Just back from a “business vacation” in Shanghai. The friends, the companies, the conversations, and, of course, the city’s incredible energy have given us so much.
One thing that always strikes me in China is how varied people’s opinions are about what constitutes a “company.” My Chinese business partners don’t even consider anything with fewer than 3,000 employees to be a real company—and are then utterly astonished to learn that well-known companies from Germany are often much smaller.
When I ask them my favorite question—namely, what percentage of companies in Germany have fewer than 250 employees (no, I won’t reveal the answer here)—they’re stunned. But you don’t have to be big to compete on the international stage. “Good” is perfectly sufficient—as long as you have sales expertise or are willing to acquire it.
My belief is that German small and medium-sized businesses—and even startups—have very good prospects abroad if they take a personal approach, study cultural differences, find good intermediaries—and, of course, don’t put all their eggs in one basket. There’s always a niche where you can become a global market leader!
