The former PM of Singapore Mr. Lee Kuan Yew had said, ““To be part of the Asian dynamism, Westerners do not need to become Asians in culture, in values or in habits… but it is necessary for Westerners to understand Asians, to feel at ease with Asians and to make Asians feel at ease with them.”

This becomes particularly important when you want to work or do business in Asia. Over 5 weeks in July and August 2018, I had the opportunity to teach ‘Negotiating Business Deals in Asia’ to 2 batches of Masters students visiting from Paris, at the Essec Business School, Singapore Campus.

Thoroughly enjoyable experience for me and (hopefully) for the students too. Good lively interaction and sharing of experiences along with introduction of concepts and techniques around the art of negotiation. There cannot be a dull moment when you discuss facets of the rich cultural diversity that is Asia, the business etiquette dominant in different countries, and explore the implications for how one should conduct business negotiations. – concepts like “Mianzi” (China) “Jam Karet” (Indonesia) “Nemawashi” (Japan) “Jai Yen (Thailand), the immense importance of relationships, high-context vs. low-context cultures, unique body language habits, and various situations when an Asian’s YES likely means NO.

Of course, one cannot stereotype Koreans or Taiwanese as this or Indians or Indonesians as that. Your counterparts are after all unique individuals, not walking avatars of their national culture. To quote Jeswald Salacuse “If rule number one in international negotiation is to know the culture of the other side, rule number two is to avoid over-reliance on that knowledge.”