Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 883 Disclosure

As Sister Jin came in and opened the window, the others stood up to greet her: "Ms. Jin, what brings you here?"

Sister Jin opened the window and pointed to Xiao Wei and the others: "These are our three bosses. This is Chairman Zhang, this is General Manager Chen, and this is General Manager Xia. They just happened to walk by, and I saw the lights were still on, so I came over to take a look. What are you all doing? Having a meeting?"

He then turned to Xiaowei and the others and introduced them: "This is Manager Zhang over here, Deputy Manager Chen, Deputy Manager Liu, Minister Chen of the Clothing and Hats Department, Minister Li of the Hardware and Electrical Appliances Department, Minister Zhang of the Imported Goods Department, Minister He of the Warehouse Management Department, and Director Qi of the Office. Not everyone is here; we're missing several departments."

Manager Zhang said with a smile, "President Jin, you have a really good memory. You remembered me after only meeting me once today."

Xiao Wei said, "Sister Jin, why don't you go out for a stroll? We'll sit here for a while. Just call us if you need anything."

Sister Jin said, "I've been sitting for a while now. I don't need anything and I don't want to buy anything." The office manager got up to find things and pour water for everyone. The rest of the people got up and chatted for a bit before letting Xiao Wei and the others sit down.

Xiao Wei said, "My wife wanted to buy clothes, and we ended up here. What can we do? Zhongjie Street is the biggest, right? There's nowhere else to go. You guys, are you still here after get off work? Have you eaten yet?"

Manager Zhang said, "No, it was just a quick meeting to discuss the handover, but we got so caught up in the conversation that we forgot about the time. It's almost seven o'clock." He glanced at his watch.

Xiao Wei asked, "What did you say? Can I ask around?"

Manager Zhang laughed and said, "You're the boss, what can't you ask? It's just that the company changed, and to be honest, none of us are really sure about it. It all happened so suddenly, we didn't hear a thing beforehand. We're not familiar with each other, so we don't know what will happen next, or even if we'll continue working. We're just talking casually here, there's nothing specific."

Deputy Manager Liu, the woman who was smoking, stubbed out her cigarette and said, "The other hotels have all gone back, but we've just abandoned this place. Nobody knows what our job status is anymore. Since you're here, could you tell us about it?"

Xiao Wei said, "We don't have any government-affiliated positions here. We're a private company. You get paid for your job, and each position has its own benefits. You work one day at a time, and if you quit or don't perform well, you lose your job."

There are no retirement benefits like those in state-owned enterprises. As long as you are capable and your abilities are recognized, you can work until you are eighty years old. But if your abilities are no longer sufficient or your health cannot keep up, you can only retire. Once you retire, you take a sum of money and go home to retire. That's all.

However, we also have advantages compared to state-owned enterprises. First, we don't have seniority-based promotion; everything is based on ability and loyalty. If you have the ability, you can rise to the top. There are other companies in the group, and other departments above you. If you are capable enough, I can even give up my position as chairman.

Furthermore, our salary and benefits system is completely different from that of state-owned enterprises. Once the adjustments are complete, a unified announcement will be made. To put it simply, as a mall manager here, you'll definitely earn much more than you did in the supply and marketing system. In addition to your regular base salary, you'll also have performance-based pay, which is linked to sales revenue and employee performance evaluations.

Deputy Manager Liu asked, "What about other aspects?"

Xiao Wei asked, "Which aspect are you referring to?"

Deputy Manager Liu said, "For example, with housing, now that I've left the supply and marketing cooperative, the houses that were originally allocated to me might have to be taken back."

Chen Hui said, "Aren't all houses now under reform and owned by individuals?"

Deputy Manager Chen said, "No, we haven't done anything about supply and marketing, and it seems we haven't done anything about commerce either."

Xiao Wei said, "Houses are a minor issue. Our company currently has more than a thousand ready-built houses, which we can move into anytime. There are some right here. We're also going to build another building right across from Rose Garden, which will also have residential units, all with elevators."

Manager Zhang asked, "Does your company provide housing?"

Xiao Wei said, "How could that be? The government doesn't allocate housing anymore. But employees enjoy internal pricing, so I don't profit off my own employees. And regarding the high-rise apartments, as long as you're competent and work for the company for five years, I'll give you one—an apartment with an elevator. I can't say much now, but an apartment with an elevator should be worth at least four or five hundred thousand, right?"

Deputy Manager Liu asked, "Chairman, which level of 'senior management' are you referring to?"

Xiao Wei said, "Those above the deputy manager level in each branch are considered senior management, while the department managers in each branch and the employees in the head office departments are considered middle management."

Manager Zhang asked, "And what about our side?"

Xiao Wei said, "This place will be registered separately as Northern Trade Department Store, with independent accounting, and will operate separately from the original company's department store. The original department store mainly operated by renting counter space, while this one will be self-operated. But, by the way, where is the purchasing department?"

Deputy Manager Liu said, "I'm doing this part-time; the original one left quite a while ago."

Xiao Wei nodded and said, "Purchasing Department and," he looked at Minister Li, "Hardware and Electrical Department, right? I plan to separate these two departments. The Purchasing Department will be directly placed under the Head Office Materials and Equipment Purchasing Center, because we will be expanding this area throughout the Northeast in the future. I can't set up a Purchasing Department in every place, right? The director of this Purchasing Center will be the same as the manager of each branch company."

As for the hardware and electrical appliances section, motorcycles and bicycles will be handled by the car dealership, which has a professional showroom. You should set up a separate hardware and building materials company, with independent accounting, located on Tiexi Ninth Road. Prepare now, and you'll move there as soon as the market is handed over. The main products will be building materials, decorative materials, furniture, and lighting fixtures, with hardware as a secondary focus.

Minister Li asked, "What about home appliances? Also, you've never dealt in furniture before, where do you source your goods?"

Xiao Wei said, "We have our own furniture factory, producing mass-market goods as well as custom-made products according to customer specifications. We have high, medium, and low-end options. You can also visit eastern Guangdong and northern Hebei, where the furniture industry has grown significantly, and you can contact them for sales."

Deputy Manager Liu picked up another cigarette from the table and said, "Isn't procurement handled centrally by us?"

Xiao Wei said, "Yes, but each sales company needs to go and see for themselves so they know what sells well, right? We still need to cooperate on this. In the end, the orders will still be placed by you. Your purchasing team needs to listen to the sales team's suggestions and opinions, and pay attention to market demand information. We can't do it like before."

Manager Zhang said, "Well, this first meeting has resulted in the dismantling of a large department and the taking of a deputy manager."

Xiao Wei said, "You need to build a separate home appliance store here, still under your jurisdiction, but the business address needs to be separate. Imported goods and domestic goods also need to be completely separated, with imported goods displayed in dedicated counters. Oh, and we need to add a wine counter; we have a winery in France."

Manager Zhang said, "The appliances are still on the first floor, right? How about we move them down a bit from the second floor and open the counter there? Or we could move both the second and third floors and open the counter on the third floor."

(End of this chapter)