Dealing with Guanxi

This study looks at the phenomenon of guanxi in relation to Dutch managers functioning in international organizations in Hong Kong and mainland China. Guanxi is seen as one of the most important forms of personal networking in China. According to various writers there is a difference in importance attached to such social networks in virtue of cultural backgrounds. China is seen as a low-trust society where people only trust those people related to them, and conversely distrust people outside there family and kinship group. Contrary, The Netherlands is a high-trust society which inclines toward spontaneous sociability and possessing dense layers of intermediate associations. This work aimed at investigating the difficulties and complexities that Dutch managers face while doing business in Hong Kong and mainland China, paying special attention to guanxi-relationships in this business environment.