Sunday, February 15, 2015
Week 1 Posts and Comments Due Feb. 20
In order to make the posting easier and keep them in order, I will set up a weekly post section on Monday of each week. All you need to do is just click the comment button and add your post from your reading. Since this is the first week, and I imagine you're all rushing to come up with something to add or may have even completely forgotten to get your book from the library, why don't you just start by sharing the title and general topic of your different books. That way, we can work out any of the "kinks" in the whole process and then be prepared to make some more thorough posts next week. I'll add instructions for comments to next week's posting section on Monday. Good luck to all of you. The initial comment is a sample to give you all an idea of what you can add in the future. Note! If you do not have a google account, you will need to set up a gmail account to post on the blog, but you can delete it after the course if you wish.
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Sample Comment--Part of my reading this week discussed the passiveness emphasized by Eastern religions and how this differs sharply from what the text termed as the "action-oriented" thinking of my own Western culture. The text explained how Buddhism, for instance, sees suffering as illusory and therefore requires its followers to accept rather than resist suffering as a part of life. While I can understand some of the validity behind such a world view, I also feel that a person should take a stand for his/her self when necessary and not just take whatever lot life hands out. I think it may be difficult for me to understand this aspect of Chinese/Eastern culture, but I hope I can still connect with the people I meet while I am there and better appreciate where they may be coming from.
ReplyDeleteThe title of the book I am reading is "Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China". The book, just as the title suggests, follows migrant workers that have come from rural villages to make money in the cities' factories. It has been extremely interesting and enlightening so far in sharing what life is actually like for these girls: the conditions they live and work in, the type of work they do, and the struggles, challenges and successes they face.
ReplyDeleteCaitlin, it'll be interesting to see some of your other posts. I was under the impression (because of the book I chose) that most of our books were mainly informative and not story related. I'm a little envious honestly, but there's value in all sorts of information I suppose. I'll keep following your posts to see what the main points are.
DeleteThis seems like a very interesting read! Yes, China is doing wonderful things for businesses, and its economic growth is worth some praise, but I am looking forward to your insight on its progress in human rights.
DeleteThe title of the book I am reading is "Business Leadership in China- How to Blend Best Western Practices with Chinese Wisdom" by Frank T. Gallo. It gives an interesting perspective on the many aspects of Chinese business culture and how they compare and contrast with western culture. The general theme of the chapters that I read was that China is more like salad than soup. You cannot just blend everything together like we tend to do in American culture with employees, you have to distinguish each part of the business as individual and season it until it tastes satisfactory. Gallo also brings out other points such as trust having to be earned and high-power distance in China, but that likely doesn't interest most of the people reading this blog so I'll spare you. An interesting and insightful point that he made is the Americans tend to group China into one unified culture, but in fact there are many cultures in China due to different values that are specific to different generations.
ReplyDeleteYour book is really intriguing in that it focuses so much on diversity. It is easy for me to assume all Chinese follow the same culture. When I came to Zambia, I thought Africa would generally be the same across the countries but as I have traveled and met locals, the differences are huge. It is no surprise that the Chinese will challenge all my assumptions. I will be interested to see what differences your book points out.
DeleteChristian, that is interesting, I could say that I was one of those people to view China as one unified culture, but realizing their are many cultures within one country is important. Delving deeper into knowing about a country is very important as we grow in global knowledge.
DeleteThe book I have chosen to read is "Red Capitalism: The Fragile Financial Foundation of China's Extraordinary Rise" by Carl Walter and Fraser Howie. It focuses on the booming rise of China's economy and explains how China has risen from a nation in poverty to one of the most powerful countries in the world. It follows China's money and how it is being used. I feel that it will be very informative.
ReplyDeleteI hope they cover the beginning of capitalism in China. It is a really interesting story about one village which dared to break the law in order to help themselves economically. I am also interested to hear what it has to say about China's money and what, if anything, is unique in the way it is used.
DeleteI have chosen to read "ChinAmerica: Why the Future of America is China" by Handel Jones. The book covers the relationship between China and America. Both countries compete directly for wealth, while at the same time rely on each other. Handel argues that if left to follow their current trend, China will soon pass America economically. This book was written to help explain the mindset and ambitions of the Chinese and as a wake up call to Americans to help them regain their global competitiveness.
ReplyDeleteThis is interesting Jeffrey. It's true, America needs to wake up if it doesn't want to get passed up. It almost seems like, as a nation, we have become comfortable in our position in the world, and have taken on a more laissez-faire mentality than perhaps before. Whereas other countries, such as China, that have just come onto the playing field more recently still have a fighting mentality that is pushing them to the top.
DeleteI hope this book covers the pros and the cons about doing business with China. I would like to see America growing in other markets more, besides China, rather than doing so much business just with China (importing and exporting) that our economy becomes so dependent on their economy. I don't know if this exactly will be addressed, but I look forward to your comments on this book.
