From the days of Marco Polo to the reign of Kublai Khan, China has had an allure for foreigners — and nowhere more so than that least Chinese of Chinese cities, Shanghai. In the space of scarcely one generation, Shanghai has transformed itself from a city of narrow lanes and decrepit buildings, its commerce crippled by decades of communism, into a futuristic megalopolis of 23m people, packed with skyscrapers and luxury malls, the undisputed financial capital of China.
They come, mostly, to make money: for postings at multinational companies with Asian headquarters in Shanghai; for jobs they cannot get back home, where economies are struggling; to follow their executive husbands or wives; or to teach or study. Government figures show the number of expatriates living in Shanghai has risen by 70 per cent in the past decade, from , in to nearly , last year.
But as the Chinese economy slows, the mix of expatriates is changing, with fewer coming on lavish corporate packages as companies save money by localising senior positions and more coming on their own, say expat service providers. Overall, foreign resident numbers fell 3 per cent last year, but relocation company numbers and international school enrolments suggest a much steeper decline in executives coming to Shanghai on full expat packages.
Vienna came first and Baghdad last; but Shanghai was ranked at number Many expatriates complain that their quality of life has deteriorated in other ways, too: traffic and pollution, food safety and internet speeds are growing problems.
So finding things unappetising about Shanghai is not hard: some expats detest the city, while others struggle merely to tolerate it. But those who have studied expatriate culture say many fall in love with the sheer vibrancy of the place — from work to domestic life, from culture to entertainment and travel. For in Shanghai there is never a dull moment: blink and the city transforms itself. Management and recruitment experts agree that working in China requires a different skill-set for westerners — and sometimes even for other east Asians.
Mr Kim, a South Korean expatriate, says east Asians may find it easier to manage Chinese employees than westerners do, since they share an eastern habit of looking at problems in the workplace in context, rather than just blaming individual employees. Chinese are helping them make money so they need to remember that.
And then in the evening, I meet China again, the rich culture; in between I have issues. On the face of it, Shanghai looks like a modern, even western city. But step into a Shanghai office and western expatriates immediately realise just how far they are from home.
And as the local economy slows and local rivals become more competitive, foreign businesspeople have to work harder to make money, says Pierre Cohade, former president of Goodyear Asia-Pacific.
But the most successful business people remember that there is more to life than work — even in China, management experts say.
What do I like about living in Shanghai, apart from the full-time help you mean? Most foreigners live in Guangdong, the richest Chinese province and the first one to lead Chinese economic development after the country started to open up in the late 70s. Shanghai has the next largest expat population in China that stood at over , few years ago.
It has most likely doubled since then. Beijing is the third largest population center for expats. Large Korean conglomerates such as Samsung and LG have been setting up manufacturing facilities in China, bringing large number of employees to fill top management and key technical positions. From non-Asian countries, Americans are the most numerous. Share on email. Share on print.
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