Cint, 24 February 2011
Hong Kong , Hong Kong 23°

Hongkong stories

My TP EurAsia Holding is in Hongkong as my local Talent&Pro Hongkong is too. I try to be here every month to keep track on the business. I skipped the December and January trip as most of my contacts were on holiday or busy preparing for that. The stories become different as many things become familiar. I made some office pictures but there are no real new sights to share.

The best news in Hongkong this time was the recovering of one of my friends from a nasty disease. It was good to have lunch again and talk about life!

I also want to tell about a conversation I had with a European lady in her early thirties. It is a good example of the way we in Europe struggle with the fully recognized equal rights and the traditional place of the women in society. She has a great job in the finance industry. Suddenly she got the opportunity to go to Hongkong on an expat basis. In the execution this becomes complicated. She has a boyfriend and he did not want to come along. He had his own career and believes in his chances for promotion. Finally they broke up as love on a distance did not work out. Now the real trouble starts. For their so called ‘friends’ Elsa is the bitch. She went on her own and let her boyfriend down. But if it had been the other way around, he had the offer for an expat job and she had decided to stay in the home country she also would have been the bitch letting her boy friend go.

Now she is a single woman in the expat world, but she (if she wanted to) is not allowed to do what single males are expected to do. Moreover she cannot expect any support from the expat wives. These women will even avoid her, afraid for the competition regarding their husbands. So much for the sisterhood! Yes life can be made complicated.

Meanwhile the business in Hongkong is promising. With the help of my friends and JV partner we service two clients with several positions. The third client is on its way. It is clear we must have that new manager in place soon!