Culture Shock! Business in China

You currently work for a large multi-national corporation in Canada and have been recently assigned to be transferred to their subsidiary in China for a full year. You have never been to China and do not know the first thing about the culture and its people. Unaware and unprepared you have only the plane ride to fully study the culture and business etiquette of an entire nation. You fear that your questions will not be answered in time:

1) How do you address your chinese counterparts?

2) What are good and bad conversation topics?

3) How do the Chinese view North Americans and vice-versa?

You are concerned that all these unanswered questions will not be answered in time. There are many key elements to consider when working in a foreign country in which one must fully understand the nature of the culture and its people. Failure to do so could potentially cost your associates lost of trust, cost your business millions of dollars and worst yet, cost you your job.

This webquest is designed to help provide foreigners the opportunity to learn more about cultural factors on China in a business perspective. Having a knowledgable understanding about the people you do business with demonstrates to them that you care and feel that they are important and prioritzed. Therefore it is critical to always be on top of the task at hand.