Framing the decision-making model of the Chinese business with Feng-Shui concept

Abstract

Feng-Shui has greatly impacted Chinese society andoften influences business decisions. This paper develops a decision making framework for Chinese businesses that follows the principles of Feng-Shui. This paper contributes to the academic literature by introducing a conceptual decision making model that includes a worldview, a strategy for risk avoidance and considering the environment impact, and a way to enhance the understanding of the impacts of Feng-Shui theory on Chinese business operations.

Keywords

Feng-Shui theory Chinese business decision maker decision making

Kou-Huang Chen is an Assistant Professor in Department of Industry Engineering and management, China University of Science and Technology. He holds a Ph.D. degree of Industrial Engineering from Chung Yuan Christian University, Taoyuan City, Taiwan. His current research interests include facility planning, capacity planning, Innovation management and material management.

William Li Chang is an associate professor of Department of Business Administration at China University of Science and Technology, Taiwan ROC. He received his Ph.D. in management from the Tamkang University; Taiwan ROC. His research interests include international marketing & brand management, corporate competitive strategies, and superstitious decision-making. His works have been published in Corporate Reputation Review, Journal of Advertising Research, Journal of Architectural and Planning Research.

I-Liang Chih is an Assistant professor in Department of Business Administration, China University of Science and Technology. He holds a MBA degree from Northrup Universty, CA, USA. His major research interests are in strategy management, operation research, and technological innovation management.

Chin-Nung Liao is a Professor in Department of Business Administration, China University of Science and Technology. He holds a PhD degree of Management Sciences from Tamkang University, Taipei, Taiwan. In addition,He holds the second doctoral degree of Graduate Institute of Industrial Manage-ment, National Central University, Taoyuan, Taiwan. His major research interests are in marketing management, human systems management, human resources management, economics applications, and industrial management.

1 Introduction

Feng-Shui is the Chinese wisdom that relates to theimpact of the environment on people. Translated, Fengmeans“wind()”andShuimeans“water ().”Feng-Shui theory is connected to ancient Chinese culture andis a well-established practice in Chinese society. Feng-Shui continues to play a principal role in modern China, which makes it an interesting topic for scholarly study to better understand Chinese thinking and behavior [3]. The concept of Feng-Shui has been applied in China and other Asian countries for many years, and it has even become increasingly popular in western countries, including Great Britain, the United States of Americaand Australia [20]. According to Feuchtwang [7], the primitive Feng-Shui knowledge was based on the observation of three major sources: a stronomical phenomena, natural phenomena and human behavior. In addition, there are two main schools of thought and practice in Feng-Shui theory: the Compass School and the Form School. The Form School’s approach has been well recognized and widely accepted by Feng-Shui researchers including a scientific base for the analysis of the human living environment [5 , 20].

Feng-Shui has a significant impact on Chinese business and personal lives. Mak and Ng [21] addressed an empirical survey of architects in Sydney and Hong Kong, and their results showed that proposals for the regional environment of a building and a building’s interior layout generally agreed with ideal Feng-Shui theory, which was established more than two thousand years ago. Jeffreys [10] indicated that Feng-Shui focuses on ideal environment were aimed to remove the negative effects of electromagnetic stress and promote health, harmony and dynamism in the home or workplace. Lu [18] researched how Taiwanese house design reflects Feng-Shui theory. Hwangbo [9] demonstrated how two traditional architects utilize Feng-Shui practices and how it impacts their business planning. Chang et al. [3] researched Taiwanese office layouts using Feng-Shui theory and considered how it influenced decision makers’ preferences. Chang and Lii [2] studied Feng-Shui and its role in corporate image and reputation in Taiwanese businesses. Juan et al. [11] investigated a customer-focused system for pre-sale housing customization using case-based reasoning and Feng-Shui theory. Chiu et al. [6] integrated individual requirements and common Feng-Shui issues regarding housing because these requirements are attributes to be considered when evaluating a house before purchasing.

This paper is organized as follows. Section 2 contains the relevant literature on Feng-Shui theory. In section 3, we address the impact of Feng-Shui on Chinese business. Section 4 proposes a conceptual framework for a decision model for Chinese businesses that considers Feng-Shui. Finally, the paper presents a conclusion summary and suggests directions for future research.

2 The theory of Feng-Shui

In Chinese, Feng-Shui (Feng means wind and Shui means water) is an ancient Chinese system of beliefs about how human kind interacts with the environment. Feng-Shui was originally known as Kan Yu; Kan means heaven, and Yu means earth. Wang [29] indicated that Feng-Shui is an inherited Chinese cultural phenomenon, a common and popular folk custom, and an approach to pursue good fortune and to avoid calamity and a relationship study between the environment and humans. Therefore, the objective of Feng-Shuiis for people is to live in accordance with the environment to maximize their success, fortune and happiness. Common among different theories of Feng-Shui is the notion that tangible elements of the landscape, such as mountains or rivers, can generate an invisible energy, known as Chi () [28]. Heaven and earth, Feng-Shui theory develops the “living Chi” to describe the inter relationship between earth and human beings based on the principle of mutual penetration of Chi between the human body [4].

