How to Do Business in 12 Asian Countries 4. What will you need to know in 2010 or 2020 to work in Asia? As Hans Koehler pointed out in his Preface, we live in changing times. In this century China and India are changing the economic balance of the world. But many of the cultural tenets presented in Kiss, Bow, or Shake Hands: Asia took hundreds or thousands of years to develop. These stable precepts help us understand why people behave differently around the world, and they will help you to avoid global marketing faux pas | 8 Kiss Bow or Shake Hands Asia Sources of Anxiety Reduction The family school work unit and local community are the basic social structures that give stability to a person s life. There is a strong commitment to the extended family. The state rather than religion traditionally dictated the standards of wisdom morality and the common good. Obedience to parents is integral to a sense of security and stability. Maintaining harmony is vital. Faith in the Communist Party which rules the PRC is abating. Some Chinese look to other ideologies for solace including native and Western religions and organizations such as Falun Gong. While most Westerners view Falun Gong as a harmless physical-fitness cult Beijing has labeled it an ideological threat. The persecution of Falun Gong demonstrates how ruthlessly the government will attack any rival to its power. Issues of Equality Inequality Relative to the general population over billion the number of people who are powerful members of the Communist Party is small. There has always been some concern about inequality in a system in which equality is the purpose but being a member of the party is the only avenue to a position of authority. Free enterprise is purported to breed inequality and uncertainty but there are rapidly increasing areas where it is allowed to flourish. Age is the only noticeable interpersonal indicator of inequality because it is still revered. Women are purported to be equal to men but economic and social inequalities continue. Gender inequality in China also manifests itself in the official one child policy. Because a generation of Chinese were only permitted to have one child many did everything they could to ensure that their child was a boy. Today China has many more boys than girls which presents interesting problems when they reach adulthood. 3 BUSINESS PRACTICES__ Punctuality Appointments and Local Time The work week has generally run from 8 00 . to 5
