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Language, Introductions and Business Cards

• The prevailing language is Cantonese followed closely by English. Many locals also understand and use Putonghua. Business cards are essential. Use both hands when presenting cards and be sure the writing faces the person to whom you are presenting your card. It is polite to receive the card with both hands and read it before putting the card in a pocket or bag.
• Although the traditional Chinese way of greeting is the bow, as a foreigner you would not really be expected to do so. A simple handshake would suffice, possibly combined with a slight bow. Strong handshakes are not really the norm and many an American or European has commented on the limpness of the Chinese handshake.
• If greeting a group it is important to greet the most senior member first. As a hierarchical society it is important to constantly recognise seniority.
• Most people you meet should be addressed with their title and surname. If you do know of a professional title (President, Doctor, Engineer, etc) simply use Mr or Mrs followed by the surname. It is always a good idea to try and find out if a title is used.
• You will soon notice that many Hong Kong Chinese who do business with foreigners will use a “western” name that is easier for them to remember and pronounce.
• Shake hands with everyone — men, women and children — upon meeting and leaving. Note that Hong Kong Chinese handshakes may be less firm than a Western handshake.
• Higher-ranking persons are introduced before those of lower rank. An older person comes before a younger person, and a woman before a man. Family members are greeted in order of age, oldest first and youngest last.
• It is polite to inquire about a person’s health or activities upon greeting.

Names and Titles

• Use family names and appropriate titles until specifically invited by your host or colleagues to use their first names.
• Address the Chinese with Mr., Mrs., Miss or professional title plus family name. Example: Lau Gan Lei would be Mr. Lau or Doctor Lau or Professor Lau.
• Chinese names have two parts: family name and given name. The family name comes first.

Body Language

• Hong Kong Chinese may stand close when talking, however, they are reserved and uncomfortable with body contact. Do not hug, kiss or pat people on the back.
• Winking at someone is considered a very rude gesture.
• Request your bill by making a writing motion with your hand.
• To beckon someone, extend your arm, palm down, and make a scratching motion with your fingers.
• Never point with your index finger. This is used only for animals. Point with your hand open.

Business and Corporate Culture

Many Hong Kong businesspeople have been educated in Western schools and are well-heeled, well-traveled and possess an international perspective. The business climate in Hong Kong is “wide open,” with a free market and limited government involvement. Hong Kong business activities are competitive, honest and quick. Making money is the main goal. The style of business is similar to that of the United States.

• Punctuality is expected and respected; be on time for all appointments. Allow “courtesy time” (30 minutes) if someone is late for an appointment with you.
• Tea is served at meetings. Do not drink until your host takes the first sip. A host leaving tea untouched signals the end of the meeting.
• Bring business cards printed in English on one side and Chinese on the other side. Make sure that the Chinese side uses “classical” characters, the written form of Chinese used in Hong Kong, and not “simplified” characters, which are used in the People’s Republic of China. Upon introduction, present your business card with both hands and with the Chinese side up.
• Be sure to look at a business card upon receiving it. Do not write on a business card in front of the person who gave it to you.
• Lawyers are not included in negotiations until contracts are drawn up and signed.
• Banking contacts are very important. Use a bank to set up your meetings.
• “Yes” may not mean agreement; it often means “I hear you.” “No” is generally not said. Instead, you may hear “I will have to wait,” or “This may be very difficult.”
• Make appointments for business meetings a month before arrival.