Generally speaking, researchers of Feng-Shui theory have defined four characteristics of Feng-Shui as follows [23]:

Feng-Shui is pervasive – The practice of Feng-Shui in China,Taiwan and Hong Kong has spread over 2000 years and affects all views in Chinese life [28].

Feng-Shui is mysterious – Feng-Shui is a discipline that claims to handle the subtle and invisible energies of the universe, called Chi, to create harmony between humans and the environment [4].

Feng-Shui is harmonious – Feng-Shui stresses the harmonious relationship between people and the environment. In other words, this harmony is achieved through a searching process rather than through creation. Feng-Shui requires people to adapt to the environment but not to change or struggle with the natural environment [12].

Feng-Shui is utilitarian – it is believed that a good Feng-Shui environment will help peoplecan attainan ideal life, which involves obtaining peace, wealth, health, benefit, happiness, and longevity [27].

Therefore, according to the traditional Chinese worldview, Feng-Shui provides people a way to find and develop a comfortable environment in which they can live and work efficiently and productively. In short, Feng-Shui emphasizes good fit in the relationship between people (e.g., harmonious relationships, organizational behaviors) and their environment (e.g., office layouts, the location of the company). For example, a Chinese employee may consider a particular office layout to be irrational if it lacks harmony (i.e., living chi) with nature. If two employees have to work together in the same room, they would expect conflict or misunderstanding to occur [1]. In addition, the office layouts may be an important issue. In China, other Asian countries, and now even some western countries, Feng-Shui theory may play a key role in building the preferences of key decisionmakers [3].

According to the Feng-Shui theory ofthe Form School,there are five Feng-Shui geographical factors: “dragon ()”, “sand ()”, “water ()”, “cave ()” and “direction ()” [3 , 20]. Their meanings can be described as follows [15]:

Dragon or Dragon vien – this means the mountain ridges to be traced, and it represents the topography of a location.

Sand – this means the enfolding hills and soil condition, and it represents the surrounding environment of a location.

Water – this means the flow of water through or passing by the location.

Caveor Feng-Shui spot – this means the niche position, and it represents the best location, with an opening in the front.

Direction – this means the direction in which the location faces, and it represents the location’s orientation. It was notably important in ancient Chinese society, particularly in building.

Many Feng-Shui researchers have summarized this information into an ideal Feng-Shui model. The Form School’s model is shown in Fig. 1 [26]. This model constitutes of a pragmatic Feng-Shui system where by a village is situated such that it does not take up any useful land and is not directly vulnerable to flood, typhoon or other disasters [23].

Based on natural shapes, the Form School established concepts that could be adopted to determine whether Feng-Shui is ideal. That is, “by classifying the physicalconfiguration into various categories of elements the Feng-Shui expert of the Form School investigates the now of chi and finds the most favorable site” [13]. As shown in Fig. 2, Chang and Lii [2] illustrated the best configuration for choosing a contemporary Chinese location based on the Form School’s principles.

According to Fig. 2, the theory of chi affects Feng-Shui from three perspectives: (1) Chi becomes the ontological base of Feng-Shui, (2) it leads to the development of “living chi” theory in Feng-Shui, and (3) it becomes the overall criterion of making a judgment for a site selection in Feng-Shui [16]. Therefore, a mountain or place that includes living or auspicious chi, in contrast to evil chi, is surrounded with green trees, clearand clean rivers, and the best configuration of space [8, 26].

3 A Feng-Shui framework and decision making model for Chinese business

Chen [4] indicated that Feng-Shui penetrates into every aspect of Chinese society, such as architecture, aesthetics, politics, social life, and business life. The principle of Feng-Shui directly influences decision making in Chinese business life, including a business’s image, location (or space layout), organizationalbehaviors, and interior design or setting. Therefore, the theory of Feng-Shui may play an important role in influencing decision makers’ preferences. According to Feng-Shui theory, Feng-Shui is used to detect, avoid, and correct situations to enable “good chi” in business. For example, a good office space should be arranged in a good layout such that it is conducive to the accumulation of “good chi.” People who work in this office space will have increased potential for financial success, thereby ensuring profits and creating a favorable business life [4, 23]. The following discusses the ways in which Feng-Shui influences Chinese business life.

(1) Business image – In Feng-Shui, a company’s name and logo are related to the establishment of a firm’s image and reputation. As a marketing concept, a good name or logo should carry a clear commercial message regarding the business’s trade and products.

Company name: Generally, a good company name should suggest luck, wealth, and fortune. Because the company’s name represents a business’s image to the public, it is very important in Feng-Shui theory to select an appropriate company name [4].

Company logo: According to Chang and Lii [2] corporate communication is an important aspectof managing a corporate image, and it involves a brand’ svisual design and company logo. Drawing on Feng-Shui concepts, Chinese people also consider logo design to be especially important when communicating a business’s image.

