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Humility and eye contact may pave a path to
riches
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Mastering Business in Korea
Thomas L. Coyner and Jang Song-hyon
Genre: Business
Publisher: Seoul Selection
By Pat King, Editor
JoongAng Daily
May 5, 2007
Just as the mason needs a trowel, the carpenter a
hammer, and the welder a torch, so should the business professional toss
"Mastering Business in Korea, a Practical Guide," in the toolbox before
trudging off to work.
It might be a stretch to call it a Bible for business,
but it's fair to call it a Swiss Army knife, compact and loaded with tools.
I am no expert, but anyone looking to make serious money in the Land of the
Morning Calm should probably read this book.
The authors, Thomas L. Coyner and Song-Hyon Jang, give
the lay of the land, history, culture and lots of references. The authors
outline contemporary business etiquette, work rules and marketing to the
Korean consumer, and they know their stuff.
Coyner is president of Soft Landing Korea, Ltd. and has
more than 20 years experience of advising multinational firms in the
Asia-Pacific region. He was twice salesperson of the year at an American
firm, largely due to his work with Korean distributors.
Jang is president of S.H. Jang & Associates, Inc., an
international business consultancy. His career spans 30 years of
cross-cultural management and he has managed three multinational firms in
Seoul. He also wrote "Pursing a Successful Second Career," "The Key to
Successful Business in Korea" and "Foreign Investment Guide to Korea."
Up front, the authors graciously acknowledge the
contributions of 23 people who helped get the book off the ground. It's an
impressive lineup.
One of the cover blurbs is from Jack Lewis, an
associate dean at the Marshall School of Business at the University of
Southern California. "It's all here," Lewis writes. "This is a superb effort
to help expat executives deal with the tremendous complexities of Korean
business."
The forward is by Nick Reilly, president of GM Asia
Pacific. Having lived five years in Korea, Reilly notes that the book is
needed because "Korea is still a nationalistic and highly homogeneous
society, heavily influenced by Confucianism, where rules and laws are often
subjugated to humanity considerations," he writes.
With three decades in Korea, Alan Timblick, senior
advisor for Invest Korea, remarks that foreigner entrepreneurs, as guests in
Korea, will never be insiders, and should recognize that the business
relationship is not going to be equally balanced.
"But a lot of our frustrations will be eased if we
understand some of the reasons, motivation, and cultural and historical
background which lie behind behavior which otherwise
seems unfathomable," he writes.
In the preface, the authors note that Korea is in a
state of flux, and, as the world's 11th-strongest economy, has come a much
further distance than most countries in the last half century.
The authors say the book is the first written by a
Korean and a Westerner who both built their careers in commerce between Asia
and the West.
With its rise to riches from the ashes of war, Korea
today has stronger human and civil rights than at any time in its history.
The authors note that Korean consumers demand and get
quality, and that the bullet trains have changed the
consumption patterns of the nation.
The book's five parts are: Getting to know the Koreans,
Putting Your Best Foot Forward, Getting Along with the Koreans, Making It in
the Korean Market and References.
Page 61 provides interesting insights on nunchi,
the power of eye contact. Page 67 expands on how a little humility goes a
long way.
"The Western business image is of self-confidence and
self-assertiveness that may border on aggressiveness, an inflated sense of
self-importance, and a know-it-all attitude. To succeed in Korean business,
this image must be subdued at all costs."
Other topics include protocol, hiring and firing, myths
and realities of selling, Korean hearts and minds, compensation, motivation,
labor relations, the Korean legal system and a case study of the Korean IT
industry.
The book reflects the international business community
in Korea, and at the end of the preface, the authors write that there has
not been a general survey book on this subject for almost 20 years.
"In the end, it matters not if one be a Korean or a
non-Korean. Once one has grabbed the Korean tiger by its tail, it can be an
amazing adventure of simply hanging on."
Grab your toolbox.
To
order your copy, click
here
or order on
Amazon.com
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