Remember that HSBC advert about the dangers of accidentally offending business partners from very different cultures if you aren’t up to speed on local customs? One lawyer from Lovells recently fell foul of his Chinese hosts after an unfortunate case of ‘lost in translation’ potentially put the kybosh on the City giant’s relentless push into the key emerging market.
Having arrived in China with his business cards adorned only in English, the lawyer gave his name and contact details to a Chinese translator in order to get a bilingual version knocked up for potential clients.