Meetings and Negotiating

• Westerners will encounter both Chinese and Hong Kong Chinese as their business counterparts. While the latter can move to the heart of a matter rather quickly, be ready to build personal relationships, as guanxi, or mutual obligations between contacts, is the oil that keeps business going.
• Business cards should be exchanged when you first meet. Exchanges can be done quickly, although you must treat the cards respectfully. Wait to be introduced to people before introducing yourself.
• The most important person on a Hong Kong business team generally sits in the middle of the negotiating table. Do not seat yourself — you should wait to be seated. You will typically be placed opposite your perceived peer.
• Avoid discussing politics, your personal opinions or other offensive topics. Opening conversations should be short. Hong Kong Chinese are impressed by status and rank, so it may be important to give the appearance of wealth and position. Formal business attire is the standard.
• Meetings in Hong Kong follow the same common sense business standards as those used in North America however it is worth noting that the protocol in China is more formal.
• Appointments in Hong Kong should be made well in advance. Times of the year to avoid are around Christmas, Easter and Chinese New Year. Business trips are best scheduled for October, November and March to June. Most offices usually work from 09:00 to 17:00, Monday to Friday.
• When meeting with a group of business associates always ensure to greet the most senior member first and then the next senior, working your way down the ranks. Ensure you bring plenty of business cards with you. These should be presented when meeting. It is a good idea to have one side of the business card translated into Chinese. Using red and gold is considered auspicious. Present and accept business cards with two hands and always inspect and comment upon cards.
• Make sure you come prepared with materials and presentations as these will be expected. Facts and figures are crucial as supporting evidence but will not be the be all and end all. Remember to always keep calm, patient and modest in all your behaviour. Avoid confrontation or aggression as this will lead to you losing face and causing a loss of face. Use language diplomatically at all times. Similarly try to avoid directly saying no to anyone, try and use alternative expressions such as, “I will see”, “I will try” or “It may be difficult.”
• Negotiations may be slow and detailed, but very efficient. This is normal and rather than trying to add pressure see if more details would be useful. Send senior people with technical and commercial expertise prepared to function as a team and make decisions on the spot. Be aware that during negotiations a senior member of the company may attend but simply as a ceremonial attendee. It is usually the lower ranking attendees who will do the negotiations with you so pay most attention to them.
• Business deals may be sealed with a handshake alone. Be prepared to compromise. Take time to build relationships. It may take several meetings to accomplish goals. Do business face to face. Courtesy calls and personal selling are vital to success. Conversely, while negotiating can take a significant amount of time, once the details are agreed upon the pace of business can be very fast. Hong Kong Chinese are quick to assure you that they can take care of things. Values like risk-taking and efficiency are important.

Dining and Entertainment

Entertaining is a critical part of doing business in Hong Kong. Restaurants and banquet halls are usually where one will encounter an eight course meal over which a new alliance is built or a business deal celebrated. In fact, a meal can also be considered a gift so should be reciprocated. Hong Kong’s banquets are legendary, and you will most likely be invited to one. They typically start in the early evening and can go on into the night. You will enjoy an almost endless parade of many different Chinese dishes — most of them reflecting the area’s Cantonese cuisine — typically beginning with some sweet and savory appetizers, moving on to a main dish of steamed grouper or large fish, through vegetables, pickles and meat.

• Pay attention to seating etiquette. Chinese tables are usually round and seat twelve people. The guest of honour will sit furthest from the entrance. The host will sit closest the entrance; this is to allow them to better deal with waiting staff.
• Tea is the customary beverage for all occasions. Your teacup will be refilled continually. Leave your cup full if you are finished. Chinese find adding sugar and cream to tea a very strange Western habit. Place teapot lid upside down (or open if attached) to signal the waiter for more tea.
• Toasting is an important part of a Chinese dinner. If you are the guest of honor and are toasted, smile, raise your glass, make eye contact, drink, raise your glass and thank the host and guests. Be prepared to make a toast. Leave your glass half full if do not want any more to drink. Never refill your own glass. Always refill your neighbor’s glass when it is less than half-empty.
• The guest of honor rises and thanks the host for everyone present at the end of dinner. Make a simple, polite, short toast to friendship, success and cooperation.
• The banquet host visits each table and makes a toast. A toast is often made in the middle of a banquet when the shark fin soup is served.
• Be sure to eat and show appreciation for shark fin soup if it is offered. This delicacy is offered only to special guests, and is very expensive.
• It is bad manners for a host not to keep a guest’s plate full, and it is even worse for a guest not to continue eating as long as the plate is full. Always leave some food on your dish after you are finished with each course. Otherwise the host will continue refilling your plate or bowl.
• Be sure to reciprocate with a banquet of equal quality. Your hotel can assist you in preparations.
• Rice is served as a filler. Most food will be served in the center of the table, allowing everyone to serve themselves. Always handle your chopsticks adeptly — never stand them straight up in your rice bowl, use them as pointers or hold them separately in two hands. Hold your rice bowl up by your chin, under the food held in your chopsticks, and whisk some rice into your mouth after you eat the food from your plate. Do not eat large amounts, which implies the host has not served enough food.
• Lay your chopsticks on your chopstick rest or neatly on the table when you are finished eating. Never stick them in a bowl of rice.
• Don’t be afraid to dirty the tablecloth. Bones, shells, etc. are put on the table; do not put them in your rice bowl. A plate may be provided for this purpose.
• Unique to Hong Kong, the way to thank a waiter for more tea or rice is to quietly tap your index and middle fingers together once or twice on the table.
• The Chinese find belching, slurping, clanging utensils and making loud noises at the dinner table acceptable, sometimes even complimentary.
• Oranges or other fruits are served to signal the end of the meal. Leave soon after the meal ends.
• Never refuse an invitation to lunch or dinner. If you can’t make the date, suggest another date.
• Spouses are usually not included in business dining. Do not bring a spouse unless invited to do so. If spouses are present, business is generally not discussed.

