China Partner

So far everybody was convinced that Chinese are better in copying than inventing. That is changing dramatically. China is very concious about having to develop their own products if they want to get away from their cheap image.

The government is inforcing that direction. Producer of simple mass products have to move to the hinterland of the middle kingdom. This also ensures a transfer of knowhow to the “backyard”, and – giving the population there a chance of work – helps to reduce the flow of migrants into the big cities. Along the highly developed coast only enterprises are accepted, which go for a higher value creation. The result of that movement is that Chinese companies get more and more copied in their own country. The only way of preventing this is in registering their innovations through patents.

The German newspaper “Spiegel Online” reported in February 2010, that China has registerd 3910 patents last year and is holding place 8 of the global list now. Number 1 in registering of patents is the US with 50.000 applications, followed by Japan with 27.000 and Germany with 17.000. Then comes South Korea, France, the UK, the Netherlands and China.

This comment from John Authers, the FT’s investment editor is very enlightening!

What China bubble?

More and more Chinese parents find it difficult to understand their children. The problem is not the language, but the different mentality! They have done their share, because antiauthoritarian education is the norm these days. Or they let the grandparents take care of the kids. Worldwide grandparents are much more relaxed as parents … Psychologically seen, I feel that the experience from the cultural revolution works on a deeper level, making them prioritize on themselves!

The generation of the 80ies is much better educated than their parents. That leads to the kids looking down upon their parents, not always taking their opinions seriously. The Chinese 40+ believe e.g. that Westerners are more skilled. The young Chinese observe very critically, whether we do really better.

The generation of the 90ies or the internet generation is the first to go through puberty. They show the same behaviour as we do. Chinese parents are quite annoyed about that and address them as “our little egoists”.

The Chinese youth thinks and acts differently from former generations. They don’t just adjust or accept the group or the elders saying. They have very clear and ambitious targets: to become as fast as possible boss and earn lots of money. If they don’t see that career or if the workload is too heavy, they quickly leave the company. The question therefore is: what possibilities do we foreign companies have to find well-educated man power and keep them?

Find out more in the next blog!

Since January 6, 2010, I’m once more travelling through China, getting inspired and shocked by the many impressions of this fascinating country!

The modern and open coastal cities are opposite to the more simple hinterland. At the back fo the marble and shining facades of the 5 star hotels you find small streets, which are partially destructed, but not yet cleaned. The youth wears a very special hairstyle (the hair saloons are just fantastically made up!!!) and the old generation still walks around in pyjamas.

The infrastructure of China improves very fast, which allows the population of the North and West to access the cities with their products. I often get the feeling to walk from the 21st century back to the middle ages and back again to hightech future land. Still, the differences between rich and poor, cities and countryside rise steadily. To get in control of these potential dangers takes a lot of focus, energy and time from the local and central government.

Additionally there is the power shortage. When I was in Beijing I heard that there is only a maximum of 10 days power supply (and that at minus 20 degrees!). That issue and the spoiled generation of little princes and princesses might be something that hinders or partially stops the development of China.

I admire the steady “development of one step after the ofther” of China and therefore hope to see the country find special ways to deal with these topics!

May all your wishes come true in the new year, and be 2010 full of success and health!

In the last Harvard Business Manager Review (9/2009) a 3 year’s research was introduced that focused on the “old” views we have on China in Europe. The most important mistake of us is to think that Chinese think longterm and are group people = fit for a team. Whoever works in China knows that the opposite can be the truth: short term wins motivate, Chinese “little emperors” have to succeed in daily competition!

The discussion about the last symposium before the bookfair shows what lies behind this biggest thinking mistake of us Westerners: **either** we are patient with China **or** we have to push our views accross, either China is a capitalist country or a communist. **This “black or white thinking” is our mistake!** The most known symbol of Chinas old culture is Yin & Yang. It shows the chinese way of thinking: China is everything we think and much much more. China can be communist and capitalist at the same time, very modern and advanced as well as under developed. The Chinese society has gone through the 20th century within the last 30 years: it’s normal to see a hippie besides a punk or yuppie.

**China challenges our way of thinking. It’s time for us to learn in terms of “and”, “as well”!** And entertain a real dialogue, where it’s possible to state our point of views as well as listen to the Chinese opinions, share ideas, develop solutions for the future!

When I was giving workshops in China this August, I had many possibilities of encountering the new working generation and to get to know their perspectives better. They were born in the 80ies and have experienced “the way up” of China. They have grown up in the time that is best described by the slogan “higher, faster, better”. The many Chinese that access the market at the same time leads to a huge competition, which requests a high performance to stand out of the crowd. Improved teaching systems and the access to worldwide information as internet users lead to a better and more critical judgement of events in their own country as well as abroad.

These changes lead to the 80ies

1. feeling superior to their parents which leads to more controversial discussions and
2. requesting more from potential employers.

They expect exiting work content, a fast career and a salary increase which is unknown in Europe. Patience might have been a virtue in former times – the 80ies would like to increase the pace of change as they find it too slow! They talk of the **years until 35 as their “trial & error” time**. Until the age of 35 they expect to make as many experiences in different companies and diverse jobs to then decide which company to stay at, marry and get a child.

On September 22, the Chamber of Commerce Frankfurt will hold a 1 day event on **Sourcing in China**.

More information under

This workshop in German takes place on September 15 from 9.30 am to 6pm at the Communication Center of the Cologne Bank.
My colleague Edgar Wang and I will talk about

* how to establish business relationships,
* how to collaborate successfully with colleagues and staff
* how to negotiate and solve conflicts effectively.

You are welcome to register under

That was a question, I encountered during the last 10 training days from Nanjing to Suzhou to Shanghai.

First, the question puzzled me. In my experience, Germans trust very easily (sometimes too easily). In fact, if you work for the same company, you believe in what your colleagues tell you. Should we notice, however, that one information was not true, we start to be on our guard. If we encounter a second lie, we definitely mistrust the person that brought the information. In this case, it’s very hard to re-install a trusting relationship.

I was told by several Chinese that they, in order to convince (in their eyes) stubborn and arrogant Germans, started to say: “That’s the Chinese government’s request”, “That’s the law in China”. If that is not really the truth, and your German counterpart finds out, you might be in deep trouble!

To establish trust when coming from different cultural and educational backgrounds is not easy. We trust people who use the language the same way. That’s definitely not what happens naturally when Germans and Chinese collaborate. Therefore, more effort has to be put into getting aware of the other’s way of using language, of finding good ways in adapting to some of the other’s structures, and of communicating frequently with your counterparts.