New | Haier boss sees future in the internet
Zhang Ruimin, described as one of the world's top business minds, aims to turn top white goods maker Haier into an 'entrepreneurial platform'
At a staff conference last summer at Qingdao-based Haier Group, the world's largest white goods manufacturer, the firm's chief executive gave an ominous warning: 10,000 out of its 70,000 workforce worldwide would lose their jobs. But unlike the usual lay-off warnings, it came with a soothing caveat - outgoing employees were welcome back if they had a credible business plan.
The unusual offer was part of an attempt by Zhang Ruimin, who is also Haier's chairman, to turn the company into what he likes to call an "entrepreneurial platform".
It is part of a continual process of reinvention that dates back to 1984, when at 35, Zhang was first handed the stewardship of the then struggling state-owned appliance maker.
"One of the things that Haier has done very well is to really think strategically about when it's time to give up the old and embrace the new," said Bill Fischer, a professor at IMD Business School in Switzerland and author of Reinventing Giants, an analysis of Haier's growth.
The recipient of countless industry accolades, and recently ranked 22nd by Fortune magazine among global figures from business, politics and society for "energising their followers and making the world better", Zhang is in year three of a campaign to eliminate the middle management from a firm that posted 180.3 billion yuan (HK$224 billion) in revenue in 2013.
The idea of a nimble behemoth, where employees and ideas have space to flourish free of corporate hierarchy stemmed from a vision of business in an internet-dominated future. For Zhang, staff are either front-end in direct touch with consumers and the marketplace, or in upper management and support roles.