Just started working for a company as Director of Quality. One of my main duties is to shore up supplier relations with our factory partners in China. (Mainland and Taiwan). Seems cultural differences will be a HUGE issue and of course language. Luckily we have an "Asian Business Manger" who will be with me in March when I visit these suppliers., she is Chinese.

Anyways...any items you can share as far as Chinese Suppliers goes would be greatly appreciated.:cool:

I am Aaron An, working for an USA based company, named as Briggs&Stratton. But I am a Chinese.
I know the supplier in China mainland has a long distance to go to work with international companies.
I am supplier quality engineer. I have a lot of travel to train supplier with process management, SPC, PPAP, APQP and push project move on time.
If you have need some communications about supplier managment in China. You can directly call me or mail me.

Just started working for a company as Director of Quality. One of my main duties is to shore up supplier relations with our factory partners in China. (Mainland and Taiwan). Seems cultural differences will be a HUGE issue and of course language. Luckily we have an "Asian Business Manger" who will be with me in March when I visit these suppliers., she is Chinese.

Anyways...any items you can share as far as Chinese Suppliers goes would be greatly appreciated.:cool:

Since you would be teamed up by an "Asian Business Manager" and who happens to be a Chinese, all your hurdles and obstacles are removed.

Regarding Chinese suppliers, it depends who your suppliers are - if they belong to a multinational parentage, it should not be a problem. Most reputed suppliers have good quality systems in place and if you communicate in slow conversational English, I do not foresee any problem.

Take a note of the cultural greetings like hello, thank you in Chinese and you could win the Chinese hearts ;) I am an expat staying in China for the last 2 years and day by day, my stay is getting enriched without problems.

Let me know if I can be of any help to you.

Regarding Chinese suppliers, it depends who your suppliers are - if they belong to a multinational parentage, it should not be a problem. Most reputed suppliers have good quality systems in place and if you communicate in slow conversational English, I do not foresee any problem.

Take a note of the cultural greetings like hello, thank you in Chinese and you could win the Chinese hearts ;) I am an expat staying in China for the last 2 years and day by day, my stay is getting enriched without problems.

I agree. I have been setting up factories in and around Shanghai and Jiading for a few years now and the biggest hurdle you face is finding a fluent business manager that understands Western expectations.

I have seen people manage Chinese suppliers in a number of different ways and in my experience, the Chinese, like most people on Earth, appreciate politeness and an effort to adjust to their culture, no matter how small. A little reading around the history of China is always an excellent place to start - who knows you may become a devotee and start to read the Confusius's Analects!

Make sure your expectations are truly understood - test understanding and don't be afraid to ask for samples. Always give clear honest feedback - even with excellent language skills the nuances of English will not be clear to the Chinese (any more than we can hear the different Mandarin tones).

I have built an enormous respect for China and her people. Their willingness to meet your specific needs, coupled with a fantasic work ethic, make them an excellent business partner, especially as you build up your relationships. As long as you are clear and patient and work with your business manager, you should be fine.

I envy you the opportunity, as my job has now changed and I don't get to go to China anymore. :crybaby:

I am Aaron An, working for an USA based company, named as Briggs&Stratton. But I am a Chinese.
I know the supplier in China mainland has a long distance to go to work with international companies.
I am supplier quality engineer. I have a lot of travel to train supplier with process management, SPC, PPAP, APQP and push project move on time.
If you have need some communications about supplier managment in China. You can directly call me or mail me.


Aaron, please don't post your phone number or email. If you set the email and PM on your profile that is sufficient for contact to be made.

............Anyways...any items you can share as far as Chinese Suppliers goes would be greatly appreciated.:cool:

You may want to take a look HERE TOO (http://elsmar.com/Forums/showthread.php?t=13226)

Just started working for a company as Director of Quality. One of my main duties is to shore up supplier relations with our factory partners in China. (Mainland and Taiwan). Seems cultural differences will be a HUGE issue and of course language. Luckily we have an "Asian Business Manger" who will be with me in March when I visit these suppliers., she is Chinese.

Anyways...any items you can share as far as Chinese Suppliers goes would be greatly appreciated.:cool:

I spent 3 weeks in China in Aug 2007 developing Chinese suppliers. Needless to say it is a fantastic experience !! I agree with all that has been said... patience, slow paced speech and yes, do learn a little Chinese beforehand. It breaks the ice and starts building the trust. Do learn to eat with chopsticks (kuatsi - I think that´s how it´s "spelt") The Chinese loved it when we ate only with Chopsticks and refused a knife and fork.

Business lunches and dinners are very interesting. Alot of beer drinking (warm, or cold, it didn´t matter to them)... watch out as there will be lots of Toasts / Cheers... and if you don´t watch out, you´ll think you can speak fluent Chinese after the 10th toast (and it´s not just a sip of the beer, it´s BOTTOMS UP !).

I always had a guy from the Trading company we work for with us that spoke decent English which made things easier.

All in all, do question and ask if they understood, ask for examples and be politely persistant and you should be fine !!

Good advice from Jimmy and Ted. Yes, do question and ask if they understood, ask for examples and be politely persistent. After all, their system really opened up only in the last 30 years or so and many of the smaller set-ups with little foreign exposure do not have a good appreciation of customer and consumer requirements and expectations in the more advance economies.

Another thing... it´s small, but I regret not doing it...

On the reverse side of your business card, print your info in Chinese (if possible)

All business cards I received had English on one side and Chinese on the other... when I handed mine (in Portuguese) they had a puzzled look on their face and quickly turned the card over and looked even more puzzled as it was blank !

Thanks all for your input. I already bought a Chinese english Dictionary...:cool:

I will advise as the time gets closer to my departure just how much Chinese I know..LOL

One more thing... when handing and receiving business cards, receive with both hands, holding your card (and receiving their card) with your thumbs and index fingers... thumbs always up.

Never place their business card in a back pocket... I always leave it on the table right in front of me (whether I´m in China or not) as a sign of respect and also easier to remember someone´s name... :confused:

As per this website (http://www.buzzle.com/editorials/10-16-2004-60519.asp)

Business Card Etiquette in China

•Have one side of your business card translated into Chinese using simplified Chinese characters that are printed in gold ink since gold is an auspicious colour.
•Ensure the translation is carried out into the appropriate Chinese dialect, i.e. Cantonese or Mandarin.
•Your business card should include your title. If your company is the oldest or largest in your country, that fact should be highlighted on your card.
•Hold the card in both hands when offering it.
•Never write on someone's card unless so directed.

I am chinese who have the experience of parts localization in china and I have some experience of doing sourcing and supplier development job. yes you are right , the calture is different in here, but this is not the most inportant chanllenge you will face here. For my experience ,before starting your job here you should be prepared to be nice and having good cooperation attitude because too many foreign engineer always think they are better than chinese colleague, but it is not true in most situation. Not just complain !!!

I am chinese who have the experience of parts localization in china and I have some experience of doing sourcing and supplier development job. yes you are right , the calture is different in here, but this is not the most inportant chanllenge you will face here. For my experience ,before starting your job here you should be prepared to be nice and having good cooperation attitude because too many foreign engineer always think they are better than chinese colleague, but it is not true in most situation. Not just complain !!!

Hello zhangyong,

Welcome to The Cove Forums! :bigwave: :bigwave:

I think that Jimmy the Brit's post #4 in this thread is an excellent summary of how relationships can be developed.

Stijloor.