Journey 1995:Non-Stop

Chapter 268 Forming a Team
There is definitely a limit to the profit margin of plywood. Yan Hui has reached this point and has a broader perspective.

In Jinan, apart from the area managed by Jian'an Group, it's not easy to enter the plywood business in other parts of the city. This industry is considered quite chaotic within the timber industry.

Demand is unstable and requires specialized production lines, making it difficult for anyone to become a leader in this industry.

Yan Hui tried to sell plywood in other areas, but found it very difficult. They all looked pretty much the same, but you could only tell the difference in quality by using them. Some construction sites were poorly managed and involved serious kickbacks, which Yan Hui couldn't satisfy.

For example, the same board costs 68 yuan per sheet for Yan Hui, but some construction sites only offer it for 55 yuan.

Yan Hui knew exactly what kind of boards these were. They were either of poor quality and thickness, or they were secondhand boards, some even with concrete stuck to them. But the site foreman still turned a blind eye. Yan Hui wasn't unfamiliar with these boards; in fact, he could have made a higher profit margin from them. However, if he were to sell such goods, his reputation would be ruined, and it might even damage the reputation of the Jian'an Group.

Moreover, given Yan Hui's current reputation and capabilities, if he continued to pursue this kind of business, he could occasionally secure some legitimate orders, but the time cost and the rewards would no longer be commensurate. It would take him half a day to process just a few hundred boards.

It was only then that Yan Hui began to reflect on himself.

Come to think of it, he's been in Jinan for a year and a half, and he hasn't managed to train a single team. He's been running around doing all the business himself!

Talent
Where can we find talent?

This is what's really giving Yan Hui a headache.

His style of dealing with people and doing things speaks for itself. If you put him in any unfamiliar city now, he's confident he can succeed. But building a team is just too difficult.

For the processing plant, he needs a reliable factory manager; for the plywood business, he needs several reliable salespeople. That's what he needs right now.

In Jinan, there are only four people he is familiar with and trusts.

The first one is Liu Jianlei, the worker who does high-altitude work. Liu Jianlei is definitely good at the job, but he doesn't have much technical skill or business acumen. His best-case scenario is probably that he can become the deputy director of a processing plant.

The second is Zhou Ping, the nephew of General Manager Zhou of the ceramics factory. This person could actually be poached. Yan Hui had looked into it; General Manager Zhou had a finance manager who had been with him for over ten years, and he was only 40 years old. Zhou Ping was currently just gaining experience, not being groomed as a successor.

The third is Wang Zongbo, who deals in aluminum materials. Like Yan Hui, Wang Zongbo started from the bottom, gradually building his business. Over six or seven years, he accumulated at least two or three hundred thousand yuan in assets. If he followed Yan Hui, he could potentially earn even more.

The fourth is Chen Jian, a PhD in Chemistry, currently in his third year. Needless to say, he's definitely not needed anytime soon.

Besides these four people, Yan Hui also knows several others like Wang Qiang, at least dozens, and it's possible that he could develop two or three sales representatives.

For example, Yan Hui would find a few reliable people and have them promote his plywood at other construction sites. Yan Hui would pay them 75 yuan per sheet, with each salesperson making a 5 yuan profit per sheet. If a salesperson promoted 200 sheets, they could earn 1000 yuan, which is already a month's salary for an average person.

For these external business transactions, Yan Hui doesn't need to share profits with General Manager Han. At 75 yuan per item, he makes a profit of 7 yuan per item. For the salespeople, the biggest advantage is that they can use Yan Hui's name to gain basic trust from others.

After thinking it over, Yan Hui made a decision.

First, find salespeople, at least 4-6, then train them gradually and see if you can promote one to be in charge.

Once the sales team is stable, then we can set up the processing plant. For the processing plant staff, we can poach someone from the factory manager's team; as long as they're not a key figure, the factory manager will definitely agree.

Sometimes, you have to admit that this world is a relationship-based society. When Yan Hui goes to find salespeople, he always asks people like Wang Qiang and Wang Zongbo for introductions. The people they introduce are at least somewhat responsible and won't just run away.

After asking four or five people, Yan Hui only found two who were barely capable of doing this kind of business. After examining them, he found that the two were passable. They knew a little about construction sites and the timber and plywood business, and they were also decent communicators, but there was still a gap in their abilities. Yan Hui temporarily noted down their contact information and asked them to wait a week.

Two days later, Yan Hui went to his brother-in-law's house. During dinner, they talked about this matter. His brother-in-law thought for a moment and said, "My air conditioner salespeople aren't very busy after autumn. I can introduce you to a couple. But do your construction sites see little business after winter?"

“It’s only September now, so there might be fewer air conditioners available. The construction site can keep going until the end of November, so it’s not like we’re out of business. If I don’t train them now, I’ll have to wait until next year,” Yan Hui explained.

“That’s true, you should have some people of your own now. By the way, when do you plan to start a company?” my brother-in-law asked.

"I don't plan to start a company right now. I've run companies before, and although they're supposed to be limited liability companies, they're not really. I ran into trouble with my last company, and I ended up with debts that I had to pay out of my own pocket, otherwise my reputation would be ruined. Besides, I've found that transferring a company from a public to a private entity is quite troublesome." Yan Hui shook his head.

The company's biggest advantage is "limited liability," meaning that if the company goes bankrupt, it will not implicate the company's负责人 (person in charge). However, this is only a legal provision. Yan Hui's personal reputation is very important now, and he would have to be personally responsible if the company went bankrupt. Therefore, the company's biggest advantage is actually of little use to him.

“The company has to be established sooner or later, otherwise you won’t be able to retain talent. You can set up a sales team now, like an engineering team, which is okay for the time being, but as the number of people increases, you can’t pay for everything yourself,” my brother-in-law said.

Establishing a company naturally offers many advantages. Besides reducing personal risk, it allows for the application of various licenses, corporate qualifications, and loans. It also enables the signing of formal employment contracts, increasing team stability. Furthermore, a company facilitates brand building and business expansion.

"That's for the future. I can still manage the current team. I don't need to start a company within a year. I need to save some money." Yan Hui shook his head.

"You're saving money again? What are you planning to do?" My brother-in-law asked, somewhat surprised.

"There are many things I need to do right now. I'm really short of money, and I feel very poor," Yan Hui sighed.

He wants to get into timber processing, construction equipment rental, and even open a chemical plant, which would require a lot of money.

"Alright then, I have two good salespeople here. They're not too busy right now, so I'll lend them to you for now. You can keep either one if you want, but you have to leave one for me." My brother-in-law nodded.

(End of this chapter)