Names, Introductions and Exchanging Contacts

Getting a name wrong or introducing two people in the wrong order creates awkwardness in the first minute. Here are the rules for forms of address in English and Chinese settings, who gets introduced to whom, and how to exchange cards and connection requests.

How you address someone marks the distance between you. The same person called "Director Wang," "Wang laoshi," "Lao Wang" or by first name occupies four different positions in your working life. Getting it wrong is not fatal, but it quietly labels you as someone who doesn't quite know the room.

1. The safe default

In English-speaking workplaces, first names are the default. Reserve titles for academia (Professor, Dr.), medicine (Dr.), and law and government (Judge, Senator). Follow the signature block: if they sign "Dr. Sarah Chen," open with Dr. Chen; if they sign back "Sarah," switch to Sarah.

In Chinese and other East Asian settings, surname plus title is the safest option — Director Wang, Manager Li — until you are told otherwise. Using a first name too early with a senior person reads as presumptuous in more traditional companies, even where colleagues do it with each other.

Either way, the method is the same: listen to how others address the person and follow; if you can't tell, ask once. "Would you prefer Sarah or Ms. Chen?" costs nothing and beats guessing wrong for a year.

Check pronunciation in advance. For an unfamiliar name, look it up before the meeting or ask directly at the first introduction: "I want to make sure I say your name correctly — could you say it for me?" That is far more respectful than mumbling around it indefinitely.

2. Three-way introductions: who goes first

One rule: introduce the more junior person to the more senior person — meaning you say the senior person's name first.

The ordering hierarchy:

Junior → senior
Younger → older
Your own company → client or guest
Individual → group

"Director Wang, this is Li Zhe, the data analyst who just joined my team. Li Zhe, this is Director Wang from marketing."

Then add one line of connective tissue: "Director Wang has been driving the new-product channel rollout, and Li Zhe worked on channel analytics at his last company." That sentence is the entire value of an introduction — without it you have only read out two names.

If you are being introduced: stand if you were seated, make eye contact, and keep the response short — "Good to meet you." No speeches needed.

3. Business cards and connection requests

Cards (still central in China, Japan and Korea):

Offer and receive with both hands, text facing the recipient.
Read it before you put it away. Pocketing a card unread is a visible slight.
In a meeting, lay the cards you receive on the table in seating order — respectful, and it helps you keep track of who is who.

LinkedIn, WeChat and other connection requests:

Always write a note. "Hi — Li Zhe, we sat next to each other at the X forum; I work in growth." Requests with no context get lower acceptance rates and leave a weaker impression.
Once connected, send one short confirming message. Do not immediately follow with a long pitch, an attachment or an ask.
Use a recognizable profile name and photo. If people have to work out who you are every time you message them, that is a cost you imposed.
The more junior party usually initiates the request — unless the other person says they'll reach out, in which case wait.

4. Follow up within 24 hours

A follow-up note within a day is what turns "we met once" into an actual contact. A good one has three parts: a reminder of who you are, one specific detail from the conversation, and a light next step.

"Hi Director Wang — Li Zhe, we sat together at the X forum yesterday. You mentioned the metric-definition problem after channel expansion; I looked back at how we handled it and put two pages together in case they're useful. I'd welcome the chance to talk more."

Weak follow-ups say only "great to meet you" (no substance) or open with a request (too fast).

Common mistakes

Greeting only the most senior person in the room. Everyone else notices.
Avoiding the name entirely because you're unsure — the workaround is audible.
Passing on someone's contact details without asking. Always check first: "Would it be alright if I introduced you to X?"
@-mentioning everyone in a group chat for something that concerns three people. A cost imposed on the whole room.

One line to remember: for names, follow what others do and ask when unsure; for introductions, the value is not the names — it is the sentence that gives two people something to talk about.