US–China Relocation Support

Industry: Industrial Services

An American equipment rental company was opening a China office as a base for regional business expansion in Asia. Prior to that, their primary overseas experience was in the European market. The company requested operational and management recommendations specific to China, in order to accelerate a successful office setup and key personnel transition. The overall goal of our engagement was to provide the client with insight into what the company may face in early days of entering and setting up an office in China, how to accelerate the process, and how to prepare for the transition of the new regional vice-president from the US to China.

Our approach:

• Understand the company's progress of setting up in China to date
• Provide an overview of general Chinese operating environment and help to set reasonable expectations and timeline
• Facilitate prioritization of tasks required for early results
• Facilitate a gap analysis of resources the company had/was lacking that were necessary to accomplish the priority tasks
• Address contextual and cultural issues in hiring, training, motivating and retaining local staff, especially in key positions;
• Conduct a one-on-one training for the exec being sent to China on managing, leading, and communicating with Chinese stakeholders

Results:

• Client reported a higher level of confidence during the early transitional period from the US to China.
• Client gained a better understanding of what to expect and of how to set early stage performance goals and to allocate resources by both the central and regional offices.
• The executive being transferred had a better understanding of how to evaluate and incent potential employees and of how to communicate effectively given the language differences he faced.

Other Projects