Dress

Hong Kong residents are very style-conscious and dress well. All types of clothing are worn in Hong Kong. However, taste and fashion look more toward Japan than Britain or the United States. Clothing should be light for summer with sweaters and jackets for winter.

• Modesty and cleanliness are very important.
• For business, men should wear conservative and lightweight Western-style suits and ties. Women should wear conservative dresses, suits or skirts and blouses.
• Wear a good watch. It will be noticed.
• The Chinese tend to dress up when going out in the evening. Most European-style hotel restaurants require a coat and tie in the evening. Women should wear cocktail dresses or evening pants.
• The color red is considered a lucky color in Hong Kong. When dressing for a business meeting select a red tie to impress your host.
• The color white is synonymous with death.

Gifts and Compliments

Gift giving is part and parcel of doing business in Hong Kong. It helps establish and maintain relationships. Gifts are always exchanged between business associates at Christmas and Chinese New Year. A common gift is known as hong boa. This is when a gift of money is given in a red envelope to children and non-governmental staff. New bills are given in even numbers and amounts. If you have gifts for all members of a team, the head of the team should get a higher quality present. Other team members should be given identical, token gifts. Typically, gifts are wrapped, presented and received with two hands, and opened after the presenter has gone. Be prepared to present a small gift at the first meeting, such as high-quality cognac, brandy, candy or pens. Unlike other Asian countries, Scotch whiskey is not special in Hong Kong.

• Gifts that are advised to avoid giving are clocks, books, blankets, anything unwrapped or wrapped in blue and green hats. When gifts are received do not open in the presence of the giver. When giving and accepting gifts use both hands. Gifts should be reciprocated. Gifts should be graciously declined when first offered. If the giver persists in offering you a gift, accept it with both hands and then put away. Similarly, compliments should be modestly accepted.
• Acceptable gifts to give include fruit and objects like coins, stamps and coffee table books that are unavailable in Hong Kong.
• Never go to a Chinese home without a gift.
• Present and receive a gift with both hands. Do not open a gift upon receiving it.
• The word for the number “3″ in Chinese sounds like the word for “life,” and the word for the number “8″ sounds like the word for “prosperity.” The Chinese word for number “9″ is a homonym for the word “eternity.” Give gifts in these numbers, if possible. Do not give gifts in a group of four; the Chinese word for “4″ sounds similar to the word for “death.”
• Avoid giving white or red flowers (white is a symbol of mourning, red is a symbol of blood); clocks are associated with death, but watches are suitable gifts.
• Every conceivable product can be purchased in Hong Kong. Try to bring something from your hometown or state.
• It is illegal to give a civil servant a gift.

Superstitions

• Cutlery is an inappropriate gift — it symbolizes the cutting of the relationship.
• Americans tend to avoid the number 13. Cantonese speakers avoid the number 4 for similar reasons. The number 3 is a homonym for life, the number 8 for prosperity, and the number 9 is similar in sound to the Cantonese word for eternity.
• The words for clock and flower, especially white flowers, are associated with funerals, so these items should not be offered as a gift, especially to those unwell.
• Red means happiness and gold means wealth and so both colours are appropriate for gift-wrapping.

Helpful Hints

• The Chinese are famous for communicating by “Saying it without saying it.” You will have to learn to read between the lines.
• Expect Hong Kong Chinese to ask personal questions.
• Compliment Hong Kong Chinese, but expect a denial. Politely deny a compliment to show humility. Do not say thank you.
• Do not speak loudly.
• You may be referred to as “Gweilo” (foreign devil). While perhaps insulting, it is generally not a personal attack.
• Hong Kong Chinese are very superstitious; mentioning failure, poverty or death offends them.
• It is common in China to show one’s surprise or dismay by sucking air in quickly and loudly through the lips and teeth. If you have been shown this gesture, it would be advisable to modify your request. Your host is obviously displeased.

Especially for Women

• Foreign businesswomen should have little trouble conducting business in Hong Kong.
• Chinese women generally do not drink alcohol. However, it is acceptable for Western women to drink alcohol in moderation.