Tag Archives: WORK IN CHINA

WORK IN CHINA

China’s Overtime Culture: The Real Story on Alibaba’s 996 and Other Working Styles

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In the last year, Alibaba’s 996 culture has been quite the hot topic, perhaps because of how specific the overtime guidelines were, requiring employees to work from 9am to 9pm, six days a week. However, in many respects, these types of overtime are nothing new in China, and have in fact been in practice for many years. I first experienced this over seven years ago, when I first moved to Shenzhen to work in the Chinese tech sector.

I still remember the day, one balmy afternoon in April of 2014, when I crossed the border from Hong Kong into Shenzhen, and began my trip to the Huawei campus where I would work and grow for the next 4+ years. Huawei, then one of China’s more successful tech companies overseas, is a classic example of an environment where overtime could and did thrive, full of ambitious and driven employees looking to build something bigger and better.

However, if one truly wants to understand overtime culture, or really anything about China, it’s vital to look at it from different perspectives and understand how it affects different types of people. And throughout my more than ten years in China, I’ve had the somewhat unique experience of working both for smaller companies and factories in addition to towering multinationals with employees in the tens of thousands.

“The boss says that the good and loyal employee is one who stays till at least 9:00pm…”

Office worker, furniture manufacturer, Jiaxing China

So while I would never claim to understand everything about China’s overtime culture, I feel that at this point I understand a good bit, certainly that’s it’s more complicated than Alibaba’s 996. With this in mind, in the below video, I talk a little more in detail about the types of overtime in China and the true value of the practice.

As I discussed to some extent in the video, trying to conclude that overtime is either good or bad is far too simplistic. Instead, I’d suggest that it is better understood to be a tool that can be used by companies, managers, and employees. While overtime work can indeed help companies grow faster and achieve greater (though not always better) results, it is also a double-edged sword, with as much capacity to hurt as to help.

We often hear stories about inexperienced managers who think that delegating mandatory overtime work is a magic bullet to solve their problems, or that employees staying late is an important indicator of loyalty to the company. But continuous overtime degrades performance and efficiency, and potentially employee morale as well. Knowing when to use a tool and when not to is an important part of being a professional in today’s fast-paced world.

In the end, no matter the positives and negatives of China’s overtime working culture, it is and will continue to be a part of the local work culture. Those who aim to work in China or with Chinese companies would be well-advised to understand the potentially more strenuous work environments they will be becoming a part of. For everyone else, I would simply suggest you take a fuller view of what overtime actually is, not just how it can lead to companies’ and teams’ failures, but also how it can help them grow and succeed.

If you’re interested in learning more about China, Chinese culture, and business in China, please feel free to subscribe to the China Culture Corner to have future posts sent directly to your inbox. You can also follow and interact with me on social media or send me a message on Twitter.

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COMMUNICATION TIPS, VIDEOS ON CHINA, WORK IN CHINA

3 Sacrifices Expats Make By Not Learning Chinese

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Over the last few years, professionals living and working in China have borne witness to an ongoing debate – whether or not foreign expatriates need to learn the Chinese language in order to not just work effectively in China, but to also understand the country, people, and culture.

To a certain extent, it’s quite reasonable for expatriates to ask whether or not they need to learn the Chinese language. While learning Chinese will undoubtedly aid in communication throughout one’s life and career in China, it certainly doesn’t come easy.

It’s also worth noting that in addition to the difficulties of the language, especially when transitioning from other languages such as English, there is also a significant time commitment involved.

When it comes to the basics, which can include difficult tones and rote character memorization, progress can be slow when it comes to developing a solid foundation. So, in the midst of all these potential difficulties, why would expatriates want to sink so much of their time into the Chinese language?

One key reason is that the China we know today is vastly different from the China that existed at the turn of the century. There are fewer expatriate positions available due to the ongoing development of the Chinese economy, which has resulted in an increase in the number of Chinese talent with experience in international markets and the ability to communicate fluently in other languages, especially English.  

Based on my own experience, foreign expatriates wanting to work in China can no longer expect to pick and choose their assignments. Instead, they must be willing to compete for a decreasing number of potential positions, which may also being them into competition with local Chinese talent. This then increases the need for expatriates to adapt and improve their communication skills.

I recently discussed this issue in my latest vlog on China, specifically what I’ve learned from my own experience working in China and with Chinese companies for over ten years. While I don’t feel it is any way a mandatory requirement to learn Chinese in order to work in China, I feel that would-be-expatriates will be making key sacrifices by not being able to communicate in Chinese, namely control, efficiency, and career development. Take a look at the below video to find out more.

All in all, there are many reasons why a foreign expatriate might consider studying the Chinese language. In addition to supporting one’s own work and career, the language can open new doors of possibilities to understanding China, its culture, and its people.

In the end, in an era where the competition, as well as team members, are speaking multiple languages and sporting comparable skills and experiences, not speaking Chinese, not to mention reading and writing, makes one stand out, and not in a good way.

I won’t pretend that the growing need to learn Chinese will effect all fields and professionals equally, but it seems likely that the Chinese language will become an increasingly important consideration for expatriates looking to make or continue their careers and lives in China.

If you’re interested in learning more about China, Chinese culture, and business in China, please feel free to subscribe to the China Culture Corner to have future posts sent directly to your inbox. You can also follow and interact with me on social media or send me a message on Twitter.

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VIDEOS ON CHINA, WORK IN CHINA

Talking TikTok: Reflecting on Resignations & Executive Responsibilities

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2020 has been a crazy year, especially for those of us doing business in and with China. The current US administration has continued to make unproven allegations against Chinese technology companies, which are increasingly competing successfully in overseas markets.

It can be a violent storm to weather, though certainly not an unfamiliar one to me, having worked with Huawei Technologies for over four years. However, while governments using the specter of national security to threaten private companies without just cause is a very important topic, it’s not the one I’d like to talk to you about today.

TikTok, the prominent Chinese social media platform from Bytedance, seems to have become one of the more prominent among these successful companies facing bans in the US market, perhaps in part due to the fact that it has found the success and broad appeal in the US market that has so far eluded other Chinese companies.

TikTok was and is facing a crisis as a direct result of its success, and a crisis needs strong leadership to navigate the resulting turbulent waters. Unfortunately, shortly after these troubles began, TikTok USA’s at the time new CEO Kevin Mayer decided to resign after only three short months with the company, further exacerbating the difficulties the company was facing.

In the below video, I discuss Kevin Mayer’s resignation and my thoughts on what responsibility senior executives have to not abandon ship in the midst of an ongoing crisis, especially foreign executives recruited chiefly to assist Chinese companies in expanding to overseas markets.

If you’re interested in learning more about China, Chinese culture, and business in China, please feel free to subscribe to the China Culture Corner to have future posts sent directly to your inbox. You can also follow and interact with me on social media or send me a message on Twitter.

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