College of Business Administration
EMBA 229
Team FU - Reflection
China Travel Study
In strong opposition to its English interpretation “FU” in mandarin Chinese “FU” is understood to represent peace and happiness.
The following paper includes personal reflections on China by each member of Team FU.
By: Jerry Jackson
Jerry Jackson is a Technical Account Manager with Autodesk and works within the company’s Building Solution Division.
“Nine Million Bicycles”
“There are nine-million bicycles in Beijing, that’s a fact, it’s a thing we cannot deny…” Artist Katie Melua sings the opening lyrics to “Nine-Million Bicycles”, a song that draws parallels between the numerous bicycles in China’s capital city and the artist’s dedication to a logical personal relationship. However, in China, the relationship between the Chinese people and their bicycles is not so obvious. It struck me during morning jogs with Tony and Mike on the streets of Shanghai that among the thousands of bicycles we would pass in a thirty-minute run; all seemed evenly aged, in need of some type of repair, and of a single speed. This seems to be a function not simply of cost but also of utility. I have come to believe the Chinese view bicycles as a tool that assists them in accomplishing a task. Similar to the value I find in a hammer; no social status or brand but simple a trusted tool that allows the day’s tasks to be completed. My hammer may seem aged, in need of repair, and similar to all other hammers but I value it no less and respect it for the progress it allows me to achieve.
Katie Melua could rephrase her lyrics to read, “There are nine-million hammers in Shanghai, that’s a fact, it’s a thing we cannot deny…” and I would understand she is singing about the honor, tradition, and value that represent the unique relationship between the Chinese people and their bicycles.
By: Aqueem Kabir
Aqueem Kabir works for the Intel Corporation.
Suddenly I pause to wonder, where am I? Am I in the most modern western city or is it really China? After 14 hours of non-stop flying, we arrived at Shanghai Pudong International airport. As we are going from airport to hotel, first thing that captured my attention is the Shanghai skyscrapers. Everywhere you look, you see high-rise buildings with beautiful modern architecture. This clean city, built on both sides of the Hangzhou River, is home to 25 million residents.
The purpose of our Executive MBA study tour to Shanghai and Shenzhen in China was to learn how the new world operates and how it brings all of the major manufacturing plants and jobs to the area. During our study tour we visited eight major organizations (Huawei Telecom, Intel, HP, AutoDesk, Bank, Insurance Company, Pharmaceutical Company, Real Estate Company), Technology Park and Tongji University. It was the experience of a lifetime. We learned how each company operates its business within the country and how each competes with the rest of the world. It was one of the major highlights of the EMBA learning and an eye-opener for me. This first-hand experience helped me to see China’s dominance in attracting these manufacturing job markets and leading the way to the future.
Our first tour was to the largest design center in China, the Architectural Design and Research Institute (ADRI) in Tongji University, established in 1958. Their architectural designs shaped the spectacular Shanghai skyline. Our visit to Roche, a pharmaceutical company, HP Solution Center and Intel Software Design Solution Center gave us a clear perspective on how the talented work force in Shanghai attracts many businesses to China. With their commitment and enthusiasm, Chinese workers lead the way in the competitive global work force and the global economy.
Shenzhen was another city that we visited. It was another experience of a lifetime. Just imagine that this city, only 25 years old, now leads the way in the booming tech manufacturing, designing and telecommunication industries. The highlight of this tour was the visit to “Huawei”, a multinational telecommunication company, founded in 1984 and already one of the leaders in designing and supplying solutions for telecommunication needs. Another major highlight of this tour was our visit to China Merchant bank. As we entered the main floor where banking transactions take place, we were encircled by a focused beam of light. Bank officers explained to us that their customers are always at the center of their focus. This demonstrates how the bank business is run in Shenzhen.
