On May 3rd last week, Taiwan Next Foundation held a seminar titled “Happy Hour – The Big Differences Between Taiwanese and American Workplaces” in Palo Alto, aiming to expand the Taiwanese community in North America and provide assistance to professionals in various fields.
The event was hosted by KT Hsieh, the current Chair of the North America Taiwan Tech Summit and Executive Director of Taiwan Next Foundation. She mentioned that the goal of the North America Taiwan Tech Summit is to help Taiwanese talents, businesses, and startups establish a presence in the United States and create a Taiwanese ecosystem in North America to connect resources between Taiwan and the US.
Starting from this May, Taiwan Next Foundation will organize a monthly Happy Hour where attendees can listen to industry professionals sharing their experiences and meet new friends from various disciplines, with the hope of helping Taiwanese compatriots navigate the challenges they face in the workplace, life, and interpersonal relationships.
During the event, four topics were discussed: “The Workplace Taboos Between Taiwan and the US,” “The Winning Secret to Building Good Relationships in the Office,” “Email and Internal Communication Tips,” and “How to Initiate Popular Workplace Topics.”
Constance Liu, who has over ten years of experience in the technology industry in both Taiwan and the US, currently works as a Partner Manager at the publicly traded American software company Zoom Communications, responsible for managing Zoom’s collaborations with US S&P100 strategic partner companies.
Liu emphasized the importance of empathy and the ability to see issues from the other person’s perspective when interacting with colleagues. She stressed the significance of helping others sincerely from the heart, regardless of their position.
Scully Wang, with extensive practical experience in the technology industry in Taiwan and the US for over a decade, currently serves as a Senior Events Marketing Manager at Intel’s PC Business Unit, overseeing global event strategies and product demo exhibitions.
Wang pointed out that respecting American culture is crucial in the US, which means avoiding delving too much into others’ personal affairs. She advised against bringing up sensitive topics involving numbers like age and salary, as they could make people uncomfortable.
Yuchang Hu, currently the Google UX Lead overseeing the UX Design and Engineering team and managing teams across the US and Europe, emphasized the importance of finding one’s preferred communication style based on personal experience. He highlighted the significance of warmth and suggested mutual assistance in the workplace. Some individuals prefer expressing care by giving gifts and seeing the other person’s happy expression, while others enjoy inviting each other out for activities to deepen mutual understanding through communication.