Only Speed Can Make a Higher Level

Reporter Yang Peiju

Since the birth of Jiangsu Rongsheng Heavy Industries (hereinafter referred to as Rongsheng),it has become the focus of attention of the shipbuilding industry and media. Within less than five years,Rongsheng has become the company admired by the industry,with an annual sales income of over 10bn RMB. It has also created a number of records in the shipbuilding industry at home and abroad. Recently,the reporter had an interview with Mr. Chen Qiang,the Chairman of this legendary company,and has got a deep understanding and feeling of Rongsheng.

Reporter: “Rongsheng Speed” and the size of Rongsheng can be quoted as the realistic model of “the miracle of Chinese shipbuilding”. For every enterprise that is newly established,the personal charm of the leaders plays a very important role. What is your opinion?

Chen Qiang: You are right. During the early days of the enterprise,there is a direct relation between the success of the company and the leader himself. However,from the perspective of the longer term,the image of the enterprise is the most important. Taking Rongshen as an example,at the beginning,the industry might only know Chen Qiang,and might not know Rongshen. I believe,the image of a person can only last for a certain time,whereas the image of the enterprise can last forever. Therefore,in the end the enterprise needs to complete the transformation from personal image to the image of the team.

Reporter: How do you understand the relationship between the leader and the team?

Chen Qiang: As we know,the power of an individual is limited,and the enterprise cannot rely on the hardworking of a single personnel. Unity is the strength. One of the most important work for the leader of the enterprise is to make the team more united.

Reporter: For the present,“Rongsheng Speed” has become the attention of the industry. Why do you give speed such an emphasis?

Chen Qiang: Speed matters in a war. In the market where competition is getting more and more fierce,speed is one of the key elements determining the success of the company. In most cases,it is not the strength of the company that determines the success,but whether we can realize our ideas in the most speedy manner.

Reporter: Speed determines the fate. What is your opinion?

Chen Qiang: It is true in a sense. There are many cases where speed is the key for success. In the past,there is an old saying that the big fish devour the small ones.But this is no longer true nowadays. In the time of fierce competition,speed determines everything. We term this as fast fish devour slow ones. It is also true that “There is no time like the present”. At the early stage of the enterprise,there was a peak in the shipbuilding market,and we had a feeling that if this opportunity was seized,we would become the most unexpected rising force.

Reporter: What is the key reason for Rongsheng to be able to develop beyond the Yangtze River and towards the world?

Chen Qiang: I would say innovation. Innovation is the soul of one company,it is the most fundamental driving force for sustainable development. Apart for the emphasis we give to the market,we also give emphasis to technical research and development,and encourage technical innovation. Each new ship type that we have introduced becomes the favorite of the shipowners and is marked with “made in Rongsheng”.

Reporter: How do you see management?

Chen Qiang: Management is an eternal theme.Management level plays a signifi cant role in the success of the company. Therefore,at the beginning of Rongsheng,we put a lot of effort in improving management,and made up our minds to become the pioneer in the industry in the fi eld of management. The creation of “Rongsheng Speed”fully testifi es our advanced management.

Reporter: In China,there are many privately-owned enterprises which are operated in a family style,and there exists many disadvantages. As a privately-owned enterprise,how does Rongsheng break these limits?

Chen Qiang: At the beginning,we placed ourselves at a high level and built the enterprise as a world-class one. Therefore,Rongsheng is trying its best to manage in a regulated and scientific manner and separate management from personalization. We established a set of scientifi c decision system and to manage with system and regulations. Non-regulated enterprises may develop fast,but it may also perish fast. Such enterprises tend to experience highs and lows.

Reporter: Last year,Rongsheng had a record sales proceeds of 10bn RMB,and the world witnessed the speed of a privately-owned enterprise entering the “Ten Billion Club”. What is the company’s plan for future?

Chen Qiang: Less than fi ve years have passed since the establishment of the company,and half of the time has been spent on construction. We have only engaged in real sales for a little more than two years. For a privately-owned enterprise,it is not easy to be one of the members of the“Ten Billion Club” within so short a time. However,it is far from being complacent. The goal for this year is 20 billion,and the goal for the next fi ve years is making the record of 100 billion. Scope of business will cover shipbuilding,offshore engineering,power engineering and engineering machinery,and the ultimate goal for Rongsheng is to become one of the world’s top 500 enterprises with everlasting foundation and social responsibility.