Overall, the study trip was an awesome experience which provided opportunities to learn about the Chinese culture and business practices. Although the government is Communist, businesses are run just like any in western capitalistic countries. City governments provide lots of opportunity for international companies to open up their businesses in China and take advantage of their extremely talented human resource pool and low cost labor. To my opinion Shanghai and Shenzhen are among the most attractive and beautiful cities in the world right now. Lastly their hospitality was unforgettable and unmatched.
By: Michael Irwin
Michael Irwin is a supervisor in manufacturing with Genentech, Inc.
It happened 3 days into the trip, while traveling on the world’s fastest train at 270 mph between Shanghai and Pudong International Airport. I opened my eyes. I can’t believe I’m in China, I thought to myself. Just six months earlier, the idea of visiting this far-off place wasn’t even on my radar screen. I’m a California native, born and raised. My only adventures out of the country had been trips to Cancun and Cabo San Lucas, not exactly what one would call a world traveler. This very unique opportunity presented itself in June of this year through the Sac State EMBA program. It started off as a loosely planned tour of a handful of companies in the Chinese cities of Shanghai and Shenzhen. After some discussion with family and friends I decided to sign up for the trip, and it has exceeded my expectations by every stretch of the imagination.
The high speed train or Maglev, as it is called, is an appropriate metaphor to describe what’s happening in this country of more than 1.3 billion people. The pace of growth is staggering. Imagine quadrupling the U.S. population, and having everyone from the country’s interior migrate toward the major cities of the east coast. Oh, and have the migration take place in the span of only 15-20 years. In 1979 the communist government of China decided to open its doors to the rest of the world, and the growth, both economic and in population, hasn’t stopped since. Cities such as Shanghai, Beijing and Shenzhen have seen their populations rise to the tens of millions. Shanghai, the first stop on our trip, looks like a snapshot of the city in the movie Blade Runner. It is cosmopolitan, rich and twice the size of New York City. Bicycles, pedestrians and autos all share the street in what can only be described as controlled chaos. Skyscrapers have risen and are rising throughout the city…very quickly. With all of this recent construction has come a new era of building designs and architecture that seemingly tests the limits of the human imagination. Needles, spires, columns, vibrant colors, huge LED advertising screens and several other features adorn these next-generation buildings. All of this makes for one of the most beautiful skylines that I have ever seen.
This trip was about more than buildings and sightseeing, however. Approximately 20 of us, all students at Sac State, spent 10 days in China examining the business environment and potential opportunities in this rapidly growing country. This was more than a tour: it was a back-stage pass into the inner workings of a society, its government and people. We visited over a dozen companies during our stay, ranging from huge multinationals to domestic and start up organizations. In addition, we attended lectures at the well-known Tongji University, located in Shanghai. Some of the topics covered were Chinese culture, business etiquette, venture capital and a local entrepreneur’s take on how to start a business in this (or any) growing market.
Inside the Chinese company- It didn’t occur to me just how special this experience was, until we met with executives of China Merchant Bank in their large office building in downtown Shenzhen. They gave us a personal tour of the bank, and even had welcome signs posted throughout the facility- a very nice touch. The tour concluded with a walk on the building’s observation deck- above the 50th floor. The view was incredible- we could see all the way across the waterway into Hong Kong. After the tour, we were treated to an executive-level presentation that delved into many aspects of their business, their strategies for growth and current challenges. Throughout the tour, presentation, and Q&A period our hosts were pleasant and gracious. This was the same at every other company we visited- Intel, Huawei, Roche, Pin Yang Insurance, CB Richard Ellis, Ingersoll Rand, Autodesk and others.
It’s all about the relationship!
One of my many personal take-homes from this trip has been the universally important Chinese concept of Guanxi, which means connections and relationships. More than this, it refers to the social capital that exists between people. In a business setting, the Chinese realize how important their social network is in getting things done. This is one area where I feel that the U.S. has some ground to make up. Case in point, in the United States a lot of business is conducted in offices or boardrooms. The boardroom in China is the local restaurant. It is not uncommon for high-priced deals to be inked over a family-style lunch. This emphasis on relationship building helps ensure that both parties involved can rely on each other in the future, should the need arise.
