Final Summary

Ethical Issues in my Profession

 

Chinese industry standards differs from the United States because in the U.S there are minimum wages set in place for the government so that we still can make a decent amount of money. In China the wages are so low that people who work in really high stress jobs and in the past working in these positions have led to people killing them selves because they were so burnt out. China also doesn’t regulate stuff as much for example I walked past a kitchen in a restaurant and it was filthy and it look like a health inspector has never set foot in there.  Also there is a huge pollution problem in China too. The United States government regulates all companies for how much carbon they admit and other chemicals they dispose of but in China they don’t stress it as much however that is changing as the country becomes more modern. In business it would be smarter to outsource your company to China because it would save you a ton of money because the wages are so cheap there.  Since the wages are cheap you could sell your product for less money and there will be more demand so more people will buy it.

 

 

Education as Professional Development

 

Before I went to China I thought that it was such a different culture then the United States but there actually wasn’t. There especially wasn’t one in the educational system. We visited a college in Beijing and it reminded me exactly of college back home. The students may dress a little more differently and be in to different music but the general style of college is the same. I don’t think they need to change a thing. If anything they know more about global culture and business then students in the United States. I think that we should make an attempt to learn more back in the states. Almost every young person in China understood a and could speak a decent amount about English and I think it would be smart for students in America to start acting like them.  After this trip I believe that not only should kids learn more about cultures in different countries but also I think that every student should study abroad. This trip was one of if not the best experience of my life and I believe that every person should travel to another country and amerce them selves in the culture. I have been lucky to do it multiple times but I think others should do it too!

 

 

Lifelong Learning, Continuing Education as a Professional

 

In Capital Bio, Lenovo, and Tsinghua Solar I believe that techniques that the employees use every day are learned through their years of schooling. Since capital Bio, Lenovo, and Tsinghua Solar are very science based the scientists need years of schooling to invent new products for the company. However we visited an alcohol distillery and I believe that you don not need an education to do what these people do.  Many of the guys were just doing manual labor like hulling grain around the factory or helping the distilling process. Other people in the company are just on an assembly line being part of the packaging process. These people don’t go to school for this but just learn from years of experience on the job. However all the business have one thing in common. They all need to market their products. Whether or not the person learned it in school or just from years of experience they still need people to run the business. For the most part every business seemed to be very organized so you could tell that there was a chain of command that is operation efficiently.  In China just like the U.S you don’t need schooling to run a successful business but it sure helps.

 

 

The social environment of professional life

 

In China they have CNN Hong Kong and that’s where I got most of my news for China and all over the world. They do a good job covering the stories however they are a little late on reporting it. For example we will hear news about something in the United States right after it happens but in China they would report on something that has happened in America a few days after it happened.  I don’t know if this was true since I didn’t talk directly to a lot of Chinese people but I have a feeling that they are kind of in their own little bubble. The government controls a lot of the Internet and media in China so if they don’t want the country to see something then they will not show it on TV. However, I’m sure they feel the same because I am not really sure what is going on in China at all times unless it is major news.  I have a feeling though that after this trip I will pay closer attention to Chinese news since I feel like I have become more invested in china and feel like it is a part of me now and I think that that is an experience that every person should have.

 

 

Functioning on Multi-Disciplinary Teams

 

Yes I believe that it is very important for people from different backgrounds to be able to communicate while in a group. In the Chinese based company Lenovo has a requirement that every employ needs to speak English so in meetings they wont have any language barriers and this also gives their company a competitive edge in the global market. This was a good example on how to work in groups with people from diverse backgrounds. During this trip we had to work in groups with people much different then ourselves. The Business and Engineering students came together and we worked together in groups to make a business model and present it to the class. We overcame our differences by discovering each other’s strengths.  I’m not trying to be judgmental but I think the business students strengths over all are that we are outgoing and creative while engineering students are much more practical and smarter when it comes to math. We could use those strengths to make our work better. This was a very good learning experience because we all will be working with people from different backgrounds for the rest of our live so its great to get the practice in now!

All of my Blogs during our plus 3 china trip!

Entry 1

We just got off the 13 hour flight and it wasn’t that bad. The plane had a very good entertainment system and it made it easy to pass the time. And I also read the hunger games. The Beijing airport is HUGE and really nice.  We just grabbed dinner and it was really good some dishes were better then other but it was all part of the experience. I really like how they serve the food in big serving plates on the lazy suzan and how everyone shares. Its time for bed now because we have a big day tomorrow.

 

Entry 2

We had a meeting early today where we learned about Chinese culture and it was very interesting. The lady who taught us was a student at Tsinghua university and her English was flawless and I was very impressed. After that we got lunch and i got to try chicken feet and they were very interesting.  We visited Tsinghua university and it was awesome. The little ponds and trails that they had were amazing and were a nice unexpected surprise. Another surprise was when a Asian women photo bombed our picture of our group. She just snuck in our picture and had her dad take a picture and then she ran away. We went to a Korean BBQ for dinner and it was really good we got the meat platter and It wasn’t a lot but it was good quality. Its time for bed again because we need to be up at 7 tomorrow morning to get breakfast!

