where she can spontaneously and easily go by public transport whenever she finds the time.

 

I'll tell her to prepare a few sentences in case a short speech is expected. Let's see see if I can make her memorize them in Chinese ?

 

Should she bring some German treats (Haribos, Christmas cookies, ...) for the new colleagues? 

[Lu]

On 11/13/2023 at 4:08 PM, Ruben von Zwack said:

Should she bring some German treats (Haribos, Christmas cookies, ...) for the new colleagues?

I always find gifts a good idea, so I'd say yes, go for it.

 

The Shanghai metro is easy to use and has lots of English.

[abcdefg]

I would suggest giving your colleague a briefing on baijiu 白酒。Start with: "It is not white wine regardless of what your translation app says."

[Flickserve]

If you pick up the wine glass, and take a sip, your hosts are obliged to take their glasses and drink the glass dry with you. You'll have to finish the glass as well and not refuse.

[cncorrect]

Being yourself may be good enough. As a Chinese person, I saw some foreigners who seemed to be lost in different culture. Just imagining you are a local here may be helpful.

[Flickserve]

On 11/14/2023 at 6:44 PM, cncorrect said:

Just imagining you are a local here may be helpful.

How would they do that on their first visit with no previous experience of visiting China?

[cncorrect]

On 11/14/2023 at 10:07 PM, Flickserve said:

How would they do that on their first visit with no previous experience of visiting China?

I mean the mindset. Not to be an outsider. 不要太把自己当外人。

[Flickserve]

On 11/15/2023 at 2:08 PM, cncorrect said:

I mean the mindset.

If you are Chinese, and someone said to you to have a Jamaican mindset when you go to Jamaica for the first time, you would then ask how to do that…. 
 

Therefore, the question is how to do that?

[tobyiana]

Learn about Karaoke and pool bars. I don't know if that's just where I get dragged to when I'm on my business trips. Or whether that's still normal?

[abcdefg]

On 11/16/2023 at 5:55 AM, tobyiana said:

Learn about Karaoke and pool bars.

 

What is a pool bar? 

[Ruben von Zwack]

Just guessing, to play billiard? 

[889]

A good Chinese name -- a harmonious-sounding name that fits her personality and doesn't look like a phonetic translation -- is important. Her hosts will mentally identify with her more quickly when they see her name in Chinese, and this is where name cards are useful.

 

But make sure her name is chosen by a well-educated native speaker who is sensitive to language.

[abcdefg]

Welcome back @889!

[889]

谢你!

[TheBigZaboon]

Me, too... Always learn somethin' from your posts, so ya gave me a little scare there...

 

Just sayin'...

 

TBZ 

[cncorrect]

On 11/13/2023 at 10:43 PM, Lu said:

Your colleague will be taken on lunches and dinners, that's for sure.

I finally see that the people here want to know something about ‘中国式酒局’: https://zhuanlan.zhihu.com/p/483582744?utm_medium=social&utm_oi=572527068336623616. It is expected to have the business negotiation on the table. That is where the real business happens.

[Ruben von Zwack]

Thank you! My colleague won't go for negotiations though. It's an international project in quite an advanced stage/almost final stage, and she'll be there to perform some specific tasks. 

[Lu]

On 11/18/2023 at 1:18 AM, 889 said:

A good Chinese name -- a harmonious-sounding name that fits her personality and doesn't look like a phonetic translation -- is important. Her hosts will mentally identify with her more quickly when they see her name in Chinese, and this is where name cards are useful.

A good Chinese name also avoids her being called 'Gertrud小姐' or such, when she is actually Ms Müller. On the other hand, it works best if she has a Chinese name she actually answers to, and it's most useful if she intends to come back more often. If this is just a one-off, she can do without.