You call this entrepreneurship?

Chapter 560

Zhang Pingyi frowned. "Sentinel Technologies is expanding into new businesses?"

"Maybe," Qin Shaoyan said vaguely after thinking for a moment, "or it could be starting from scratch."

He wasn't just giving Zhang Pingyi a perfunctory answer, because he was genuinely unsure. He would either spin off a project that was suitable for attracting investment independently or develop one that was suitable for Sentinel Technology to operate on its own.

For things like video websites, internet finance, and bike-sharing, they can create a separate project, sell it off later, cash out and exit, and even separate themselves from Sentinel Technology.

After all, Sentinel Technologies has already built such a large business, so it should cherish its reputation and protect its image.

Zhang Pingyi asked, puzzled, "Sentinel Technology is already quite large, occupying a large share of the social networking market, and has also expanded into chat software. Does it intend to continue expanding into other areas?"

The development speed of China's Internet is like a rocket, with hundreds or thousands of entrepreneurs and new companies emerging in the industry every day.

In the wave of the internet, while greedily devouring the new user market, everyone is accelerating the intensification of competition, trying every means to expand into new tracks.

After ten years of development in China's internet industry, the biggest piece of the pie has already been divided up by the large companies that have entered the market.

These large companies not only have a first-mover advantage, but also far surpass small and medium-sized companies in terms of size, capital, and technology.

The scene looks vibrant and flourishing, but many large companies remain cautiously optimistic.

First, they couldn't find a suitable direction for expansion; second, they were hesitant about future development.

Some large companies started to fall behind during this period, missing out on opportunities and new growth tracks, such as Baidu.

It's normal for Zhang Pingyi to have concerns. If it were someone else, Sentinel Technology would be consolidating its core strengths, focusing on its core business, and then considering expanding into other areas.

Weibo has developed extremely rapidly, becoming popular throughout the internet. More and more netizens are joining it, covering 70-80% of all netizens, and its future financial prospects are limitless.

The chat software industry has just gained traction, making it a good time to develop and consolidate its market position.

Qin Shaoyan's plan, however, was to undertake several more large projects, which Zhang Pingyi worried was that taking too big a step might lead to disaster.

Qin Shaoyan also emphasized that he would need a lot of money in the future, which means he is about to start burning money again.

"A new internet era is coming," Qin Shaoyan said earnestly. "We missed the last internet era, and we absolutely cannot miss this one."

"When a new trend emerges in the internet industry, it is not only necessary to identify the direction of the trend, but also to have the ability to stand firm in the trend."

Don't be fooled by the saying "Even a pig can fly if it stands on the right spot." Many people stand on the right spot, but only a few actually take off.

Most of them were blown away when the wind came; those that managed to land safely were considered lucky, while most were blown away without a trace.

"You've found a new direction?" Zhang Pingyi asked after a moment's thought. "What else do you need me to do?"

"Help me assemble several elite software development teams." Qin Shaoyan thought for a moment. "A few might not be enough. Find as many as you can, and prioritize drawing personnel from within the company. This matter must be kept confidential."

"Reassign him to work on mobile software?" Zhang Pingyi asked.

“That’s right, let them familiarize themselves with the new mobile operating system in advance.” Qin Shaoyan smiled. “In this respect, we still have a slight advantage.”

"Whether it's iOS or Android, I still have some connections."

"But most importantly, they need to familiarize themselves with our own mobile phone system in advance."

Zhang Pingyi was utterly shocked. "The mobile phone operating system has already been developed?"

"Yes, it's done." Qin Shaoyan nodded.

"What's your name?" Zhang Pingyi asked casually.

"It should be called Chaos." Qin Shaoyan thought for a moment, as if confirming, "Let's call it Chaos."

"Chaos?" Zhang Pingyi muttered to himself, without asking Qin Shaoyan why he chose this name. President Qin always named people whatever he wanted.

"By the way, Master Zhang," Qin Shaoyan suddenly added, "our company is getting bigger and bigger, you should take some time to learn some management."

"Should I enroll in an MBA program?" Zhang Pingyi asked, puzzled.

"You can go and take a look when you have time. Even if you don't learn anything, you can still expand your social circle." Qin Shaoyan smiled slightly. "But seriously, our company needs to establish a talent development system."

"I hope that in the future, the company's middle and senior management personnel will be cultivated by ourselves, and we will not follow the old practice of 'it is better to have outsiders do the work'."

Zhang Pingyi was somewhat surprised by Qin Shaoyan's words and hesitated for a moment, "Isn't this inappropriate?"

"If you only promote people from your own company, it is easy to form factions and cliques, creating a situation that is too big to handle."

