For anyone living, learning and dealing with business in China, you will have come across the term "guanxi". For most, it is a "special relationship" or "personal contact". Many articles have been written about the intricacies and implications of guanxi, whether it is a path to corruption or an essential business tool that is used effectively in my successful business stories.
Wikipedia says...
Very loosely, it can be associated with the UK equivalent of the "old boys network". Similar terms in other cultures and countries are "wasta" in the Middle East and "recomandato" in Italy.
Wikipedia says...
Very loosely, it can be associated with the UK equivalent of the "old boys network". Similar terms in other cultures and countries are "wasta" in the Middle East and "recomandato" in Italy.
Whilst researching a bit more about "guanxi" on Google, I came across guanxi.com, an American based company operating a "LinkedIn" style social interaction website. Unfortunately, an error in the website prevented me from registering on the network. I feel this would be an interesting development in the Chinese Internet market especially in connection to my previous post about the reluctance of Chinese businesses to operate purely online.
Alan Clements, MD of Metafocus will be speaking at "Exploring Guanxi - Relationships for successful business in China", organised by the China-Britain Business Council and East Midlands China Business Bureau at Derby University on the 23rd July 2008. Alan will speak about his experiences with guanxi when dealing with business in China and you can get a chance to learn more about this elusive phrase.
Contact Metafocus for details on how to register for this event.
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