Chapter 3 Chapter 1 Huawei Godfather Ren Zhengfei

When he insisted on challenging multinational giants, his opponents said he was overwhelmed; when he proposed to be the world's top company, others said he was whimsical; Look at him; however, he is rewriting the survival rules of Chinese companies; Huawei under his leadership has begun to become the most dangerous competitor of multinational giants—he is Ren Zhengfei, the founder and president of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. who came out of the military camp. Ren Zhengfei transferred from the army in 1982. In 1988, he borrowed 20,000 yuan to establish Huawei Technologies in Shenzhen.He chose to take the industrial road of technological self-reliance and high-tech development, and competed with industry giants. In 20 years, he built Huawei into the world's second largest telecommunications equipment manufacturer and service provider, and ranked among the top 500 in the world, becoming China's high-tech enterprise. The benchmark of technology companies, the road traveled by Huawei is becoming a classic textbook for many Chinese companies to learn.

Under the leadership of Ren Zhengfei, Huawei has made great strides in the past 22 years, creating various jaw-dropping myths.However, Ren Zhengfei has always maintained the mystery of "the dragon sees the head but does not see the end". He is the most low-key entrepreneur in China today.However, although Ren Zhengfei seems to deliberately maintain his low-key behavior, his quiet and cautious personality is still being known and understood as Huawei expands from one victory to another. Some people say that Ren Zhengfei's low-key behavior has created Huawei's legend, and he has been crowned with various titles such as "coyote", "tough guy", and "Godfather of Huawei".

In 2005, Ren Zhengfei was named "100 Celebrities Influencing the World" by Time Magazine of the United States, and he was the only Chinese entrepreneur selected. "Forbes" magazine commented: "Ren Zhengfei is a figure who rarely appears in the public eye, but he is the most respected Chinese entrepreneur in the world." In 2008, Ren Zhengfei won the "2008 China's Most Influential Business Leader Lifetime Achievement Award" selected by "China Entrepreneur" magazine. Liu Donghua, president of China Entrepreneur Magazine, commented on him: "Ren Zhengfei is almost the most calm and peaceful in China. One of the most determined entrepreneurs."

In March 2011, the Chinese version of the US "Fortune" magazine announced the list of the 50 most influential business leaders in China, and Ren Zhengfei ranked first.Liu Chuanzhi and Zhang Ruimin ranked second and third respectively. Huawei is very powerful and mysterious in people's impression, but few people know how strong it is.In recent years, many journalists have tried hard to get in touch with Huawei, but Huawei is a very difficult interview subject. Since Ren Zhengfei founded Huawei in 1988, he has never accepted any positive interviews from any media, and has never participated in any selections, awards, and entrepreneurial summits. He has even rejected activities that are conducive to promoting Huawei's brand image.

Due to Ren Zhengfei's low-key life, there is very little personal information publicly available. Most of the stories about him come from Huawei's only window to the outside world - "Huawei People News".But what people see is Huawei, which is in charge of the global telecommunications market, and all kinds of comments about Ren Zhengfei and Huawei are mostly the result of people's analysis and speculation.Whether it is right or wrong, Huawei rarely responds to outside comments. Although Ren Zhengfei does not accept media interviews, he has always been a popular figure in the media's attention. In 2010, the Chinese version of the well-known financial magazine "Forbes" launched the annual list of "Most Internationally Respected Chinese Entrepreneurs" for the first time, with 12 people selected, and Ren Zhengfei topped the list. The Chinese version of "Forbes" stated that although Ren Zhengfei does not like to appear in public, the degree of respect he receives among the leaders of large multinational companies in the world is unmatched in China. Huawei is still almost the only one in the high-tech field. Mainland Chinese multinational companies with global competitiveness.

Previously, Cheng Dongsheng, a financial writer, spent more than a year writing the sensational book "The Truth about Huawei".Cheng Dongsheng concluded in "The Truth about Huawei": "Seeking truth from facts is a difficult thing, so there are always a few successful people. Huawei's experience reveals a truth: the real seeking truth from facts is shocking." Qin Shuo, editor-in-chief of "First Financial Daily", said in his article "The Shock of "Winter"-Huawei's Enlightenment to the Chinese Enterprises": "Huawei may be the most unpredictable company in the Chinese enterprise. So far So far, almost no media has been able to interview its top leaders, and it is difficult to report on its development in detail.”

