When foreign companies want to do business in China their first priority tends to be aimed at finding an eligible partner. All attention is focused on a quickly drawn up ideal list concerning all the requirements which a Chinese partner should meet and next one starts searching.
Other considerations that could be of importance in order to do business successfully, such as an appropriate location, are under such circumstances usually almost completely beyond the scope. If only the partner meets the requirements set, the rest becomes irrelevant. Then the negotiations will start after which at some point an agreement will come into being, preferably with a solid and tight co-operation contract. The demands and requirements made from the side of the local government and other relevant authorities with regard to the co-operation with a foreign company is in this view only a matter of the Chinese partner himself.
This approach will most likely not lead to any significant result in a society where personal relationships are still more than extremely important. Sooner or later one gets deadlocked with respect to doing business if one takes an attitude of keeping business contacts as much as possible confined to the Chinese partner only.
Apart from frequent contacts with the Chinese partner, one is well advised to visit from time to time the (business) relations and when necessary relatives as well, exchanging ideas, preferably in a less formal way. By doing so, one gets better informed about the circumstances in which the partner operates, one will find out what is expected from the foreign partner in this case, and it is easier to get things done on important issues, thereby making operational management successful.
Yujie Services comes each month with a premise that focuses upon a certain aspect of the Chinese business culture where things may go wrong.
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