Sail across the sea

Chapter 509 I must learn the skills properly

"Great!" Fu Yiming rubbed his hands excitedly, his eyes shining with excitement. "After being silent for several years, we're finally getting back on track. It's time to go all out and make a big splash."

In recent years, affected by various factors, the domestic economy has been generally sluggish. Both the political and business circles have doubts about the economic outlook and dare not take any major actions.

Fu Yiming gave up his deputy section chief position to work at Canghai Chemical, with the ambition to make a name for himself. For the first two years at the company, he felt like a bird freed from its cage, able to fly freely, and he was very happy.

But then came the economic downturn. Although the company's business continued to grow, all sorts of rumors circulated, with some even claiming with certainty that the private sector would soon be banned and capitalists like Gao Fan would face imprisonment. Under these circumstances, Fu Yiming dared not act too flamboyantly, fearing it would bring criticism to the company, a situation that made him feel extremely frustrated.

At the beginning of the year, the old man's Southern Tour speech was published in the newspaper. Fu Yiming pulled Gu Kunquan aside and carefully analyzed every word in the news report many times. He felt that the policy would change in a more open direction and was filled with anticipation.

However, given the gravity of the situation, neither of them dared to fully trust their own judgment and wanted to wait for Gao Fan to return and give them a definitive answer. Both of them had been immersed in the system for many years and possessed sufficient political acumen, but they still felt that Gao Fan had a broader perspective than they did, and they always sought his interpretation.

The result greatly pleased Fu Yiming. Gao Fan not only confirmed their judgment but also revealed that the concept of a market economy would be formally proposed at next year's conference. They had no idea that Gao Fan was a time traveler; they simply believed that he must have obtained inside information through some channels, and what he was saying now was a far-sighted prediction.

"Over the past few years, we have accumulated a wealth of technology and conducted on-the-job training, which has comprehensively improved the quality of our workers. As long as General Manager Gao gives the order, we can get things moving quickly and efficiently," Gu Kunquan said with a smile.

"The quality of workers is the most important factor," Gao Fan said. "In the past, the main obstacle to our development was the lack of highly skilled operators. Back when we were developing vitamin C and vitamin E, the operators at Yanxiu and Wuyuan fertilizer plants caused quite a few blunders."

Fu Yiming said, "That's definitely not going to happen now. In the past few years, we've been conducting technical assessments whenever we have free time. Anyone who fails the assessment is demoted, and their salary and bonuses are reduced at the same time. After a few rounds, everyone realized that you can't just coast along in the company; you have to learn the skills properly."

Gu Kunquan said, "Old Fu is mainly in charge of this matter. I have to admit that Old Fu is much better at management than I am. When I was in the Science and Technology Commission, there was one director, three deputy directors, and two staff members in my department. There was practically nothing to manage. When I came to the company, I wanted to do management but had no experience. Fortunately, Old Fu was there to support me."

Fu Yiming waved his hand and said, "Old Gu, don't flatter me. I used to work in the Bureau of Culture, and later in the Local History Office. Aren't those government agencies too? I'm also figuring things out as I go when it comes to enterprise management. Luckily, I had the help of Lao Yin and Lao Pang."

The "Old Yin" and "Old Pang" he mentioned are Yin Baowen, the former director of Yanxiu Fertilizer Plant, and Pang Zhongmin, the former director of Wuyuan Fertilizer Plant. These two former directors have considerable experience in enterprise management.

However, these two also had their shortcomings: a lack of modern management thinking and a weak sense of standardization. Managing a technologically backward fertilizer plant was no problem, but managing modern fine chemical production proved challenging. Fu Yiming, however, was open to new ideas. After joining the company, he actively learned modern enterprise management knowledge and implemented a total quality management model in the various factories under his jurisdiction. He formed a good working relationship with Yin and Pang, with him proposing the concepts and performance targets, while Yin and Pang were responsible for implementation, which yielded excellent results. Now, the biochemical company's production management has become fully standardized, most notably in the significant improvement in product quality.

The chemical cleaning company was originally a labor service company. From the manager to the workers, they were all unemployed youths from the former Canghai Fertilizer Plant. Their advantage was their youth and strong ability to accept new things, but their disadvantage was their lack of experience. Fu Yiming led the company's young managers to learn from Yin Baowen and Pang Zhongmin, and then put their experiences into practice at the company.

Having overcome many obstacles, Xie Qin, Xue Chujiang, Ning Mo, Wang Hui, and other middle-level managers in the company have now grown into capable professionals, performing their duties with competence. The former unemployed youths in the company have also become skilled chemical equipment operators, their technical skills in no way inferior to those of the technical backbone in large state-owned enterprises.

These tasks were originally the joint responsibility of Gu Kunquan and Fu Yiming, but Gu Kunquan later fell behind. Gu Kunquan has always had the problem of being ambitious but lacking in practical skills; he has a lot of ideas and a lot of enthusiasm, but lacks the ability to execute them. Fu Yiming, on the other hand, is a very pragmatic person who can do things in a down-to-earth manner.

Speaking of this, Gu Kunquan cleared his throat and said to Gao Fan, "Gao Fan, since you're back, I'd like to formally make an application, which is what I've mentioned before: please let Lao Fu be the company's general manager. I'll step down and serve as Lao Fu's deputy, or I can take a deputy position in one of the branch offices."

"I am self-aware. I can give advice and encouragement to others without any problem. But to ask me to personally manage such a large company is really asking too much of me."

Upon hearing Gu Kunquan's words, before Gao Fan could say anything, Fu Yiming glared at him and rebuked, "Old Gu, what are you saying! Isn't the general manager responsible for coming up with ideas? He has to take action and do things himself. That's my job as the executive vice president. I think you're quick-witted and have a longer-term vision than me. That's your greatest strength. A general manager needs to have these kinds of strengths."

Gu Kunquan pointed at Gao Fan and said, "When it comes to quick thinking and long-term vision, who between us can compare to Xiao Gao? Old Fu, don't be so polite. When I became the general manager, I was forced into the role. I had a prior agreement with Xiao Gao that I would step down as soon as a more suitable person was found."

Fu Yiming insisted, "No, Lao Gu, if you say that, I'm quitting. I'll resign from my job right now and go back to the local history office to write local history records."

"Can you even go back? The local history office in Cangtang was abolished a long time ago."

"Then I'll go back to the Cultural Bureau."

"The Cultural Affairs Bureau doesn't want you..."

(End of this chapter)