Grasp China

Do you want to learn critical secrets to succeed in China’s business world? For example, did you know that accepting an invitation to lunch versus dinner signals different levels of business commitment? To show respect at a formal business meeting, it is imperative to know the titles of the attendees, and bring colleagues of the same rankings. GRASP CHINA reveals these critical but untold cultural and business secrets so as to avoid simple mistakes when you conduct business with locals.

GRASP CHINA is your all-in-one guidebook that covers critical details business travellers and expats must know: from up-to-date social topics, daily lives of the Chinese people, unspoken business rules, to working with different types of Chinese organisations.

There are 4 sections in GRASP CHINA:

• First section focuses on the key notion of “China is not one China” through the lens of geography, city tier classification, and income disparity.
• Section two covers common and up-to-date social topics popular amongst the locals, and can be used as an ice breaker. Some of the topics are real estate prices, common regional stereotypes, China mobile internet, etc.
• Section three goes deeper into the nuances of the Chinese business world: unspoken business rules, dining and drinking etiquette, gifting, etc.
• Section four is a practical survival guide providing tips on traveling and living in China.

To make the book more interesting as an engaging read on your flight to China, and at the same time avoid the common mistakes in other China books of being too abstract and non-practical, the author used many real-life case studies from her years of professional experience and networking on the ground to illustrate the different aspects of today’s business world and people’s daily lives in China. These real-life examples help explain the different aspects of Chinese culture in a straightforward way, making the book really easy and fun to read, allowing the readers to quickly “internalize” the materials.

“China is a big country with a lot of complexities in culture, customs, traditions, and habits. Most people found it very challenging to learn how to do business or develop a professional relationship. It is admirable that Christine was able to crystallize the crucial insights and lessons in simple and yet penetrating forms. The personal experiences and stories added so much color. The book is a must-read for people without much exposure to China, but even for veterans, I think you will learn a lot of new perspectives and gain new insights from reading the book.” - Professor Hau Lee, Stanford Graduate School of Business

"Christine has provided simple but useful information for anyone involved in China. A good primer." - Achal Agarwal, President, Kimberly-Clark Asia Pacific

“Chinese mobile internet is in many ways leadings the world trend, and affecting the daily lives of over a billion people, especially the younger generations. In Grasp China, Christine articulated this unique landscape through vivid examples to give perspective visitors a practical guide of this exciting digital world.” - Rui Yu, CEO of Yihaodian (Largest online grocer in China)

“As the title suggests, the book helps readers like myself understand China efficiently and systematically, making it literally a shortcut to 'grasp' China. So whether you're coming to China for business, education or investment purposes, this book will undoubtedly be your perfect guide and entourage.” - Professor Huang Yu, Dean of School of Communication, Hong Kong Baptist University

"I have worked extensively in China over the past 20 years, but still found many interesting and useful insights in Christine's book, richer and more 'on-the-ground' than other guides.” - Torsten Stocker, China COO, Thakral Corporation

Christine Ching

Christine Ching is a native Hong Kong Chinese. She moved to Canada with her family at age 12. She was finalist in the Miss Hong Kong Beauty Pageant 1999. She holds a Master of Engineering degree from University of Toronto, and an MBA degree from Stanford University. Christine wrote Grasp China based on her experience working in China since 2002. In her early years working in China, Christine consulted for many large multi-national companies on their China market strategy. Later she held position of Head of Strategy at Kimberly Clark China (2009-2012), and Marketing Director at Starbucks China (2013-2016). She understood the most common types of problems a foreigner would encounter when working in China as she had already lived through those issues herself. As a Hong Kong Chinese who grew up abroad, Christine possesses both Chinese and Western mind-sets. As a foreigner to mainland China, Christine is exposed to all the cultural differences or sometime even shocks. Being an ethnic Chinese, Christine is able to understand the nuances in the Chinese culture where a westerner would otherwise easily miss. This rare combination allows Christine to provide a unique perspective resonant to the western audiences. To write the book Grasp China, Christine interviewed hundreds of locals and expats across the spectrum: from business professionals, real estate agents, to taxi drivers. The tightly weaved stories add color and authenticity to the content. Christine currently lives in Shanghai, China. She is the author of “Grasp China” (in Chinese) published in Hong Kong and Taiwan in 2013. Christine can be reached at christine.chingks@qq.com or graspchina@yahoo.com.