LIU Tian-zhe Ollie || BBA (Hons) Management || Haier Group, Qingdao

In the four-week project-based placement in Qingdao, Liu Tian-zhe Ollie experienced his first taste of being in a multinational team. Through the memorable summer internship, he realised effective communication is the key to success.

Being a consultant trainee at the leading Mainland electronics appliance manufacturer, Haier, Ollie and his team, which comprised of a Russian, two Mainland Chinese and four other Hong Kong students, were required to work on a proposal for the company.

In the very beginning, the collaboration among the seven members was not smooth at all due to the language barrier and cultural differences. However, they managed to find a way to work together. The entire team also benefited from their mixed backgrounds.

“English was not our mother tongue. No matter how hard I tried, I still wasn’t sure if the others understood my idea,” says Ollie, a Management student. “Since all of us study similar subjects in universities, we were able to reach agreement in the end. On the other hand, the different cultural backgrounds of the members brought in very distinctive mindsets and ideas to the project.”

The power of variety

While one of the Mainland students who studies in Canada contributed some western ideas, the other Mainland undergraduate provided some valuable insights into the mainland market which helped the team to understand the situation in the Mainland and ensured the project was on the right track. The Russian member also shared the customs from his home country. “I didn’t expect such a multi-cultural interaction when I learnt that I would be having my internship in Qingdao,” says Ollie.

To allow the Russian teammate to take part in the final presentation, the team decided to complete the research report in both English and Chinese, in spite of the fact that their workload would be literally doubled. “In fact, we only needed to prepare the report in Chinese. But we didn’t want to leave our Russian teammate alone as an outsider, we would like to have him to work with us as a team and have his contributions in the project,” says Ollie.

Ollie is glad that the project was finished on time and without a hitch, even though the working styles of members were different. “We divided the projects into parts and each teammate focused on the area they are good at,” says Ollie. “Also, we were willing to accept each other’s ideas and ways of doing things. This is crucial to working in a team with such great diversity.”

YUNG Yuk-ling Yoyo || BBA (Hons) Marketing || Hisense, Qingdao

“Excuse me! We decided to buy a new television set. Could you give us some information?” said Yung Yuk-ling Yoyo to a salesperson at one of the major shopping malls in Qingdao, accompanied by her group members.

They were not regular customers but a consulting group formed by five PolyU students, gathering market information for a marketing proposal for the Qingdao division of mainland electronics manufacturer Hisense, the first electronic chip and flat panel TV provider in China.

Under the guidance of Hisense’s management, the group was required to garner Hong Kong consumers’ opinions about purchasing domestic appliances and to apply appropriate brand management theories to support their analysis. They also participated in an internal marketing training course. The five-day training, which was provided by Hisense’s senior management team, offered the five students the opportunity to learn more about the company’s market direction and a chance to interact with the senior staff.

Delegating tasks leads to success

Although three of the group members were majoring in non-business disciplines (Electronic Information Engineering and Internet and Multimedia Technologies), the students worked together seamlessly as a group and contributed interesting ideas and suggestions based on their own knowledge and perspectives.

To collect data from Hong Kong customers while they were in Qingdao presented an issue. Members who were good at IT overcame the physical distance through the development of an online survey. Yoyo and another student, both majoring in Marketing, then took up the responsibility of researching of various brand management theories. With their strong teamwork and good division of tasks, they received over 250 completed questionnaires within a week, which was way far beyond the target they set.

To put together a report in alignment with the company’s culture and vision, the group interviewed a number of Hisense management staff from departments, such as Public Relations, Brand Management and International Marketing, to obtain more information about the company’s operation. “One of our teammates was a Mainland student. With his native Putonghua proficiency, he contributed a lot in information gathering and helped correct our pronunciation.” Their hard work and dedication paid off. The proposal was highly regarded as constructive and enlightening and was sent to Hisense’s Hong Kong division as a reference. The group was thrilled when they received an email from the Director in charge of the Hong Kong division complimenting them on the high standard of the proposal.

“It is hard to describe my internship in Qingdao in just a few words.” says Yoyo. Expecting the best and preparing for the worst is what Yoyo believes and she is confident her experience in Qingdao would be valuable asset for her to market herself to future employers.