Keeping track of projects b/n China + US.

[false_aesthetic]

Hey Folks,

I'm looking for a bit of project management help here.

Usually I'd fly to Asia 2-3x between November and May to button up projects but this hasn't happened.
Added pressure on both sides of MFG has added to the difficulty and we're seeing things slip through the cracks on the MFG side regardless of how many times I remind or push for updates.

In the US we're using Google Sheets + Asana to keep track of stuff. It's working because we can track progress almost instantly. If there's questions we're using Slack or Zoom.

Unfortunately, I don't have that option when working with people in China.

Google is blocked.
Asana is blocked.
DropBox is blocked (sometimes).

I need to come up with a solution to track progress, sampling, tooling modifications, update ETAs, XF dates, etc. and it has to be better than emailing an Excel spreadsheet back and forth (I've tried it and it becomes a clusterfuck right quick like).

Thoughts?

[rwsaunders]

Collaboration Software & Solutions | Smartsheet a Platform for Enterprise Achievement

We have been using Smartsheet for a few years and I think of it as an easier to use MS Project, with more tools and options that make sense for the simplest of communication requirements.

[sonicw]

Can a VPN work to access those tools?

[false_aesthetic]

VPNs have been spotty for a while and the MFG we work with has made it clear that they don't want to have to use a VPN. I assume there's a certain amount of risk involved.

[sk_tle]

You might want to host your own project management software on a chinese provider..From what I understand their firewall is more focused on disallowing chinese to access the world than the opposite.

[snotrockets]

Not from personal experience, but you might find Microsoft Office 365 China useful. It's a copy of service that is operated by a Chinese subsidiary under PRC regulation.

You might want to host your own project management software on a chinese provider..From what I understand their firewall is more focused on disallowing chinese to access the world than the opposite.

Chinese operated services are also censored.

And getting a permit to run an internet connected server there isn't trivial, you need to get a government permit (ICP), which afaik requires being a Chinese entity, and at least some hoop jumping to get.

[sk_tle]

I'm pretty sure that when I checked the alibabacloud offering, hosting a server in china vs us was simply one click away.

I'm pretty sure your traffic would be spied on but that is something you have already taken into account by doing business with China. You might simply separate project management into shareable or not shareable and use one tool in China for the first one and your current one for tye second part.