Whlist Fred preparing for the exams and with some days of leave to spare, I decided to follow my dad on his business trip to Shanghai along with my brother, Andrew, hoping to assist my dad in wherever possible out of pure goodwill and also spend some quality time with them.
I went on-site to visit the rescently expanded outlet within a new mall, and found it in a not so healthy state. Minimal sales were made since inception 1 month ago. Hardly enough to cover the cost of rental and the worker's expenses. Junior sale staffs are inexperience and thus have little understanding of the ranges of products. The only senior staff aka assistant manager is incompetent and is highly arrogant, thinking that he is highly indispensable. Junior staffs reports that the AM comes and goes at randoms times of the day. There are no safeguards in place to ensure the senior staff is working the right number of hours and doing the right things as he hops between branch and office. Who knows he may be meeting his wife secretly or sleeping at home whlist he is supposed to be at work? Further, no accounts were being maintained - a very blury picture of how the money was spent was estimated through the few receipts which did not reconcile. Inadequate resoures to support after sales service and the list goes on.
Disheartened, I made an effort to understand how things are the way they are. It was quite difficult as I struggled to speak broken mandrian. It is only through the assessment and close interaction with many there that I learnt a lot about how the Chinese think and act. In order to succeed, I believe that understanding the country's culture and labour and relevant regulations is pivotal for a successful overseas business.
Apart from business, we took this chance to visit the some attractions as well as Expo2010 Shanghai which ends this month. As part of national day celebration, it's public holiday from 1-7 October in China. I naturally thought the expo would be packed with people during this time and planned my visit to the Shanghai Expo on the 9th of October. Apparently, the day we went the Expo clocked 900,000 over people in a day - the highest number by far. We managed to visit close to 12 out of 200 over pavilions there. For some, we had to queue 2 hours before we can get in. Can imagine how tired I was at standing and walking for 12 hours straight...
Apart from business, we took this chance to visit the some attractions as well as Expo2010 Shanghai which ends this month. As part of national day celebration, it's public holiday from 1-7 October in China. I naturally thought the expo would be packed with people during this time and planned my visit to the Shanghai Expo on the 9th of October. Apparently, the day we went the Expo clocked 900,000 over people in a day - the highest number by far. We managed to visit close to 12 out of 200 over pavilions there. For some, we had to queue 2 hours before we can get in. Can imagine how tired I was at standing and walking for 12 hours straight...
Shanghai is indeed a virbrant and beautiful city. In fact, I think anywhere is beautiful with the people you love. I intended for more play than work but the trip turned out the other way round - most times being my dad's personal secretary. Nonetheless, I am glad I made the trip.
