Wanda Network shrinks its tech workforce as Wang Jianlin’s transformation strategy falters

Wanda Network Technology Group, a unit of the property conglomerate founded by one of China’s biggest overseas asset buyers, is slashing its workforce, the latest sign that the technology ambition of one of the country’s wealthiest men is faltering.

Wanda Network would shrink its workforce to 300 jobs from 6,000, according to a December 29 report by The Paper, a Chinese news website. The company is transferring staff to the Guizhou provincial capital of Guiyang with a monthly salary of 2,800 yuan (US$431), according to a Wanda notice circulating on the internet.

Retrenchment at the technology company is ongoing, Wanda said in response to the Post’s queries, although no number can be disclosed, adding that the headcount figure cited by The Paper was wrong.

Wanda Network, established in 2014, was supposed to spearhead the transformation by one of China’s biggest builders from its traditional bricks-and-mortar businesses in theme parks, shopping malls and hotels into the digital era.

With businesses in digital commerce, smart life, financial technology and cloud computing for the public, Wanda Network was supposed to become profitable by 2018, with 2020 net income projected to surpass 10 billion yuan (US$1.54 billion), Wanda’s chairman and founder Wang Jianlin said during his 2016 annual meeting, citing the unit’s five-year business plan.