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Know Your
Asian Partners
Take time to get to
know your eastern partners
Cultural differences between west and east can
make doing business fraught for those involved,
and leave some westerners baffled. However, if
both parties are prepared to get to know each
other, build trust and be patient, the
relationship can pay dividends.
We had interviewed several western business
leaders from companies in New Zealand and the
US. While seeking their views and input on doing
business in Asia, and particularly Singapore, we
came across several frequently repeated comments
about Asian business culture. As this was not a
major survey involving hundreds of respondents,
the shared views below are not representative –
or even meant as broad generalisations – but
they may shed light on doing business in Asia.
Intangible Aspects
When we asked these westerners why they had
chosen to do business in Singapore, almost all
of them said that they place about 50% of
emphasis on financial and market attractiveness.
The other half of the equation, however, is a
desire to try to understand the reserved Asian
culture and the ‘soft’, intangible aspects of
business and management.
Three frequent comments were heard regarding
Asian business behaviour.
1. “Asians do not always say what they mean,
or mean what they say.” The interviewees
said that they had experienced their Asian
potential customers or partners saying “yes”
when they actually meant “no”. This indirect way
of communication was a source of frustration to
them and often masked the true intent, making
business negotiations slow and sales difficult
to forecast.
2. “Asians do not always say what they know.”
Asian employees may not be as open as westerners
expect them to be during meetings in front of
other colleagues or provide active feedback on
their competitors’ latest moves. This silence
could be from a fear of losing their jobs – or
in case their bosses think that the
competition’s success is a reflection of their
incompetencies. Westerners have learnt that in
such cases they need to ask plenty of questions
– and to communicate that it is acceptable to
let western bosses know what is going on in the
business and marketplace, as this helps in their
decision-making..
3. “Asians do not always say things
directly.” Asian business people do not
always appreciate westerners’ direct, ‘in your
face’ management style and can end up taking
matters personally due to their own
non-confrontational approach to communication.
Or they will use a third party to act as a go
between to communicate to the westerners. One
general manager of a white goods company
remarked that doing business in Asia is like
watching a duck that appears calm and serene on
the surface, but beneath the water is paddling
furiously. And often executives in Asia are
‘paddling’ in a certain direction without having
complete information or knowing the true picture
of the business situation. Long-term
relationships Hence, a lot of questioning and
second-guessing may be required for any western
business people or investors wanting to enter
Asia. They have to make a commitment to get to
know their Asian counterparts and employees, to
sow long-term relationships and be willing to
wait to harvest any results. This may go some
way to explain why some business in Asia takes a
long time to grow – time is needed to read
between the lines, understand hints and
innuendos, observe body language, allow time for
the Asians to know westerners well and earn
trust. Asia is a long-term play but for patient
investors, it is worth the wait.
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