 

Entry 3

So today we woke up early and went to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden city! On the way there we saw someone get hit by a car and saw the laying on the ground with their bike. That’s one example of how crazy the driving in in Beijing and China. So Tiananmen Square was huge and really cool! But the Forbidden City was amazing. It the buildings looked so cool and the history was amazing.  My favorite place was the garden that was really cool. We went to lunch and I ate Shark Lips we went out to party at La Bamba afterwards and it was a really fun time and I enjoyed it a lot! That’s all for today we are going to the Zoo tomorrow.

 

Entry 4

So we woke up early and went to the Zoo and we were the animals since everyone wanted to take pictures with us.  It was cool but I was kind of let down. The highlight of the day was going to the market and shopping. Trying to haggle prices down was fun and I really liked it. I cant wait for Sunday when we can go shopping all day and get a bunch of cool stuff. We also went to the coolest bar area in Beijing. It was so cool It was around a lake and had a ton of shops and I ate Scorpion!!!! It was not bad either. Its off to bed because I need to catch up on my sleep.

 

Entry 5

It was a bit rainy today but we still went to the summer plaice.  It was a very cool place with a lot of history. The coolest things we did was ride on a boat back from an island in the middle of the lake and we also walked through these shops along a canal! The shops reminded me of venis Italy. I got my parents and girlfriend amazing gifts there. We went out to pyro pizza and la bamba at night and it was awesome. I love Beijing.

 

Entry 6

Today was awesome!!! We finally climbed the Great Wall of China! It was a HUGE hike just to get up there then hours of walking the wall but it was amazing. We spent the day up there and eventually rode a slide down to the bottom. We shopped and haggled down at the bottom of the wall and I got some great deals.  At night we went to La Bamba and then Propaganda. Propaganda is an Asian nightclub and we are superstars any dance moves we did all the Asians would also do. We felt awesome. We also drank a propaganda which is a fiery cocktail and it tasted amazing!

 

 

Entry 7

We shopped at the pearl market today and it was really cool! We haggled all the prices down of the goods we that we wanted so we could get stuff for cheap. I got a few cool things.  We went to KFC and then went to the temple of heaven which was really cool! We went to the water cube and swam at night and it was crazy we did a ton of waterslides and once again the Asians followed us around! We were too tired to go out at night so we went to KFC again #Gross

 

Entry 8

We had another class again today and it was really interesting! We learned a lot about the Chinese economy and it was cool! We ate at the restaurant at our hotel and it was amazing. We went to Tsinghua solar at night and it was awesome the products they have are amazing! At night we went to La bamba and Propaganda again and they loved us again. They did everything that we did and it felt amazing. I really do love china but I miss everyone back home.

 

Entry 9

Today we woke up early and went to the Birds Nest and the Water Cube! The birds nest was awesome we actually rented Segways for 20 minuets and rode them around the track where Usain Bolt broke the world record for fastest 100 meter dash. We went to capital Bio and even though the technology was a bit over my head I was still really interested and enjoyed the visit. Again at night we went to la bamba and Propaganda and it was a blast as usual

 

Entry 10

Its called Fragrant Hill but they should change the name to Fragrant Mountain or Cliff. It was a massive hike up the mountain but it was worth every step when we made it to the top! You could see all of Beijing from up there since it was a very clear day. The view was beautiful and we took a bunch of pictures. The walk down wasn’t as bad and when we got to the bottom it felt great. We went out again tonight and me and Andrew got nachos for the 4 day in a row and then we danced at propaganda

 

Entry 11

Today was cool we went to Lenovo and it was by far the coolest tour we went on. Everything was so high tech and it was cool to see all the products we also got to hold the actual Olympic torch that Lenovo made! We got Peaking duck for lunch and it was absolutely amazing. In the afternoon we had a class thought by this nice lady and she thought us about Chinas history. We spent the rest of the afternoon on our projects. Since we were well rested and it was one of our last nights we went to la bamba and propaganda and stayed a while.

 

Entry 12

We woke up and learned some more about families in china. After that we did our final presentations and they all went well. The rest of the day was a free day. At night we went to la bamba and propaganda and we added a new place called “Wu.” Wu was awesome and I loved it! It was a great way to end the trip with all my new friends I made.

 

Entry 13

We are leaving today and its sad but we are all ready to go home! Im not looking forward to this trip but the 20 hours of travel in front of us is going to be rough. We went to get food at the convent store right by our hotel and it closed down over night and so we had to go to the U-Center. I really am going to miss china and everyone but I’m excited to get home.