Countercurrent 1982

Chapter 2093 Quote
"This..." Hearing Duan Yun's sudden request, Gerstner was stunned for a moment.

He never expected that Duan Yun would suddenly make such a request.

For any multinational company, the culture and method of management are the soul of a company, and for some established companies, many management methods are more like a tradition and cannot be passed on to other companies casually.

Another point is that for IBM, they mainly focus on R&D and production of technological products, and do not do business management consulting. Moreover, due to the huge differences between China and the United States, can IBM's management method adapt to Chinese enterprises? , it is still unknown at present, because in the past, some foreign companies transplanted the management experience of the United States, but soon there was a situation of dissatisfaction. To understand the essence of this management model, the control of important nodes is not in place, and the quality of relevant management personnel cannot meet the requirements.

So if you really want to learn IBM's management system, it may not happen overnight. Although outsiders may see it as nothing more than a change in the company's rules and regulations, in fact, the knowledge inside is much more advanced than it looks on the outside. If IBM If he wants to copy this set to Tianyin Group, he also needs to spend some manpower to stay in Tianyin Group for a long time, and he must have certain real power. After a long-term and in-depth analysis of the company's existing problems, he will come up with a detailed and feasible set. The program, the entire period may be as long as one to two years or even longer.

The reason why Gerstner was able to transform IBM in a short period of time was because he himself graduated from Harvard Business School and worked in McKinsey Consulting for 13 years after graduation. He has been exposed to countless business consulting companies. Cases, some have very rich experience and management ability, when faced with the actual situation of different enterprises, some have many mature alternatives, it is because of this that he can quickly understand the crux of IBM's management, and quickly Make improvements.

"If Mr. Gerstner is willing to provide assistance to our company, the price issue is easy to discuss." Seeing that Gerstner hesitated, Duan Yun reminded again.

In Duan Yun's view, IBM, as a company in a capitalist country, basically no one will refuse as long as it is a profitable business. Use this as a starting point to try to establish the direction of the business in this regard.

Moreover, Gerstner himself used to be a senior employee of McKinsey Consulting Company. Business consulting can be said to be his old profession. As long as he nods, this matter is completely feasible.

In fact, the consulting business is considered a gold industry in the United States. There are countless consulting companies in legal, business, and even political lobbying. In New York alone, it is conservatively estimated that there are thousands of such companies. The leaders of these companies are from various industries. Senior experts provide relevant consulting services for domestic and global companies.

In the previous life, IBM offered Huawei a consulting fee of 20 billion yuan, and Zhou Weikun, the chairman and CEO of IBM Greater China, was in charge of the negotiation.

Zhou Weikun was born in Hong Kong in 1947. He was highly appreciated by Gerstner for his rigor, pragmatism, and ability. In July 1995, he was appointed as the chairman and CEO of IBM Greater China.

Given that Huawei is IBM's first management consulting project in China, the model is of great significance, because before that, IBM has never provided consulting services to companies in a socialist country, so in terms of quotations, considering that Chinese companies are good at " "Cut down the middle" is judged as a routine, Zhou Weikun designed two quotation plans.

The negotiation at that time was carried out after dinner. Zhou Weikun proposed that according to IBM's calculations, the 70 consultants were divided into three categories according to their levels, and the hourly fees were 300 US dollars, 500 US dollars and 680 US dollars respectively.For a period of five years, that is to say, to complete this management change, Huawei needs to invest 20 billion yuan.

When they heard Zhou Weikun's offer, all Huawei executives in the venue changed their colors. A vice president whispered to Ren Zhengfei with heartache: 20 billion yuan is equivalent to Huawei's profit for more than a year. This price is unacceptable and must be large. The extent of bargaining.

But at that time Ren Zhengfei asked rhetorically: You have bargained the price, can you be responsible for the risks of the project?

So for Zhou Weikun's quotation, Zhengfei only asked one question: Are you confident in completing the project well?
After thinking for a moment, Zhou Weikun answered with one word: Yes!

After hearing the affirmative answer, Ren Zhengfei made a decision on the spot to settle the matter.

The end of the meeting was approaching late at night. Due to the time difference, Gerstner was presiding over an office meeting at the IBM headquarters in the United States. After Zhou Weikun called Guo Shina's secretary, he learned that Ren Zhengfei had no counter-offer for the 20 billion yuan offer. While Gerstner was shocked, he couldn't help but respect, so he only said three words to the secretary: "Teach well."

After the plan was determined, Ren Zhengfei accelerated the promotion of the "Huawei Basic Law", and after the outside world announced that Huawei would become a world-class equipment supplier, on August 1998, 8, he convened a management meeting attended by hundreds of vice presidents and director-level cadres. , announced the official launch of the strategy and planning project of cooperation between Huawei and IBM, including IPD (Integrated Product Development), ISC (Integrated Supply Chain), and IT system restructuring required for Huawei to transform into a world-class enterprise in the next 10 to 3 years. Eight management reform projects including the four unifications of finance.

Afterwards, Ren Zhengfei personally commanded to vacate many rooms facing the sea in the very crowded Huawei headquarters, arranged them according to the IBM style, and purchased new office furniture, so that consultants could still feel at home in IBM after coming to Huawei. It can be seen from the above that Ren Zhengfei is careful in doing things.

After the office layout was completed, more than 50 blond and blue-eyed IBM consultants came to Huawei in the first phase, and a protracted comprehensive study of IBM's management reform movement officially kicked off.

The outcome of this incident is also well known. In the subsequent development, Huawei has achieved unprecedented dazzling achievements, becoming the leading high-tech enterprise in mainland China, and in the following years, it has cooperated with Microsoft, Apple, Google and Coca-Cola jointly boarded the "World's Best Brands List".

"About this matter, I will give you an answer as soon as possible." Gerstner glanced at Duan Yun, and then said: "I will give you an answer within three days at the latest."

(End of this chapter)