Since domestic and multinational corporations are now marketing their products and services around the world, an understanding of intercultural differences has become evident. Managers of multinational corporations and joint ventures have to negotiate, operate, and make strategic plans that adapt to cultural differences in each environment. As business relationships with China increase, management of multinational enterprises and joint ventures are beginning to realize that success may be jeopardized if attention is not paid to cultural differences (Brunner, Koh, & Lou, 1992).

Major differences between the Chinese and the Americans include language, geography, history, religion, and political and economic systems. All of these lead to cultural differences. Cultural differences may be interesting to tourists and to students of culture; but to business people, they are impediments. Differences need to be recognized before they can be understood. Only when we begin to understand the differences can we change our ways, adjust our business practices to accommodate the differences, and finally communicate to our counterparts in a mutually understandable manner.

People's willingness to express themselves and take risks is different. Americans are open-minded, straightforward, and easy-going. They have rich facial expressions, revealing to some extent whether they are happy or unhappy and whether they have done their business successfully or unsuccessfully. Americans can more easily say "no" and are more likely to show their frustrations and anger when things are not working out. In negotiations, Americans can be more than emphatic in their demands; some use drama as a ploy. The Chinese on the other hand, are rather introverted and conservative, and they don't reveal their feelings easily. They treasure something inside. It's hard for them to say "no" if others ask them to do a favor. The Chinese are more subtle and indirect in their behavior. As a result, it's not always easy to tell if they are happy (or agree) with a particular suggestion or part of a negotiation. The Chinese prefer to seem agreeable. Their inclination to avoid disagreements can be problematic. Americans should not assume that a Chinese counterpart has agreed with a negotiation simply because he or she has not "disagreed."

Slate, E. "Success depends on an understanding of cultural differences."

Another difference arises regarding smoking. In China, as more and more business people have started to smoke, businessmen will offer a cigarette to their guests or friends. Not doing so would be considered mean and rude. In the U.S., however, smokers may ask the guest "Do you mind if I smoke?" but generally do not offer a cigarette. Perhaps this is because Americans think they shouldn't be smoking at all or because smokers have their own preferred brands. In China, when a businessperson goes to a company or corporation, the host almost always offers a cup of tea. The Chinese don't care whether the guest drinks the tea or not; but if a guest does not accept the tea, they will continue to offer something else to drink. In the U.S., coffee is sometimes, but not always, offered. If the guest does not want to drink coffee, it is not at all rude to decline and to say "no, thank you."

Americans emphasize verbal skills. Children are trained to participate in school during their childhood, taught to present their ideas, and encouraged to persuade others (even adults) of their point of view. In business, Americans often make oral presentations without any papers in their hands; and if they have a paper, they try not to read it. The Chinese, on the other hand, are accustomed to making their speeches from written pages.

Actually, Americans do not want to waste time eating and prefer to combine meals with business. Business does not start immediately for the Chinese; first, a friendship must be formed. Americans generally try to find something personal to chat about before they conduct their business but have no real interest in making friends in their professional dealings. Although it's not easy to make friends with the Chinese at the very start because they are rather introverted, the friendship is a lasting one when you do become their friend.

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Approximate Word count = 2169
Approximate Pages = 9 (250 words per page double spaced)