USMC, you wrote:-

"Totally.... yes. I stand by my statement. No emotion here. A statement of fact. If you don't want to admit that business the world over is the same.....

This is easy ....simple... Business ia a living thing. It needs money to survive.

If it does make a profit and grow, it dies. Simple. Therefore, business, all business is totally money driven.... Business is always, in any country, totally money driven... that's why they call it business.... it that a concept that is too difficult to grasp?

Do you honestly believe that businesses provide their employees free daycare for their infants and children, free workout equipment, all the other perks, because they are humanitarians? C'mon give me a break. They provide all these perks because they need qualified, dedicated personnel. They also know that these benefits increase loyalty and productivity."

This was my point, USMC. This is where I notice a fundamental difference between Chinese and Western business practices. Chinese employers are more prone to not feeling the need to provide benefits to workers. Over here they are much more likely to provide poor conditions for their employees, and rip them off. If their employees don't like it, they can lump it, and go and join the endless queue of Chinese people struggling to find any employment at all.

The basic difference in business philosophy over here is that Chinese businesses put more emphasis on making the "quick buck", rather than concentrating on providing reasonable and fair conditions for their workers and making at least a reasonable attempt to produce a good product for their customers. Basic business sense tells you that if you treat your workers fairly and reasonably you will attract better quality employees who will generally be more contented, and so be more likely to work harder and stick around.

This would more likely result in a more efficient workforce, a better work atmosphere and a beter service and product. Also the business would have a better chance of permanently keeping a good team of staff who could work well together, thus increasing the quality of the service provided. In turn this would result in a good name being established and more customers flocking to partake of the business' sevices. After a while the business could probably feel justified in raising it's fees and increasing it's profit.

Although the above is much easier said than done, is that not a better way of doing businesss, than the " ..the business must live at all costs " philosophy? What are these "all costs " that you are talking about? How far do you think a business is justified in going to stay in business? Not paying it's workers for six months? Ripping off it's customers by knowingly providing a defective product? Deliberately promising it's workers certain remunerations and conditions before they start employment when the company know full well that they have no intention whatsoever in fulfilling those promises?

Of course such business practices can be found worldwide, including in the West. In the West though, I saw less of the "fast buck" thinking than I have seen here. This thinking seems to be a by-product of a system of education in China that puts too much emphasis on the result rather than the process. This system has produced students who often can't see the point of trying to enjoy the learning process, but are instead mainly concerned with memorizing a lot of facts so as to just pass exams, acquire degrees and get a half-decent job. This has led to a thinking in China, typified by many Chinese students, who can't be bothered to put any effort into anything unless they can see SHORT-TERM PROFIT. How many times have you told your students not to speak Chinese in class, when you give them an activity to do? MY students are often thinking only of the result. They say "Let's prepare for an hour in Chinese so that we can perform an excellent five minute skit in English". I tell them that it would be better if they practiced for an hour in English, and then later performed the skit for five minutes in Chinese. They UNDERSTAND this, but the problem is one of conditioning and although its slow I can see them gradually seeing the benefits in enjoying the process and in thinking long-term. Have you not found this thinking often exemplified when you have games in the classroom? Even then, when the idea is to enjoy the fun and challenge of the game, you will often find students cheating because " It's only about winning".

With a 1.3 billion population it is understandable why this thinking exists in China. However this same thinking is causing a lot of harm to China and threatening its future prosperity, because many young Chinese people go on to start or practice business with the philosophy "The end justifies the means".

USMC, how far do you believe a business is justified in going, in order to stay in business? Personally, if I owned a business and found myself in a position where the only way I could stay in business is by not paying my workers or ripping off my customers, I would rather give up the business, and close down.

Cheating business practices exist all over the world, but I have found the "fast buck " philosophy is much more prevalant today in China than in the West. Also Western business' and particularly schools, generally have more of a professional attitude, in that they care more about their product, service and customers than they do here in China.