HRTrends Many long-established Hong Kong brands which have prospered over the years share the business wisdom of moving with the times, and Chow Tai Fook Jewellery is no exception. But while the 78-year-old company embraces modern management concepts and practices, it has also kept worthy traditional values alive to maintain a close bond with its staff. These include a caring management style and emphasis on staff development, a meritocracy, discipline and team spirit. With 13,100 employees working in more than 700 sales outlets in Hong Kong, the mainland, Macau and Taiwan, the group said this time-honoured ethos complemented its modern management regime and had helped it to expand rapidly, especially on the mainland, where it has 640 outlets with 11,500 staff. Raymond Leung Wai-man, the company's assistant regional manager for Hong Kong Island who also oversees group-wide manpower management, said that although tourism and local consumption had generated fierce competition for talent in the jewellery retail business, the turnover rate of its Hong Kong sales team, including retirees, was 16 per cent compared with the sector average of more than 20 per cent. 'Chow Tai Fook has always been a pioneer in the industry. We keep our industry lead by always innovating to excel in service and quality,' said Mr Leung. 'But in doing so, we never lose sight of the importance of our employees because they represent our premium brand name. So, while we upgrade our management structure and service with modern systems, procedures and controls, we also take care to reinforce the group's long-standing emphasis on people. 'This marriage of our traditional strength with a modern management approach has stood us in good stead.' The group's most recent transformation came in 2004, when it revamped its image with a sleek new shop design. It also overhauled its marketing approach and staff training operations to drive higher service standards, and enhanced personal development opportunities by subsidising study initiatives and sponsoring employees to take specialised training such as in diamond verification. Mr Leung said the group's rapid expansion had increased the importance of staff development. 'We have a special team to work on training and development. We have programmes tailored to help staff at different levels to deepen their industry knowledge and develop a positive work attitude. 'This is necessary because we are hiring many young people as we open more shops. They want to see a prospect for themselves and we provide that in terms of personal improvement and promotion opportunities within the group. For example, many of our managers have been promoted from the front line. We also hire many university graduates to train them up for management responsibilities.' Mr Leung said the outlets were managed in a democratic style with an emphasis on teamwork and open communication. A typical day starts with a meeting of all staff with the shop manager to discuss issues and priorities. Representatives from the head office attend these daily meetings. 'We require our shops to be run in a practical manner, based on a clear direction and strong teamwork. As a modern enterprise, we cannot operate in the old ways of the jewellery industry. Our shops have modern hardware but we must have good software to match,' he said. The group, however, has not blindly banished everything from the past. It insists on being a caring employer by providing subsidised or free meals, and shop-based funding for recreational activities. It also offers generous bonuses to share the fruits of success with staff and to recognise their contributions. Signs of the times Management style combines modern systematic approach to business operation and talent development with a traditional emphasis such as care for employees and loyalty Focus on talent development with in-house training specialists, tailored programmes for staff at different levels, and funding incentives to encourage personal upgrading initiatives Open-minded and equitable promotion policy enhances staff career prospects
