The Businessman
A friend and I were sitting over beers at a cafe when a casually-dressed Chinese guy approached and said, "mind if I join you?". I praised his English and asked how he learned the American vernacular so well. He said, "Oh, I lived in New York for eight years- got my Masters degree at Queens College". He told us his life story: grew up in Kunming, got a degree in computer science "before the dot-coms crashed", moved to New York, then Singapore, and finally back to China, where he lives and works in Hangzhou. He had come back to Kunming to celebrate Spring Festival with his mother.
He described at length the differences in conducting business in New York, Singapore, and China. The one atmosphere he disliked most? Singapore. "In Singapore," he said, "everyone just works and works and works. Weekends too. Everyone talks about business, and only the rich can really afford to have a social life,". He found it hard to make friends- the Singaporeans were "cold". Moving to Hangzhou was a relief.
My Australian friend, who recently launched an internet hotel-booking business in Kunming, asked him what the business climate in China was like. "In China," he said, "everything revolves around PRC. Do you know what that means?"
"The People's Republic of China?" I guessed, fatuously.
"Haha, the other meaning is Patience, Relationships, and Compensation". First, patience is required. He described how nothing could be decided in just one meeting. A business meeting usually turned into dinner, then another dinner, and then perhaps a karaoke session. And then, he said, "they might be willing to work with you".
Relationships, as foreigners soon learn in China, matter far more than they do in the West. Without the presence of 关系, very little can get done. Know the right people, and previously impenetrable barriers magically disappear. For a Kunming native new to Hangzhou, making the right connections took time.
Yet despite some difficulties with work, he still preferred China's overall business climate to that of Singapore. The Chinese are able to relax and have fun, qualities largely lacking in their equatorial cousins. Despite a developed market economy and a long capitalist tradition, Singapore seemed to lack the vibrance of still-Communist China.
"So would you say China's society is more open than Singapore's?" I asked.
"Oh absolutely. Are you kidding? This place is a dream."