“The talents outside are not only fresh blood, but also a catalyst for change.” Qin Shaoyan nodded. “I’m glad you thought of that, so I can rest assured.”

As a company grows larger, the difficulty of management increases dramatically, which puts managers' abilities to the test.

The Sentinel Group is currently holding on, thanks to Qin Shaoyan's early planning and restructuring of the company, as well as the rapid growth of those who started with him.

Zhang Pingyi, in particular, managed the company very well.

Many problems of the Sentinel Group do not surface during its rapid development phase, but as Sentinel technology continues to expand, many small problems become big problems, or even fatal problems.

Going forward, Sentinel Group will not only focus on expansion and innovation, but also on internal issues.

After talking with Zhang Pingyi for more than an hour, Qin Shaoyan had his driver take him to his core company, Chuxin Technology, the biggest source of cash flow.

Chuxin Technology has grown from a game company with fewer than 200 employees to a large company with more than 1,000 employees, and has rented an entire building for office space.

The arrival of General Manager Qin surprised and delighted the heads of Chuxin Technology, who hurriedly came out to line up and greet him.

Qin Shaoyan smiled and shook hands with several key members, and then, accompanied by Fan Xiaoqian, Liu Kun and Hong Fei, gave a quick tour of the newly established project teams.

After the tour, Qin Shaoyan summoned several key personnel from the game company to the conference room.

"I'm very happy that the company is doing very well. Thank you for your hard work, Teacher Fan, Brother Kun, and Teacher Hong. I feel very reassured entrusting the company to you." Qin Shaoyan first praised them. "I'm here today to announce an important notice: the company's strategic direction will be adjusted in the future."

"Apart from the company's key PC game projects, all other PC game projects have been cancelled."

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone present was shocked, staring at Qin Shaoyan with disbelief.

Before Liu Kun could say anything, Hong Fei couldn't hold back any longer, "Our company's main profit comes from online games. If all the PC game projects are canceled, what will we do in the future?"

"After the project is dissolved, let them adjust their direction and develop mobile games," Qin Shaoyan replied. "If they are interested in web games, that's fine too. They can write a letter of intent, and the project can be approved after review."

Liu Kun asked in surprise, "So you're not going to make online games anymore?"

“We’ve basically stopped doing it. The costs are too high and the time commitment is too long. If we start a project now, it will take two or three years before it can be launched. By then, the market situation will be different.” Qin Shaoyan patiently explained, “There are too many online games on the market, and they are very homogeneous. It’s difficult to make a profit.”

"The company needs to transform as soon as possible, open up new tracks, and win with quality."

“Several of you have been in the industry for almost ten years. You all know whether a project can be completed smoothly in two or three years.”

The people present fell silent. It was only under the condition that everything went smoothly that a PC game project could be developed in two or three years.

Not every team is experienced, and not every team consists of skilled R&D personnel. A mix of talents is the norm in every industry.

In this situation, it's not surprising that a project could take three or four years, or even five years, let alone two or three years.

At Chuxin Games, if one out of ten projects is successfully launched and becomes profitable, that would be considered a great success.

However, when President Qin arrived, he wanted to cut all the projects, which puzzled everyone.

Although the success rate of the project is low, it's still better than doing nothing.

Moreover, abandoning the PC game market and turning to mobile games is a truly bizarre decision.

Qin Shaoyan said in an unquestionable tone: "Apart from the projects currently in operation, the FPS project team and the fighting game team will be retained, while all other turn-based and MMORPG projects will be cut."

"The original project team R&D personnel will be selected through assessment and reassigned to project teams. Project teams that do not wish to be reassigned can also develop in the direction of web games."

Fan Xiaoqian suddenly asked, "What about single-player mode?"

"The single-player project will remain as is," Qin Shaoyan replied. "The single-player game company will continue to invest in it, and this commitment will never change."

He then looked at Liu Kun and said with a smile, "Brother Kun, after the 'Seeking Immortals' project is launched, I hope the company can establish a special online game project team."

Liu Kun asked curiously, "What online game project?"

"I want to create an open or semi-open world martial arts online game," Qin Shaoyan said earnestly. "I hope this game can become an evergreen in the online game industry, operating for at least ten years."

Liu Kun was very excited after hearing Qin Shaoyan's request. It was clear that President Qin was very ambitious; he wanted to create a game that was different from other online games.

If successful, this game will be recorded in the annals of gaming history.

This news also eased the worries caused by Qin Shaoyan cutting the project, plunging Liu Kun into a state of excitement and anticipation.

"Gentlemen," Qin Shaoyan stood up, "a new era is about to begin, and what we need to do is prepare to welcome it."

(End of this chapter)