(2) Business location – In Feng-Shui theory, thelocation of a business directly influences its performance. For example, an ideal building location would be on a “dragon vein,” i.e., on a main road in a city [4]. Feng-Shui provides four common elements for selecting an appropriate business location, as detailed in Fig. 2.

Building location: Many Chinese businesses consider Feng-Shui when selecting a headquarters by considering whether the space is auspicious or inauspicious [2]. Tsang [25] found that 70% of Chinese business would consider using Feng-Shui to eliminate pressures and frustrations linked with decision making in the location of their headquarters.

Facility layout: Facility layout addresses the all types of nature-related disasters. Feng-Shui seeks to effectively consider access to facilities that are strongly connected, and it is very important for, e.g., emergency management and employee morale [3 , 24].

In recent years, effectively address in gemergencies has been an important issue, particularly considering the increased prevalence of nature disasters. Furthermore, the decision for where to store emergency supplies is a key issue in emergency management.

(3) Organizational behaviors – According to Feng-Shui theory, Feng-Shui affects employee performance and spirit. Chen [4] studied how Feng-Shui impacts four aspects of organizational behavior:

Human behaviors: In Feng-Shui’s view, people make, sustain, and closean organizational structure. Thus, organizational behaviors can be forecasted and controlled by understanding the environmental forces (e.g., Feng-Shui’s factor) that guide human behaviors. The survival of a business depends on its ability to control and adapt to the environment.

Business operations: Feng-Shui influences the effectiveness of business operations. Feng-Shui theory suggests that timing and place should be considered when a firm opens for business, launches a new product and signs contracts. For example, in Chinese business, many new products’ launch dates are postponed during the “ghost month” (i.e., July in Chinese lunar calendar) because the month is considered poor for new products in Feng-Shui theory.

Organizational management: Organizations, in our view, are management systems, bodies of knowledge that are the accumulation of employees who are compatiblein goals, purposes, and beliefs [17]. Feng-Shui theory suggests that a manager should gather employees in a compatible workplace, which is the best way to achieve cooperation.

Employees’ relationships: Belief in Feng-Shui could lead to misunderstandings among employees. For instance, a Chinese employee may consider an office to be lacking living chi. Such as a conflict will occur when two employees have towork together in the same office.

(4) Interior design or setting – A cultural perspective is proposed to guide in organizational interior design and settings [22]. Interior design and setting often affects office ambiance and business culture. Feng-Shui posits that a good office space generates profits by helping produce goods and provide services [4]. For example, office furniture arrangement will positively impact business inter actions, especially in a manager’s room.

Office layout: Office layout can be an important issue because it can have significant effects on the satisfaction, productivity, and health of the employees, regardless of whether it is in the manufacturing or service industries [19].

Office design: In addition to the arrangement of furniture and decorations, Feng-Shui presents elements that influence a business’s fortunes [14]. For example, office design should consider including doors to create proper Chi, windows to create a good flow of Chi, an office setting that fits the rules of Feng-Shui, colors that suit different areas of the office according to Feng-Shui, plants that represent lifelines and growth for the company, lightingthat is not too dim, and mirrors hung inthe right places [4].

In addition, Chang and Lii [2] addressed a Feng-Shui business communication triangle model that shows the relationship among the Chinese worldview, Chinese risk avoidance principles and Feng-Shui based environmental management. When businesses make decisions, these three factors must be in accord for the business to reap the benefits and costs of Feng-Shui. Chang and Lii [2] represent a decision making triangle that demonstrates Feng-Shui’s impact on Chinese business, as shown in Fig. 3. The impact of Feng-Shuion decision makers includes influencing a decision maker’s worldview, the degree of risk avoidance and environmental impact.

Information from the literature review and Fig. 3 can be built into an impact model for Feng-Shui decision making, a framework shown in Fig. 4. Figure 4 describes the impact of decision making objective selection on Chinese business.

For example, according to Fig. 2, Feng-Shui factors can impact decisions about a Chinese business’s location selection. Fig. 5 illustrates the impact process when a decision-maker faces business location selection problems.

4 Conclusion

Feng-Shui is an ancient Chinese system concerning how the humans interact with the environment. Many Chinese businesses today are willing to spend money on Feng-Shui consultants to ensure optimal business operation. This study develops a practical decision model for the impacts of Feng-Shui theory on Chinese business operations. The conceptual framework includes four integrated factors that were constructed based on the four elementary concepts of the Form School. We identified three decision making considerations from the Form School’s theories (Fig. 4) that may influence important business operations. To the best of our knowledge, the impact of Feng-Shui theory on Chinese business operations has not been addressed in previous research. The contribution of this paper is the introductionof a conceptual decision marking model for Chinese businesses that includes the worldview, degree of risk avoidance and environmental impact.

Footnotes

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Professor Milan Zeleny, the editor-in-chief, and anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments on an earlier version of this article.

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