We live in the age of globalization and information technology in which we increasingly interact with people from diverse cultures and backgrounds. Despite our differences, the world has grown so small that we find ourselves inevitably dependent on each other in one way or another.

To effectively and harmoniously live and work together in this global village, it is critical for us to understand the close connection between culture and communication, and be able to communicate across cultures. Consequently, we believe that intercultural communication ability is the ultimate factor determining our success as a business or individual in today’s global village.

In recent years, China has become an active participant in and is at the forefront of the trend in world economic globalization. Today businesses and products from all over the world are found in China, while its own exports are landing on every market across the globe.

The success of overseas companies in China and Chinese companies in overseas markets depends heavily on their ability to understand and communicate inter-culturally: 1) between employees of different cultures to work effectively as a team; 2) between partners with different cultural backgrounds to build company unity; and 3) between a business and its external environment, including the general public, government agencies, competitors, suppliers, distributors, and most importantly, clientele.

WayStone (Beijing) Ltd. specializes in providing expertise in bridging the gap between people from different cultures. We provide a range of specialized training and consultation services to help individuals and businesses achieve a better understanding of and ability to communicate effectively in a cross-cultural work, living or study environment. We also advise companies on cross-cultural elements in various aspects of their business such as public and government relations, employee relations, product concept design, product packaging, advertising and promotion, customer relations.

WayStone (Beijing) Ltd. was founded by business communication experts specializing in cross-cultural/diversity issues who also have rich management and training experience in international and China business.

The company is based in Beijing with associates in Shanghai, Hong Kong, UK and the USA.

We believe that the influence of culture affects communication in subtle and profound ways. Our cultural perceptions and experiences are a powerful determinant of how we see the world and interact with each other. We also hold that that all forms of communication involve actions that affect ourselves and one another. As cultures vary from place to place, people communicate verbally and non-verbally in different ways according to their own cultures. This often results in misunderstandings or even breakdowns in cross-cultural interactions. In order to avoid failures in cross-cultural communication, we need to acquire an in-depth understanding as well as effective strategies for cross-cultural communication.

Our mission, therefore, is:

In 1990s, she held various management positions in public relations, publishing, training and consulting in a number of US companies and organizations including Columbia University, Columbia Press and Time Warner. Before she founded WayStone, Ltd. in 2003, she was an Acting Education Officer, Program Officer and International Consultant respectively with UNESCO’s Cluster Office for North Korea, Japan, Mongolia, China and South Korea.

She holds both an MA in Teaching English as a Foreign Language from Exeter University, UK and a Master of Education from Teachers College, Columbia University. She is also a doctoral candidate at Teachers College, Columbia University. She was among the first group of university scholarship students sent by the Chinese Government to study in the UK in 1978 after the Cultural Revolution.

Mr. Shen is a successful entrepreneur and a master negotiator of strategic alliance and joint ventures between Western and Chinese companies. He has a Master Degree in Business Administration from Exeter University, UK.

Mr. Shen is a Chinese American who grew up in China but lived in Europe and the USA for nearly two decades. In the late 1980s, he was an editorial consultant covering China business news for a number of well-known international business information companies including the Financial Times, IMS and PJB Publications. In 1991, he started in the US one of the world’s first consulting and information companies specializing in the Chinese healthcare markets. His clients included many leading healthcare related companies including Thomson Group, IMS, GD Searle, Pfizer, Sanofi-Synthelabo, IVAX, TEVA, AL Pharma, as well as financial companies such as Merrill Lynch.

Since 1986, Mr. Shen has published or contributed to the publication of many books, reports, newsletters and multimedia products relating to the Chinese market and business. In recent years, Mr. Shen has founded a number of fast-growing private healthcare and pharmaceutical research companies in China.

Dinah Lin – External Senior Trainer and Consultant. Ms. Lin is a top expert in the areas of marketing, strategic planning, corporate communications and international business development. She received her MBA in Finance/Business Economics from Columbia Business School and her BA in Economics from Barnard College, Columbia University. She has held a number of management and executive positions throughout her 20-year career, working for a variety of companies ranging from high tech start-ups to Fortune 500 companies. The industries included franchising, electronic retailing, banking, and consumer and high tech services.