For a long time, Ren Zhengfei not only maintained a low-key stance, did not respond to outside criticism of him and Huawei, nor advocated that Huawei employees go out to debate with others.In Ren Zhengfei's view, Huawei is not a listed company, so there is no need to disclose to the public what he does not want to say. There is such a story widely circulated in the society: On a sunny afternoon, at the headquarters of Huawei, two female employees complained about a little problem in the company's financial system in the elevator.They noticed that there was an honest-looking elder in the elevator, but they didn't take it seriously at the time because this person was too ordinary.

The two female employees were told the next day that the problem they had complained about had been resolved.They were surprised and asked why, and the other party told them that Mr. Ren called himself, and so on.At this point, they were stunned. Another time, when Ren Zhengfei went to a large-scale international communication equipment exhibition, the CEO of a telecommunications company in Hong Kong walked up to Ren Zhengfei to exchange business cards. Ren Zhengfei responded modestly and politely. When the CEO returned to the hotel When he was sorting out the thick stack of business cards in his hand, he was surprised to find a business card of Huawei President Ren Zhengfei. He couldn't believe his eyes: Did I exchange business cards with Mr. Ren?It turned out that he regarded the plainly dressed and amiable old man as an ordinary exhibitor customer, which made him miss the opportunity to communicate face-to-face with President Ren Zhengfei, which made him very regretful.

An ordinary employee of Huawei told me a true story: In the winter of 2005, when he returned to Shenzhen on a business trip, he met Ren Zhengfei at the airport, and at that time he just pretended not to see him.Unexpectedly, Mr. Ren took the initiative to come over to greet him, ask him how he was, and even drove him home before returning by himself. This move moved the employees very much. Many media reporters complained that Ren Zhengfei always refused to accept interviews, which was a bit unreasonable.And Ren Zhengfei explained: "Why I don't see the media, because I have self-knowledge. What do you say when you see the media? If you say it well, you may exaggerate it; if you say it bad, others don't believe it, and even think it's hypocritical, so it's better not to see it. Therefore, I can bear it." I live in loneliness and am willing to be ordinary. I know that my shortcomings are not less than my advantages, and I am not deliberately low-key." He also said: "Media reporters always like to put their achievements on the boss of the company, otherwise they will not be vivid. The method is to create a virtual person. I don't think I am as influential as the outside world says, but I am very dedicated, selfless, and able to unite people. Huawei has made some achievements in recent years, which is due to the united efforts of all employees and core management. It was achieved under the collective leadership of the team. It’s just that the entire management team is also very humble, so they added some honors to me virtually, which is really hard to do.”

Many outsiders always use the word "cold" when evaluating Ren Zhengfei.Ren Zhengfei is short-tempered, tenacious, resolute and paranoid, and speaks directly without mercy.From the course of Huawei's internationalization, it is not difficult to see that Huawei, just like Ren Zhengfei's own character, is full of adventurous spirit and full of aggressiveness.In the eyes of Huawei employees, the company's operations are standardized and rigorous, with an emphasis on discipline and obedience first.But Ren Zhengfei has delicate tenderness in his heart, and behind his strong and resolute is tenderness like water, even full of romantic feelings.We can deeply feel this from his articles such as "My Father and Mother", "In Memory of Yang Lin", and "Northern Spring".

Sometimes, Ren Zhengfei can't help crying when he sees the performances of employees and the achievements of Shenzhen's 30 years of reform and opening up. . For more than 20 years, Ren Zhengfei has walked all the way in this way, and his low-key made Huawei a legend.He also created his own legend.Although Huawei has become the most representative business card of China in the world, Huawei and Ren Zhengfei, who are known for their low-key and calmness, are still shrouded in a layer of mystery, but Ren Zhengfei is indeed a charismatic entrepreneur .