DeleteMy book is titled "Invisible China: A Journey Through Ethnic Borderlands." This book doesn't focus as much on the business aspect of China, but rather the ethnic side of it. The authors, who both are Americans fluent in Mandarin Chinese and Uyghur, recount their journey throughout the countries farthest regions. They discuss how, like many other countries, China is made up of a variety of people and cultures, all having different religions and customs. Throughout the book, they sum up how both the Chinese and minorities living in China blend together to make up a society rich in diversity, and, in turn, a business community that is also diverse.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds interesting! Even though its not about business i think it would be cool to learn about their culture and how it affects their daily business life. With the different cultures and corresponding different business practices maybe you could identify what business systems are encouraging any social stratification and/or differences in economic statuses. You could maybe even see the distribution of wealth within an area as either correlative or directly impacted by the specific ethnic/culture elements present within that region. Curious to see what they've come up with.
DeleteI chose to read "China Entrepreneur: Voices of Experience from 40 International Business Pioneers" by Juan Antonio Fernandez. This book is basically about the experiences of forty pioneers who tried to start businesses in China. They happen to be successful, hence their inclusion in this book, yet the author includes some prime insight as to why certain strategies worked and others did not. This book focuses mainly on key-challenges with China's market and the factors that make it different from the rest of the world's. It then further discusses how these pioneers overcame them, each in their various ways and compares them. The book's vocation leans more toward consulting, for future entrepreneurs interested in actively becoming apart of China's market, rather than just a list of experiences that were kind of cool.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a great book choice! I'm interested in what strategies worked and which ones didn't. Not to mention why they didn't work also. What are the key-challenges with China's market and the factors that make it different from the rest of the world's? This sounds like a very interesting book to read and I can't wait to hear more abut it!
DeleteThe book I have chosen is "China Goes Global: The Partial Power," by David Shambaugh. This book describes where China first started out, and how it got to where it is today. It seems like China is always very popular in the news. Whether its making changes in the business world, increasing their investing, overseas business deals, or just stating their opinion on a popular issue. I thought the book brought out a very interesting point of how China usually has something to say and expresses their opinion, but never really has any motive, logic, or ideas to back it up. I think the book said it best when it stated, "China has a large footprint, but it isn't very deep." That's a very strong statement to make on such a successful country and I'm interested to read about more.
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds like it will have some interesting topics! To see how far China has come, from humble beginnings to one of the world's largest superpowers, as well as how much influence China really has on other countries business dealings throughout the world. It sounds like this book will really put China under the magnifying glass to see if they can "walk the walk" even though they "talk the talk."
DeleteThat is interesting that the book would point something like that out. That is a bold statement to make that China usually doesn't have "motive,logic, or ideas to back it up." because like you pointed out, china is successful, especially in the business world, I am interested to learn more.
DeleteI chose to read One Billion Customers by James McGregor. Throughout reading the first little bit, there was a clear foreshadow of what the whole book will entitle. The author, being a former Wall Street Journal China bureau chief and executive, whites about stories, business deals, and lessons that can help businesses have insight into how to succeed in business within China’s workforce.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting topic that came up was how the size of China’s consumer market of can play a vast role in affecting business strategies and planning. China is not only the world’s largest market for electronics, but also consumes 25 percent of steel and now 30 percent of cement. Because China is considered to have the largest consumer market, as a result the author reiterates that doing business in China is a gamble by saying that "negotiations can take forever and the resulting agreements can be promptly ignored."
I have enjoyed my reading in this book so far. Through the reading thus far, I have been able to gain some knowledge of how China - being the massive consumer market it is, generates the everyday business that occurs within the country.
The book you are reading sounds interesting. It will be enlightening to hear about Chinese business from an author with that background. I am sure his first hand experience and his stories will help the concepts come to life and be more applicable.
DeleteI am reading “How China’s Leaders Think” by Robert Lawrence Kuhn. This book looks at the motives of China’s leaders and the drives that have created their policies and businesses. The writer interviews players in China’s economy including everything from state owned enterprises to religion, and literature to sports. These interviews are all done with the purpose to get to know China and find out how to best do business with the Chinese. The book is not a description of China or a study of the history but tends to focus on the present and the forecast of the future from an inside point of view.
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DeleteThis book reminds me of one I am currently reading (not for this class) titled, "Life and Death in Shanghai," by Nein Cheng. It describes the life of a Chinese business woman during the Cultural Revolution (1960's) under Mao Zedong's rule. It is also an inside look (although historical) into the lives of the Chinese people. It is interesting to look back in history at the past governmental turbulence and compare/contrast it with how the government is functioning in the present.
DeleteThis book sounds really interesting! My book is similar but it focuses more on the average citizens and less on the leaders of China. But China seems like a very hierarchical society so I think a whole book on how Chinese leaders think would be very useful and reflective of the society as a whole.
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ReplyDeleteI chose "An American's Guide To Doing Business In China." This book is a sort of user's guide to help someone from our culture begin to understand the differences between the American and Chinese markets, and how to work with, through, or around those differences, successfully.