In the first half of the ‘90s she was Vice President, Worldwide Business Development for Burger King Corporation based in Miami, Florida. Prior to this position, she held a senior political appointment in Washington, D.C. under the former Bush administration. Earlier experiences included Director of International Business for Telaction, a high tech subsidiary of J.C. Penney; Vice President at CUC International (now Cendant); Director of Marketing at Control Video Corporation (later AOL, now Time Warner); Associate Manager, Strategic Planning at Union Carbide and Assistant Treasurer, Chase Manhattan Bank, Hong Kong. In addition to the US and China, She lived in Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand. She emigrated with her parents to the United States from Shanghai, China.

James Shen – Co-Founder and President. Mr. Shen is one of the pioneer consultants for China business and market. Since late 1980s he consulted for many well-known international companies including Financial Times, IMS, Thomson Group, GD Searle, Pfizer, Sanofi-Synthelabo, IVAX, TEVA, AL Pharma, and Merrill Lynch. He also worked with a number of multinational companies with responsibilities on China and Asian business development. He is also a successful entrepreneur who founded a number of successful pharmaceutical companies in China. Mr. Shen is a frequent speaker at different China business related conferences internationally. His rich and diverse work and living experiences in different parts of the world are reflected in his training and consulting work.

Jing Luo, PhD – External Senior Trainer and Advisor. Dr. Luo is a professional teacher and trainer, and an expert in Chinese and Western cultures. He received his first degree and a MA in French and Chinese Linguistics from Beijing University in early 1980s, and later received a PhD from PennState University in Second Language Acquisition and Pedagogy. He was Chairman of the Department of Languages and Cultures in Bloomsburg University in the United States between 1996 and 2002 and is now an Associate Professor with the Department. His specialized fields of research and instruction include cross-cultural studies, distant education as well as English, French and Chinese languages. He is an author of many culture and language related articles and publications, and a frequent speaker at relevant international conferences. He is also a key organizer of many US-China academic and cultural exchange events.

Peter Chua – External Advisor and Speaker. Mr. Chua is a pioneer and leading expert in China business, marketing and public relations. He was trained and qualified in London University as a pharmacist in 1970s, and joined Ciba-Geigy (now Novartis) in early 1980s and spent over 12 years in China cultivating the company’s business in the country and building a nationwide pharmaceutical marketing and sales network. Many of his trainees in 1980s now hold important marketing, sales and other corporate positions in the healthcare industries. Mr. Chua now operates a pharmaceutical company in Hong Kong and is a director of a Sino-Foreign pharmaceutical joint venture in Beijing. He was the President of the Hong Kong Pharmaceutical Society (1993-95) and is now a member of the Pharmacy & Poisons Board of the Hong Kong Government as well as the President of the Association of Hong Kong Health Care Professionals. In addition, he is a Justice of Peace (JP) in Hong Kong, a rare honor from the HK government to people of excellence.

Xiao-Hua Shen (Zhou) – Co-Founder, Chairwoman and Master Trainer. Ms. Shen is an expert trainer for cross-cultural communication and a professional language teacher. She has provided consulting and training services in the areas of cross-cultural communication, language and business communications to many prestigious companies and organizations including; Lloyds of London, AT&T, GTE, Thomson Group, 3M, Chanel, London University, Exeter University of England, Management Forum in England, British Foreign Office, UNESCO and the World Bank. Throughout 1990s, she held various management positions in public relations, publishing, training and consulting in a number of US companies and organizations including Columbia University, Columbia Press and Time Warner. Before she founded WayStone, Ltd., she held various management and consulting positions with UNESCO’s Cluster Office for North Korea, Japan, Mongolia, China and South Korea. Her rich and diverse work and living experiences in different parts of the world add a valuable dimension to her training and consulting work.