By: Sonya Fox
Sonya Fox is a program director with Central Valley Training Center, Inc. in Stockton, California.
Leaving the Pudong airport via bus for Shanghai, I had expected to experience a region totally foreign. The Chinese characters would be indecipherable; the people would dress in native clothing, streets would be filled with carts, bicycles and street vendors. What I saw was a city, with signage in English, Starbucks in the airport, more skyscrapers than any western city, and along the freeway, large billboards selling fossil-fuel-burning cars, including Cadillacs.
The Chinese people are polite and gracious in business meetings, making our Western ways seem unrefined. Chinese businesses trade their conference rooms in for the restaurant. The access to business leaders was exquisite. Dining on the finest Chinese dishes with government officials, including Liao JiAn, Director and Chairman of the Science & Technology Department of Futian District Government of Shenzhen, and seated next to Jacob Yan, President of Inter Security Group in Shenzhen, the lessons on business etiquette and inroads for working with the government flowed as easily as the traditional Moutai rice wine. Jacob explained that he knows many Chinese people that live in the U.S., but for himself, he desires to be respected for his accomplishments in life, and that respect is not so sweet in the U.S.
Progress in the last 8 years is startling. Shanghai sprawls out and up. China’s urbanization runs at the rate of two cities the size of Boston annually according to William Hu of Qiming Venture Partners. The signs of progress are everywhere in the coastal cities, with bamboo scaffolding and cranes piercing the skyline. Headlines in the Shenzhen Daily on November 29, 2006, publicize the plans of the fishing village across from Hong Kong to construct a 400 meter building as the financial center, only five other buildings in the world surpass this height. Modern high rises, such as the Bund Center in Shanghai, which houses HP, rise up from the midst of a traditional neighborhood. China uses 40% of the world’s steel, 60% of the world’s concrete.
The Chinese government’s vision of communism shows concern for the welfare of the majority of people, keeping them employed and opening special zones with tax shelters, such as the Zi Zhu Science Based Industrial Park, the home of a new Intel R&D site, where it is rumored but not confirmed that Intel negotiated construction specifications and tax credits with the Chinese government, which built the building. By doing this, the government secures jobs for the people and the economic ripple effect of mutually beneficial foreign investment perpetuates itself. The government moves with agility, free from the slow democratic process, but shows hints of capitalism. This agility by the government, without checks and balances, leaves some insecurity for the Chinese people. All land is owned and leased by the government. No one knows what happens when the lease is over.
The Chinese one-child policy has been well published and discussed in the West. However, Professor Min Wu of Tongji University conveyed the personal impact of this policy by expressing in a very feminine way the sorrow felt in Chinese families at an entire generation of no brothers, sisters, and later aunts, uncles, or cousins, that pierced a hole in the fabric and heart of the Chinese family.
By: Jennifer Farr
Jennifer Farr is a health programs manager with the American Cancer Society and oversees all healthcare facilities and patients services for a six county radius.
“Good morning,” the person on the other end says with a Chinese accent. It’s 6:30 a.m. Shanghai time on Tuesday, and I can’t believe that I am waking up on the other side of the world. We have been planning this study tour for so long that I can’t believe it’s finally here. Although exhausted from the 16-hour time difference, I can’t wait to get the next 10 days started. As our tour bus pulls into the Tongji University gates, I look around to see nothing but bicycles and people walking around. Suddenly I realize that the next 10 days are going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am fortunate enough to have these experiences.
As I sit and listen to the variety of informative and enlightening presentations from the leadership of such companies as Intel, HP, Autodesk, and China Merchants Bank, it sinks in that the world is so small or should I say flat. Inspired by the novel “The World is Flat,” this study tour brings to light that America is just one small piece of a great big puzzle called the world. During my trip to China I am not only inspired and motivated but also excited to get the next chapter of my life started. Along with the experience of the EMBA program at the CSU, Sacramento, the experience in Shanghai, China changed my perception of the world and what I want to experience in life.
