Christmas meetings of business psychologists

From business psychology to the heart of business partners from China. Master Programme  Business Psychology is keeping pace with the trends of modern business.

Christmas meetings are the most pleasant and a significant event of the whole academic year. Leading experts, practitioners, scientists are usually invited as a guest speakers there. They share their views on the actual problems of business development with students, and also involve the students to find  solutions. Discussions, cases - this is the traditional format for holding Christmas meetings. Discussion of vital issues and exchanging of opinions over a cup of tea is always pleasant thing to do for the participants.
This year, the most famous in Russia experts on the development of business relations with China, the head of the School of Oriental Studies of the Higher School of Economics, professor, doctor of historical sciences, writer, a unique connoisseur of East Asian traditions Alexey Maslov was the guest of the Christmas meetings of the master's programme  Business Psychology. He spent many years in China, where he  studied the culture and traditions of the country, and also lived in Buddhist and Taoist communities, studied at the Shaolin Monastery and underwent Buddhist initiation.
Christmas meetings in 2017 were devoted to the problems of Russian companies entering the Chinese market:  searching for effective ways of interaction with Chinese partners through the study of sources of  business information and peculiarities of Chinese perception of Internet and social networking materials. One of the trends in the development of the modern world is its globalization. Erasing borders, increasing mobility of the population contributes to the development of international business. At the same time, underestimation of the cross-cultural characteristics of the country can lead to harmful consequences for the company as a whole and for the individual (entrepreneur, employee, etc.). In this regard, the business psychologist needs to understand the cultural specifics of the countries that are currently leading in the development of the economy and business.
China today attracts many businessmen. Although the trade turnover between Russia and China has grown over the past year, the target of $ 100 billion remains for our country as yet unattainable. And the causes of the problems of developing effective relations with China are, in psychological factors.
Students have a unique opportunity to learn about how to conduct business relations with Chinese partners, what kind of pitfalls can be encountered in this, what kind of philosophy underlies the business behavior of the Chinese with partners. Where does  Asian, primarily from China, learn the basic business information and how does he perceive it? On what triggers is the average Chinese responding, that he appreciates, that does not tolerate, how to find an approach to his heart? These and many other important information about China make it possible to better understand the people of this country and as a result to prepare for business interaction with them.
The students realized that the Chinese thinking, the "guanxi" relationship system, the KOL concept, and the belief that beauty will save the world - these and other factors that affect the business ethics and organizational behavior of Chinese colleagues have a profound psychological meaning and should be the subject of business psychological analysis and practice.
The practical part of the event was the work on solving the real case from the professor. The Russian company enters the Chinese market with a specific business offer. In which particular region is it better to open this business? What form of ownership is more acceptable for this business? How to name the main product, so that it is perceived positively by the Chinese? How to promote the product (concept and advertising) to make it more understandable by the Chinese? The expert from potential Chinese partners was Professor Maslov himself, who highly evaluate the results of work of business psychologists.
Following the Christmas meetings, students came to the conclusion that it would be difficult to increase trade with China without psychologists. A business-psychological approach can bring real benefits to Russian businessmen and companies in building effective cooperation with Chinese companies. Therefore, business psychologists need to  develop further their understanding of the specifics of doing business in China, go deeply into the subtleties of building communications with colleagues from this country. Apparently, it's time to include business psychologists in the practice of effectively supporting the conduct of projects with Chinese partners.   

Irina Goncharova, a 2nd year student of our programme, shared her impressions about the event:
For the second year running the final class on the program is held in the format of "Christmas Meetings", and we are honoured to communicate with the expert on the development of business relations with China, the head of the School of Oriental Studies of the Higher School of Economics Alexey Maslov.This format allows you to get a maximum of practical information in a relaxed and festive atmosphere, ask questions you are interested about. Christmas meetings this year were devoted to the development of interaction and entry into the Chinese market through social networks. It's amazing how much the perception of social networks in China and in Russia is different! We have received a lot of information and practical tools, how to win partners from China, how to start cooperation with them. And, of course, immediately tried to apply knowledge in practice - in solving a real case for the launching and promotion of the product to the Chinese market.
I would like to express my great gratitude to Alexey Maslov for the fantastically interesting class and the highest professionalism while working with us, and to the teaching staff of the Business Psychology master programme for making such a creative atmosphere and supporting our enthusiasm in the implementation of projects!
Congratulations to all our respected teachers, graduates, students on the upcoming holidays! I wish all of us to continue successfully  our undertakings and look to the future with confidence!                                                                                                                                                                                                
That's what our graduate student Sophia Pascal noted on her Facebook page on the results of the Christmas Meetings of 2017:
My  master's programme "Business Psychology" organizes a lot of interesting events, but for Christmas and New Year it is always prepared a special gift for students, graduates and teachers.
This time it was especially lucky - Alexey Alexandrovich Maslov, the head of the School of Oriental Studies of the Higher School of Economics at the theme "What does the Chinese perceive when reading the Internet and social media?" and "How are business information perceived in China and what mistakes do Europeans make?".
I  want to thank Natalia  Ivanova very much once again for her work, for our wonderful program, which became more than just magistracy. For us it is now a very powerful egregor, which unites the most interesting people and makes us to continue to develop immediately in so many areas. The Saturday meeting was both incredibly interesting and just mega-useful for us, even in a purely practical way. For example, we now have a client from Taiwan, with whom it is not easy to find a common language (although we are generally coping), and during the meeting with Alexey we caught several important insights about Chinese thinking, I think now things will go much better.
Thank you!