Working in Taiwan?

A friend of mine ( we'll call him "R" ) recently posted a list of "working in Taiwan" assumptions on his blog. As someone who has also worked in Taiwan I felt compelled to make some commentary on the subject. I think his blog comes from a very western perspective on things which is appropriate for understanding the differences there are between working in Asia and the west. In this post I'm not trying to debate his ideas as much as I am trying to see some of the reasoning behind them.

You can view R's original post here

R- The pay is shit unless you are a foreigner."


What I think he actually means by this is that the pay is quite a bit lower then one would expect from a similar position in many western countries. This was one of the things that weighed heavily on my mind when I was originally deciding if I should stay here or not. In the end I chose to stay, and recognize the fact that as a worker in Taiwan, I don't deserve more pay then everyone else simply because I'm a foreigner. Many foreigners here do make more for that very reason, and its a bit unfair I suppose.
I think that most Taiwanese here assume that I make more as well. But I don't, and while I love money as much as the next, I feel fair about what I'm payed.



R- HR determines the pay, not your manager/director, and they base it on age, a little on degree level, and almost none on experience. 


This seems to be true, however as I seem to be getting older all the time lately, this appeals to me, but I can see his frustration. 


R- Most people get burned out within 2 years.. 


Yes, its a turn and burn culture right now, but that will change soon. As companies begin to discover the huge value in finding and retaining quality talent who enjoy their work, they will ease up, and the office culture will change. Those pioneering Taiwanese's companies who do this first will also be the first to reap the rewards, and when other companies start to wonder why they lag behind, they'll scrabble to catch up. 


R- They expect you to "work" long hours. 


It's true, and this is one of the huge contributers to the "turn and burn" culture. After a few years of working 100 hours a week, humans just fall apart, so they quit. And the biggest losers ( in terms of actual dollars because of this ) are the companies they quit on. They'll do the math someday.


R- They like to get in to your personal life. 


True. Thats just the Chinese in them. They might see it being less of "getting into your biz" and more about building "guanxi". Culturally this can seem a bit intrusive to westerners, but to the Taiwanese and Chinese, its about doing good business.


R- Not very many think outside the box or creatively.


At first glance it can seem this way. Taiwanese are taught from a very young age not to question authority, which can also lead to not questioning the way things are in general. Because of this, it can be hard for many Taiwanese and Chinese to think "out of the box" not because they can't, but because they were taught that it is disrespectful. In spite of this there are loads of young Taiwanese and Chinese who are remarkably creative. Taiwan in recent years has seen a boom in talented young artist and designers who have a truly unique style worth recognizing.

R- The manager (or director/VP/CEO) is always right. Even where they're very, very wrong. 


This too comes from an upbringing that stresses respect of elders and your authority figures. Its also about "face" and not causing your superiors to lose it. Taiwanese are much less direct then westerners, which can initially come across as being passive, however if a superior is very wrong in a decision, Taiwanese who are at the appropriate level can and do question decisions, they just do it the long way around in order to avoid any embarrassment and ill feelings. This long way around can be completely missed by us foreigners who are unskilled in this type of communication. 


R- The younger workers are way too coddled.


You could say this. You could also say that young workers are allowed to make more mistakes and given more wiggle room then you'd expect in the west. I don't see this is a terribly bad thing.

R- They have no idea how to budget time properly. 


Chinese and Taiwanese are a bit less concerned about time then us westerners, it's true. Thats why meetings can drag on for hours and hours with no clear decisions being made, and bosses don't see why you need to leave the office at 7pm, and coworkers can sit around on a 2 hour lunch break. I think this also stems from a deep rooted cultural value of time. Which is, time is no big deal. Chinese are more leisurely about things, which can come across as a waste of time to us busy-body westerners. Although it can be really frustrating when deadlines need to be met, I generally like this attitude.


Working in Taiwan is different then working in the west, in many ways, and on many levels. As a foreigner living and working in Taiwan I feel lucky to have been given the opportunity to learn about this culture in such an immersive way, and feel that with time and experience the best of both cultures will emerge to create new work environments that are truly dynamic and forward thinking.