Check out the Interview for insights on:

❓ What is different for Cooperation with Chinese?
❓ What is different in the Communication?
❓ How do you deal with misunderstandings and with different understandings?
❓What can be confusing for Europeans when talking to Chinese about processes?
❓ What can be confusing for Chinese when talking to Europeans about processes?
❓ How to deal with “big promises” and non-binding promises
❓ How to draw red lines and make your boundaries clear for the Chinese side

“I think that a lot of cooperation in China needs to be done with a lot of patience and with an open mind. Remember that if you’re cooperating with a Chinese company that does not have extensive international operations they will not necessarily be aware of some of the things that you’re trying to stress and vice versa.
So, in terms of the communication process, I would suggest that everything is made very clear in terms of what you actually mean.
China is one of the few places where I’ve seen so many people ask themselves “What exactly do you mean?” after they finished saying something, because there’s a lot of vague expressions entrenched into the language.
But the other way around also you must understand that it’s equally confusing for the Chinese side. You might think that you’re saying something very clearly but it might not make sense to them – For example when you speak about certain sort of procedures in Europe that have to be done step by step, things like the extents to which due diligence probes into the practices of a company… This is something that I’ve had difficulty explaining to Chinese.” (Ivo Ganchev)