Succeeding in Alliances with Chinese Partners | ASAP Local Meetup France

The ASAP community in France hosted an event at Sanofi, gathering over 50 participants working in alliance environments who wanted to deepen their understanding of interacting with Chinese partners.

Laetitia Bolloni, Head of Alliance Management R&D and China at Sanofi, opened the session by highlighting the strategic importance of China in pharma, along with Sanofi's footprint and strategic initiatives there.

Josiane Cauquelin, a renowned researcher and ethnologist specializing in Chinese culture, delivered a compelling presentation on cultural dynamics, highlighting the strong influence of Confucian principles, hierarchy, and respect for authority, as well as the importance of verbal and written communication in shaping business interactions and decision-making.

A central takeaway was the indirect nature of communication in Chinese business culture, where explicit "yes" or "no" answers rarely exist. This requires alliance managers to adapt their questioning, interpret implicit signals, and actively manage alignment. It also reinforces the critical role of relationship building, the concept of "face," and trust construction as core pillars of successful collaboration.

From a negotiation perspective, the session emphasized the importance of patience, preparation, and strategic flexibility, as Chinese partners often take a situational approach and continuously reassess the balance of power. In this context, alliance managers must strike the right balance between adaptation and firmness, maintaining their position without slipping into confrontation or over-accommodation.

Overall, the event underscored that effective alliance management with Chinese partners relies on cultural awareness, disciplined stakeholder engagement, and controlled information sharing to sustain balanced, long-term partnerships in a complex and evolving environment.