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More About This Title Access to Asia: Your Multicultural Guide to Building Trust, Inspiring Respect, and Creating Long-Lasting Business Relationships
English
Access to Asia presents a deeply insightful framework for today's global business leaders and managers, whether traveling from Toronto to Taipei, Baltimore to Bangalore, or San Francisco to Shanghai. Drawing from her extensive experience and global connections, author Sharon Schweitzer suggests that irrespective of their industry, everyone is essentially in the relationship business. Within Asia, building trust and inspiring respect are vital steps in developing business relationships that transcend basic contractual obligations. Readers will find in-the-trenches advice and stories from 80 regional experts in 10 countries, including China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, and Korea.
- Discover the unique eight-question framework that provides rich interview material and insight from respected cultural experts
- Track cultural progress over time and highlight areas in need of improvement with the Self-Awareness Profile
- Learn the little-known facts, reports, and resources that help establish and strengthen Asian business relationships
Effective cross-cultural communication is mandatory for today's successful global business leaders. For companies and individuals looking to engage more successfully with their counterparts in Asia, Access to Asia showcases the critical people skills that drive global business success.
English
SHARON SCHWEITZER, JD, is an intercultural consultant and international etiquette expert to current and future leaders within Global 2000 and Fortune 50 companies. As the founder of Protocol & Etiquette Worldwide, her work and travels have taken her to all seven continents and over 60 countries. She has over 20 years' experience providing consulting and training to more than 100,000 attorneys and corporate executives in law firms and global corporations. Sharon's law practice, during her earlier years as an employment attorney, involved cultural dynamics between employees and management. She has delivered presentations and workshops for Charles University, Prague; The Ohio State University; and The University of Texas at Austin. Sharon speaks French and some Czech. She is a popular radio and TV guest as well as a sought-after conference speaker, columnist, and blogger. Connect with her at www.sharonschweitzer.com.
LIZ ALEXANDER, PhD, is the multiple awards-winning author of 15 books and acts as book strategist and consulting co-author to business leaders, entrepreneurs, and consultants worldwide. She is also co-founder of boutique consulting firm Leading Thought, directing her gifts and passion to helping aspiring thought leaders harness strategically valuable, actionable insights to grow their businesses and boost revenue. She can be reached at liz@drlizalexander.com.
English
Foreword xv
About the Authors xvii
Acknowledgments xix
Introduction xxi
A Journey of Passion xxii
From Etiquette to Intercultural Exchange xxii
A Questioning Framework xxiii
Why These Asian Countries? xxiii
How This Book Is Structured xxiv
Self-Awareness Profiles xxiv
Business Is Relationships xxv
From Theory to Practice xxv
Chapter 1 A Question of Culture 1
Why This? Why Now? 6
Who Are “Americans”? 7
Chapter 2 Exploring Country Cultures 9
Thinking Is Not Universal 11
Relationships Are Dynamic 12
Chapter 3 United States of America 27
Introduction 28
Quiz 28
Country Basics 29
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 34
Eight-Question Framework 43
Cultural Summary 52
Self-Awareness Profile 52
The Journey Continues . . . 53
Chapter 4 Overview of Concepts and Terms 55
Chapter 5 China 67
Introduction 68
Quiz 69
Country Basics 69
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 75
Eight-Question Framework 84
Cultural Summary 93
Self-Awareness Profile 93
Chapter 6 Hong Kong 97
Introduction 98
Quiz 99
Country Basics 99
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 104
Eight-Question Framework 113
Cultural Summary 120
Self-Awareness Profile 121
Chapter 7 India 123
Introduction 124
Quiz 125
Country Basics 125
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 131
Eight-Question Framework 139
Cultural Summary 147
Self-Awareness Profile 147
Chapter 8 Japan 151
Introduction 152
Quiz 153
Country Basics 153
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 159
Eight-Question Framework 167
Cultural Summary 177
Self-Awareness Profile 177
Chapter 9 Malaysia 181
Introduction 182
Quiz 182
Country Basics 183
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 188
Eight-Question Framework 198
Cultural Summary 205
Self-Awareness Profile 206
Chapter 10 Myanmar 209
Introduction 210
Quiz 211
Country Basics 211
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 217
Eight-Question Framework 225
Cultural Summary 233
Self-Awareness Profile 233
Chapter 11 The Philippines 237
Introduction 238
Quiz 239
Country Basics 239
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 245
Eight-Question Framework 252
Cultural Summary 258
Self-Awareness Profile 259
Chapter 12 Singapore 261
Introduction 262
Quiz 262
Country Basics 263
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 269
Eight-Question Framework 276
Cultural Summary 282
Self-Awareness Profile 283
Chapter 13 South Korea 285
Introduction 286
Quiz 287
Country Basics 287
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 293
Eight-Question Framework 303
Cultural Summary 309
Self-Awareness Profile 310
Chapter 14 Taiwan 313
Introduction 314
Quiz 315
Country Basics 315
Business Culture, Etiquette, and Customs 321
Eight-Question Framework 329
Cultural Summary 336
Self-Awareness Profile 336
Chapter 15 Summary 339
Bibliography 343
Books 343
Online Resources 348
Contributors 351
Index 359
English
Kirkus *starred review*
This outstanding guidebook plies the cultural waters of Asia and offers insider tips for developing successful business relationships.
Intercultural consultant Schweitzer and consultant/author Alexander (# Thought Leadership Tweet, 2012, etc.) have crafted an invaluable reference guide that is comprehensive and fascinating. Using a consistent approach, the authors offer details about 10 countries, including a historical overview, the names of heroes and sports figures, foods, business protocols, etiquette for socializing, and more. Each chapter also has an ingenious “self-awareness profile,” a simple one-to-six scale so the reader can gauge the nuances of certain cultural aspects. The authors map the scale to“the prevailing cultural preference”; in the case of doing business in Japan, for example, the cultural tendency is to be “highly formal” (six on the scale) rather than “very informal” (one on the scale). The ranking provides key intelligence to a businessperson in light of his or her own cultural bias. Interestingly, the authors begin with an overview of the United States of America, both to demonstrate the book’s framework as it relates to the subsequent countries and to offer guidance to readers who might wish to do business in the USA. The remainder of the book covers China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. The insights offered could only be the result of a deep understanding of each country’s cultural attributes, so to validate the content, the authors wisely called upon numerous country experts, who are acknowledged in the back of the book. Details both broad and specific paint a rich, unique picture of each country. Readers learn, for instance, that in China, “decisions are made as a group rather than individually.” In Japan, “gifts (omiyage, or honorable presents) are a crucial element and expected on almost all business occasions.” In the Philippines, personal hygiene is vital because “Filipinos shower several times a day.”
Beautifully constructed and expertly written in straightforward language; will make it far easier for anyone to navigate the cultural differences of doing business in Asia.
