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While I can't read this yet, I know I can always call on Zhang Jia Yi to bridge the gap, language-wise. |
So...
You took the GMAT, got the interview, put on your business formal wear and divulged your passions to your respective Tongji, Case Western, or XLRI entrance committee member (Watch this video from your future XLRI brothers and sisters). Then you received that beautiful packet with, inside it, a global MBA acceptance letter. You prepared to invest in an MBA, maybe did some reading about Indian, Chinese or American business, applied for your Chinese visa, and are now headed to China to start your first semester with Global MBA at Tongji University. You’ve hit the jackpot. You really have. An MBA experience in China, India and the United States truly has few contemporaries.
But then you arrive in Shanghai in September. What do you really do when you get there? What can you become from this experience that really differentiates you from other MBAs?
You might not even speak Mandarin, and even if you do, people speak a lot of Shanghaihùa/Shanghainese in the markets of Shanghai and you’re pegged as a waìguorén/foreigner whether or not you are fluent in Mandarin. Though, Mandarin capabilities will instantly increase your opportunities. You think you have a clue about how China and its government works, maybe you've read a book or two or twenty on Guanxi.
And then you arrive. And then I arrived.
I was connecting quickly with friends in class by sharing meals with them two, three, four times a day. Coffee before school, asking, Where are you from? What brought you to the program? How do you say this in Mandarin? Outside of class, I was associating with other Americans and French and Germans from my Mandarin class and the Tongji Guest House where we stay. I thought I was making Chinese friends. Many of them. Everywhere. I thought,
“Making business relationships here will be nothing more than some hard work and few more coffee dates."
But I soon realized I was teaching a lot of English to my new friends. And while they showed me absolutely amazing places in Shanghai I never would have seen otherwise, fed me meal after meal of new foods, helped me buy a suit jacket at a great price, taught me a lot of Chinese, got me teaching drum lessons to 8, 9 and 10 year olds on Sundays, and helped me set up my cell phone, there was something missing from our relationship, even after two months.
I realized a lot of things. I didn't have much guanxi with people. The party politics were more complicated than I thought. Shanghai literally has 24+ million people, and I didn't realize what that meant as the city is really a region, and the region goes on until it touches the next region. I realized that while Shanghai is China: it’s quite a different vibe than the city of four million people to the south, Nanjing, and it is quite different than the cities that surround it.
So I connected with the American Chamber and got a few mentors: Mac Sullivan, Amitesh Singh and Gary Huang.
They taught me that before I considered my takeaways, I needed to realize that I can't even really call China, "China," when talking about moving into a Chinese market. Mac, Amitesh and Gary taught me to think of regions or cities, not the country as a whole, when doing business. Unless of course you need to deal with politics at the national level, at which point you should get a lawyer.
They all independently told me, "Michael, you're here to meet BRIDGERS this time; not exactly the actual business people, suppliers and sources of China. You're here to learn how people interact with each other and link up with those that can bridge your foreigner experience with that of the local."
They all independently told me, "Michael, you're here to meet BRIDGERS this time; not exactly the actual business people, suppliers and sources of China. You're here to learn how people interact with each other and link up with those that can bridge your foreigner experience with that of the local."
While you can't meet people and make business happen in the way you might like to think you easily could abroad, focusing on the BRIDGERS is a great way to really develop a network. If you are serious about coming back or even working with Chinese companies or people in your home country, you will be connecting with bridgers. They help you not get taken advantage of, improve your Chinese language and cultural understanding, introduce you to other Chinese, and vouch for you.
Help them out. Mac was moving some stuff out of his house; I asked if he needed a hand. Gary had a business he wanted to move to India; I asked if I could help him connect with some of my peers, like Neelesh and Amber. Amitesh needed no help from me, but he did want to take me on as a student of world culture, and I was, and am still, ready and willing to listen.
So I arrived to China green, and it began to click immediately that I was, indeed, green. I thought I understood. I thought I would just make a few tweaks to my body language, pick up the language, learn the local dance. I've spent years abroad, from Argentina to Canada. I've asado in Uruguay and danced samba in Brazil. I can play my own renditions of Jose Alfredo Jimenez and Alanis Morissette on the guitar. I thought I could logically derive meaning from books and conversations with Chinese friends beforehand. But I found myself lost. A lot.
But that is the beauty of the program. It helped me understand, "What can I really do with this experience?"
I built relationships with bridgers, and I will become a bridger where possible as I learn.
You will soon be having an amazing time, learning about businesses and culture, meeting new friends in your program, eating great food, going to Propaganda Club, traveling when you have the opportunity, working on group projects, growing, fighting, learning, maybe even enjoying the romance of Shanghai.
Take your time, but find the people who've already struggled, learn from them, and see where you can help them out. They'll not only repay the favor in experience, but you might find yourself with a new life-long relationship.
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Last but not least, don't forget that "bridgers" come in all ages! This is Bao, a 9-year-old student of mine. I taught him and several other 8, 9 and 10 year olds drums on Sundays for a period of time in Shanghai. I didn't realize it at first, but after a few lessons, Bao taught me "how Chinese children learn to learn": literally, they learn best by being told what to do and then practicing on their own, rather than given the freedom to be creative on the spot. It was amazing to see Bao panic when the sheet music was taken away from him. Over time, I learned to work with this and use my goofiness to be a bit more hands-on, which not only got a laugh out of Bao and the other students, but also helped another little guy, UU, learn to count rhythm. Here's a video of me teaching "rhythm." |
Originally posted on Motor City Flow.
For more information about the global MBA program, visit the Weatherhead website.
For more information about the global MBA program, visit the Weatherhead website.
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