Cultural hybrid in Houston's PetroChina

Employees at PetroChina International America Inc in Houston take part in a pumpkin-carving contest during Halloween. Provided to China Daily

Li Shaolin, president of PetroChina International America, Inc (PCAI), still remembers the employee "rebellion" he experienced in the early years of his career as a Chinese expat in the US with a major Chinese company.

Following parent company CNPC's guidelines handed down from headquarters in Beijing, Li required all of PCAI's employees in the US to sign an agreement to abide by the company rule not to drink and drive.

To his astonishment, most of the local hires refused to sign the paperwork and told him this was none of the company's business.

"I eventually learned that here in the US, DUI is a personal issue, not a company issue. So I persuaded our HQ to drop this requirement for PCAI employees," said Li.

This is just one example of the kind of cultural bumps PCAI has run into over the years.

In another incident, a Chinese expat at the management level approached an employee who was a divorced single mother with three kids, and said to her: "It must be hard for you — you have to take care of three kids and work at the same time."

While the Chinese expat thought that he was showing sincere concern for her, the employee found it insulting and discriminating. "Why did he single me out to show interest in my personal affairs?" she objected.

Now, years later, after many cultural missteps, most American employees at PCIA have learned to take such gestures as a sign of caring instead of feeling offended. Li and other Chinese expats have grasped the difference between "will you" and "would you please", among many other subtleties.

"PCIA is an American company in the sense that it was registered here," Li said. “We conduct business following all the laws and regulations here. We also follow local customs in doing business. We go local in practice and hiring as much as possible to have a successful operation.

"Still, our parent company is from Beijing with Chinese characteristics. No matter where we set up a subsidiary, we bring with us the Chinese culture and the culture of PetroChina. It is very challenging to solve the cultural conflicts in day-to-day operations," said Li.

To foster a harmonious working environment, over the years, Li has come up with programs designed to bring people from the two different cultures together.

"We celebrate both Chinese holidays and American holidays," he said. "We are off not only on the Fourth of July, but also on the First of October, China's National Day. When Beijing won the bid to host the 2008 Olympics, I also gave the employees a day off. I want the American employees to know about China and Chinese culture through our daily living, and vice versa. We've had lectures on the art of tea, how to make dumplings and a pumpkin-carving contest for Halloween."

PCAI's yearly dragon boat race is a prime example of a hybrid culture in the company — instead of a race with competitors rowing the boats, PCAI employees race each other with electronic boats on the lake in front of the office building.

To generate ideas fostering a harmonious company culture, Li implemented a suggestion box. Employees can submit suggestions signed or anonymously. "We collect them, go over them and adopt good ideas. Every three months we give out a prize for the best suggestion," said Li.

Another strategy Li implemented is to have lunch with three employees at a time, when the schedule permits. With about 90 employees, he rotates the ritual with each employee about once a year.

Li said a family atmosphere is part of the Chinese culture he wants to create. "I think this is where we differ from American culture. American culture is more independent, aggressive and individualistic in nature, while Chinese culture favors more harmony and team spirit. We don't want internal competition."

For Felita Larkins, an accountant at PCAI, working for a major Chinese company here in Houston is a little different from what she experienced as a former Shell employee. "We usually did not see or talk to each other outside of the office when I was at Shell," she said. "Here it’s a much tighter knit family. People and their families socialize after work."

"I remember one year I was asked to share my most memorable moment with everyone to celebrate my birthday. So we gathered together during lunch, I did a slide show and played a video showing my family vacation to Disney. People here get to know each other on a personal level," said Larkins.

Larkins currently also serves as chairwoman of the company's social committee, which was created more than a year ago. "The committee's goal is to routinely build activities among our employees and their families," she explained.

Mark Jensen, human resource director at PCAI, enjoys the working environment very much. "We hardly have anyone leaving, that's a good indicator. For me it's the best place I have worked at. I am very happy here," said Jensen, adding that he had worked for years at BP and Shell earlier.

Jensen said that people attracted to PetroChina are often US nationals with an interest in or some connection to China. "My father-in-law was a political science professor with a major focus on China," said Jensen. "Every year I would see slide show of various places in China he visited."

When it comes to company culture, Jensen likes how PetroChina looks more for sustained growth where other companies follow the ups and downs of the industry with frequent restructuring.

"PetroChina invests more in long-term relationships and grows the company in that manner. We hope an employee will stay with us for a very long time and we'll be happy with each other. I think that's part of the Eastern longer-view perspective," said Jensen.

Working for PetroChina does require patience, according to Jensen: "The US model is quick action. Here, especially with things involving HQ, it's back and forth. If you want instantaneous action, you may be frustrated."