ReplyDeleteThe book promises to cover all aspects of doing business in China, including the culture and customs, negotiations, marketing, etc. so it should have a lot of really interesting information.
Your book sounds a lot like mine! I'm excited to see how (or if) they'll differ in content throughout our reading and sharing.
DeleteThe book I choose is titled, "Dragons at Your Door: How Chinese Cost Innovation Is Disrupting Global Competition," by: Ming Zeng and Peter J. Williamson. I picked this book because it talks about how the Chinese are implementing process improvement techniques to boost their economy and produce high quality products. The book points out that with process improvement techniques in place, their economy has become very competitive with that of the United States.
ReplyDeleteThis book will provide a solid basis for my future experiences at Chinese businesses and industries. I have been interested in the study of process improvement for several years and am looking forward to gaining insights from this book and the China study tour.
I was actually going to choose this book. I thought it had a very interesting and catchy title. Sounds like a great book and I like how you have a real interest for understanding the processes that the book talks about.
DeleteI need to double check to make sure that I will actually be reading this book but the book that i have is Inside the Chinese Business Mind by Ted Sun. This book is to help better understand the core values and bliefs that drive business in China. It also is for gaining insights into the different diverse chinese business culture.
ReplyDeleteThis book will help to better understand the psychology, philosophy, and business of the Chinese world. This will help in order to build relationships and create opportunities with the chinese.
My book is called "A Tale of Business in The New World." it is by John D. Kuhns.
ReplyDeleteReading this book has been really interesting. This book is an actual story and the first chapter is setting the scene. The main character is a young American entrepreneur named Jack and new reforms in the market are taking place in China. Jack needs to take advantage and he does.
Very cool! I applaud Kuhns for presenting business in a story-like manner, a formidable accomplishment. Can't wait to hear more about it!
DeleteThe 36 Ancient Chinese Strategies for Modern Business by Lan Bercu takes the 36 Strategies, a Chinese essay on conduct as citizens, in war, and in politics, and creates business applications for each one. Lan Bercu interestingly grew up in Vietnam where she would have been at least somewhat familiar with the strategies.
ReplyDeleteWhat this book has done is, upon noting the growth of the Chinese economy, extracted aspects of Chinese philosophies that may be directed to the growth. The chapters are short - 36 chapters for each philosophy - and Bercu manages to write an easily digested yet enlightening book that would certainly be an asset to we who prescribe to Western mindsets on business. I'm looking forward to learning from the Chinese!
I also find it very interesting that Lan Bercu grew up in Vietnam instead of China like I would have assumed. I can't believe there are 36 chapters for each philosophy! There has to be a lot of logic and understanding behind each different philosophy. Although I'm glad that the book is easily digested. That always helps with reading comprehension. At least it does for me! Great job on remembering all of our names in class too! Impressive!
DeleteI've chosen to read How to Do Business in China: 24 Lessons to Make Working in China More Profitable by Nick Dallas. I'm still waiting on receiving my book from the mail - it should be here by the end of the week. Through reading summaries and reviews, I've gathered that it should cover exactly what its' title encompasses. Dallas points out that China has captured much attention for its rapid growth in every aspect of its economy - and there are a few things that American business-people need to be aware of before they venture into business with China. He promises to prepare the reader for difficulties that may arise because of cultural differences, how to maneuver through the Chinese bureaucracy, and how to understand the unique method of business the Chinese use - among other things. The book sounds like it'll be an interesting read, full of knowledgeable insights - hopefully some that will end up being useful to me while navigating through China. I'm excited to get into this book and share what I learn with the class!
ReplyDeleteIve chosen to read Chinese Business Etiquette and Culture. I'm very excited about this book because it goes beyond business practices in China. It explains why the Chinese behave in certain ways and gives suggests on how to change your own behavior in order to have smooth personal and business interactions with them. It's a pretty easy read, and I think it will give me a lot of insight into the Chinese culture. The book summary promises to help readers learn and understand about the special challenges and rewards of living in China. The book seems to spend equal amount of time dealing with personal relationships and business relationships. While the book focuses on the culture of contemporary China, it also goes into some detail about China's rich past and how the affects it's modern culture. Hopefully by reading this book I'll be able to avoid any faux pas during our trip to China.
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds like a great and enjoyable read! I'm sure it is when you're reading about another culture's etiquette. It's astonishing how different each culture's etiquette really is. A specific gesture that's a compliment in the United States could be an offense in another. How unique each culture really is. I'd be very interested to hear how China developed their etiquette and how it's changed (if its changed) over the years. Can't wait to hear more!
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ReplyDeleteAfter finishing this book, I have found it extremely beneficial. The story is on a character named Jack. He is a young entrepreneur and is seeking success for his company. He moves to China and finds many difficulties, such as language barriers, theft, sketchy people, and miscommunication within and outside of the company. This book is definitely a good read for any entrepeneur. I believe this book is made to empower people through personal testimony and gathered knowledge from personal experience.
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