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Testimony 1:
Building Trust and protecting U.S. company’s best interest by recommending the most suitable 3rd party overseas
Background:
The VP of Asia Operations for a Batavia, NY-based manufacturer was sent to China to set up an engineering & sales office there. He hired engineers, a sales manager and an office manager, and began training people while he was on the road making sales.
This manufacturer was dealing in the oil refinery business, supplying massive industrial vacuum equipment. This firm had a long-standing reputation in the U.S., and was just entering China at the time with contracts valued at $2M to $3M. The engineering work was done in Batavia, NY, and the manufacturing and assembly was to be split between Batavia and China, with some parts being shipped from Batavia to China for final assembly.
What was the problem you faced?
This manufacturer had just set up a new China operation, and was not experienced and sufficiently informed of all the intricacies related to the logistics and transactional implications for the business model it had created, i.e. partial production in Batavia, followed by shipping to China of sub-assemblies, followed by final assembly and distribution in China.
What was the solution you needed?
The contracts and financial activity for this firm were based in Batavia, and the China operation received the orders and coordinated activities for final assembly and production. This manufacturer needed to resolve the logistics of shipping components to China for assembly, as well as the logistics of shipping finished products to customers.
Additionally, this manufacturer needed to deal with duties, taxes, and other regulatory financial topics. It became increasingly clear that a Chinese company was needed to handle the import and export transactions, a firm that was licensed in this area of business dealings.
What did Myland USA do for you?
Since this manufacturer did not have the expertise internally in the U.S. operation to deal with the transactional aspects of the China operation, the manufacturer’s CEO and CFO hired Heidi Ames of Myland USA to solve these challenges. Heidi came in at the stage of sending parts to China, and advised the manufacturer on how to handle the process, including import duties and taxes.
The first meeting with Heidi was in the U.S., which was followed up with a meeting in China. Heidi coordinated a logistics person that the manufacturer had selected who had experience shipping small items, but for this manufacturer’s products would now need to ship large, heavy equipment. This person would handle the shipping from the manufacturer to the customers in China, and would need to assure that local governmental requirements were met.
As part of the process, Heidi laid out the steps in the process, identified the people to talk with, and attended the meetings personally. The VP of Asia Operations had daily contact, direct regular involvement with Heidi and vice versa. Heidi consistently followed through, monitoring the connection to assure success and that all objectives were being met.
What were the results?
A good logistics process was put together, one that has continued to run smoothly. Li Jiang (the person selected to handle logistics) coordinated the shipping, port, customs, and moving of products to be manufactured, and did very well according to the VP of China Operations. Additionally, the V.P. felt a high sense of trust with Heidi, and one of the keys was that Heidi was a Chinese person based in the U.S., one who builds her business dealings on a highly-ethical relationship. “We were in unknown territory, learning as we went. But we always had a good feeling & trust in Heidi.”
The V.P. also emphasized the need to work with someone you trust, as there is much “greasing of palms” in China. Going to China and the Chinese language were very tedious, and the Chinese can be very demanding. The keys to success are that your primary contact be Chinese, know the Chinese area, and have contacts in China, and he or she is loyal and honest to you without putting their own interest above that of the company’s.
Testimony 2:
Situation:
QES Solutions, a Rochester-based contract manufacturer, is actively involve with outsourcing work, whether sorting, rework or light assembly. QES had been experiencing some quality issues with sorting and some light manufacturing on a product sent to Shanghai. Additionally, QES had experienced some issues with payment for work done for clients based in China, and had been unable to fully collect on aging accounts, due partly to the time and language and cultural difference between the U.S. and China.
Task:
QES needed a resource who was skilled in negotiation and also Chinese language and culture to resolve the current situation with unpaid invoices from China. QES also needed to cost-effectively address the quality issues that had arisen with a recent shipment of products to China, sorting the products and cull out the bad products.
Action:
Myland USA, and Heidi Ames specifically, first acted as an intermediary on behalf of QES in collecting the outstanding debts owed QES, collecting on the overdue invoices and aging accounts. On the quality issue that QES had experienced, Heidi identified a professional near Shanghai to go into the Chinese operation to sort parts, and to assure they were free of defects.
