If a person is not focused on being culturally aware, he or she can really struggle to get anything done in a culture that looks at business much differently than his or her culture. As a collectivist nation, the Chinese are focused on the organization. The U.S., as an individualist nation, sees business people that are much more focused on themselves. There is nothing wrong with either choice - they are just different choices based on the cultures from which they are derived. One has to take one's time when doing business in China, because there are so many relationships that need to be built and strengthened. It is not customary (or even probable) to sign a contract quickly, for example (Castle, 2011). If a contract is signed quickly, the terms will be changed later because the Chinese business had no real intention of fulfilling the as-is contract at that...
[ View Full Essay]