Seeing China for what it really is...
I am sure you have been told many times that the Chinese will do whatever it takes to avoid confrontation in business negotiations, is incapable of saying no and will run circles around the simplest of question marks that could easily have been settled quickly with a simple NO.
Well, in my experience, the Chinese are more than capable at saying no, and the further north you find yourself in China the easier it gets…
Seeing China for what it really is...
Firstly, it is not unique to China… Everyone does the same thing all over the world, but there it is called it lobbying, doing business with an old classmate, serving on boards of friends’ companies… It is all the same thing… A network established for the enrichment of the network and its members, but in China it sometimes presents itself in a more ugly way and to the detriment of gullible foreigners.
If someone tells you they have great guanxi and can help you make your business deal I have only one advice:
Seeing China for what it really is...
How many times have someone told you that they know how to do business in China and tried to sell some consulting type service in the process?
I suggest you ask them where in China they mean… There is a vast difference in doing business in different regions in China, between 1st tier, 2nd tier and 3rd tier cities and even within the larger cities there are differences.