Secrets to Building Personal Trust in China

Napolean and Marco Polo were mesmerised by China's size, wonder and stealth. It may have taken longer than expected, but China stands ready to finally "shake the world". This research goes to a key issue for those wanting to do business in China: how to build trust or xinren. It's well known in China that life revolves around building such interpersonal trust. The real aim of the research is to go deeper than before and to seek rich Chinese indigenous insights. Through its analysis, findings and key contributions, the book provides Western businesses with a detailed understanding. The contributions include: the provision of a richer interpretation of xinren; a presentation of models for identifying how to build xinren; and, a clarification for Westerners of important differences between xinren and guanxi. As we shall see, Westerners do have the capacity to progress to "insider" status. But this is no simple task and it takes a real commitment and sincerity. Yet, without doubt, due to the stakes involved, it's increasingly being seen as a challenge that's deemed more than worthy of the effort.