You know your colleague’s name, yet everyone calls her “Manager Li.” A university administrator becomes “Teacher Wang,” and a company leader may be addressed with a shortened title such as “Zhang-zong.”
The title is not merely ornamental. It solves a practical question: what relationship are we speaking through right now?
Titles make the work role audible
Chinese address research has documented the continued preference for official and professional titles in some institutional settings. A title identifies what authority or expertise matters in the interaction. “Director Chen” can be more useful than “Chen Wei” when several people share a surname or when the speaker wants to foreground responsibility.
It also manages politeness. Using a given name too early can feel overly familiar in a hierarchical or external-facing situation. A surname plus title gives respect without requiring elaborate honorific language. For a new employee, it is often the safest available choice.
“Teacher” is especially broad. Beyond schools, it can respectfully address trainers, experts, artists, or people whose guidance is being acknowledged. That does not mean every use describes an actual teaching job.
A title can create distance—or warmth
The same form can mean different things. A formal “Director Liu” in a meeting may mark rank. Colleagues who jokingly call a teammate “Teacher Liu” may be praising expertise or using a friendly workplace habit. A shortened executive title may flatter someone, but excessive upgrading can also sound strategic.
Listen to who uses the title and where. Subordinates may use it upward while leaders use names downward. External visitors may retain titles longer than close teammates. Written group messages can be more formal than lunch conversation.
Research on changing Chinese address norms also shows that these practices are not frozen. Institutions, sectors, generations, and organizational cultures differ. Technology firms may favor English names. Small teams may use nicknames. Universities and government-linked organizations may preserve titles more strongly.
When can you use a name?
Follow the group at first. If everyone says “王经理,” copy that form. If the person says, “Just call me Xiaoming,” you can usually accept the invitation, though formal meetings may still pull the title back into use.
Avoid translating mechanically. Calling someone “Manager” in English can sound odd even when 经理 is natural in Chinese. In Chinese, use surname plus title unless the local pattern clearly drops the surname.
If you are unsure, ask: “How should I address you?” That question is not a failure of cultural knowledge. It recognizes that workplace address is negotiated.
The best way to hear a Chinese job title is not as a substitute for identity. It is a label for the channel currently open between two people: authority, expertise, respect, distance, or sometimes playful familiarity. When the channel changes, the name may change with it.