Results:
Myland was able to sort products for QES’ customers on time—the customer had no down time as a result. Heidi coordinated the sort, made the phone calls, scheduled activities, and reviewed the instructions with the resource she leveraged in China. Heidi also provided a results report, including how many items were sorted and how many pieces were rejected. This provided the information QES needed to do root-cause analysis, creating an action plan as a result.
This approach has been successful, and a significant source of cost savings versus having QES send their own person over to do this work. QES paid for Myland’s labor and administration of the foreign contractor, which is less costly than the overseas travel and time for the local resource.
Heidi also was successful in negotiating to get bills paid. Overall it has been a good relationship, and QES continues to look for new opportunities. Keith has dealt with Heidi for about 2 years now.
Testimony 3:
Our company established a joint venture in Beijing in 2002. Over the past several years, the joint venture has gradually grown to a point where management and communication are becoming increasingly complex and critical to the joint venture’s continued success. Scott Marshall, company President, says “As the JV grows, it is taking more of our senior management’s resources making visits to China and managing the communication with our Chinese partners. We determined a need for more resources to streamline the flow of information”.
Myland USA helped us to develop a position description, recruit and screen candidates, and hire a person to fill the position. After the hiring, Myland met with our management to develop a plan for training and integration of our new employee into the communication with our Chinese partners.
We have found Myland to be very knowledgeable and responsive. Once we established our needs, they pursued them quickly and we didn’t need to push them. In fact, they prompted us to provide information and to keep the process moving. In the end, we found a well qualified person within a short period of time. The training phase is going well and we look forward to a smooth integration that will help us to grow our business in China.
Testimony 4:
“I’ve known Heidi Ames (of Myland USA) for several years, and she has gained a reputation for being one of the top international business consultants specializing in China in the Greater Rochester area. I know she has worked with many clients, and has had good success with Rochester firms. In 25 years of working in Rochester’s international business community, I have never heard any negative feedback about Heidi or Myland USA.”
“Heidi Ames and I recently partnered on a business development opportunity for wineries in the Finger Lakes (NY) region, and the feedback I received from the business owners was very positive. Executives felt that Heidi was very thorough in her questions and discussions related to exploring and assessing China business opportunities.”
“There are some 400 companies of varying sizes in the nine-county Rochester region who are doing business in China to varying degrees, whether for marketing, manufacturing and assembly, sourcing, or even distribution. Unfortunately, some companies have made some critical errors in executing their China strategies. China is a complex, sophisticated market, and being successful in China requires having both top-line people and a top-line product. Many companies don’t realize they need to adjust their marketing models when dealing with China.”
“Unfortunately, when it comes to developing and implementing a China strategy, the companies who need the help the most don’t realize they need the help. These are exactly the types of firms that should be contacting Myland USA to have strategy discussions, creating and refining solid strategies before they attempt to (re)enter China.”
“I think Heidi is the best international consultant on China in our region.”
Testimony 5:
“Heidi has a knowledge of sourcing, including a database of contacts and an excellent overseas team. Heidi is native Chinese, so she is an excellent consultant and interpreter—she brings the whole package, including talent and knowledge. Heidi has been aggressive at researching and acquiring information to source what Legendary needs.
“Heidi has always been professional, and is always looking out for your interests. She qualifies the partners and suppliers in China, developing a good, trusting relationship. The key aspect is that companies looking to do business in China need someone to pre-qualify the suppliers and partners overseas, as there are many companies from which to choose. This is a major aspect, to say nothing of the quality coming out of those companies. Trust is the biggest issue—having a confident answer to the question of whether your supplier will use your tools to make parts for your competitors.
“Heidi has opened doors for Legendary. She has managed the process for two huge products and many more metal parts that will be huge in Legendary’s future growth. Heidi continues to be effective in helping Legendary identify alternative suppliers for existing products.
“Heidi cares about her clients’ business, and is very talented. She can educate, groom and tutor those preparing to do business in China. She knows how to greet and introduce people.”
By Martin Beckenback, President, Legendary Auto Interiors