Ding Jiansheng: A handsome talent who started with technology

With a strong Shandong accent and a childlike smile, Ding Jiansheng, President of Wanhua Industrial and Chairman of Yantai Wanhua Polyurethane Co., Ltd., does not make people feel restrained. In front of him, he was wearing a casual plaid shirt with open cuffs casually. Before the interview, he took out a notebook and put it on the table seriously. Ding Jiansheng is the founder of MDI (basic raw material for the production of polyurethane, which is widely used in aerospace, national defense and military industry, construction, automobile, home appliances and other fields) manufacturing technology with independent intellectual property rights in my country. After his scientific research achievements have been transformed into productivity, accumulated Realize direct sales revenue of 45 billion yuan. The usual career directions of such technicians are chief engineers and scientists, but Ding Jiansheng has transformed into a managerial talent. Such transitions are very rare among Chinese entrepreneurs.

Don't give up until the goal is achieved

Ding Jiansheng's character has a kind of perseverance, perseverance, and never give up until the goal is achieved, and this character determines whether he is studying technology or commanding the overall situation. Can get things done.

Ding Jiansheng graduated from university and came to Yantai Synthetic Leather General Factory at that time, starting as a basic technician. In the 1980s, the synthetic tannery imported a relatively backward MDI production device from Japan, and the operation was very unstable. When they wanted to introduce a more advanced device, those manufacturers who mastered the core technology would not be given the opportunity, but instead used their A large number of products are exported to the Chinese market. Because of its small scale, poor product quality, high cost and lack of competitiveness, Yantai Synthetic Tannery is on the verge of bankruptcy when faced with imported products. In order to survive and develop, Wanhua must develop MDI device technology with independent intellectual property rights. Therefore, out of a sense of mission, Ding Jiansheng, then the director of the MDI branch, decided to lead the R&D team to overcome this barrier. The move caused an uproar. The research institute of Yantai Synthetic Leather General Factory believes that the Chinese people's own development of MDI is a joke, and it is impossible to achieve. However, despite the doubts of others, Ding Jiansheng began to study MDI equipment with one mind. After conducting more than 10,000 tests and filling several trucks with the revised plan, he finally broke through the technical bottleneck and broke through the 40-year-long commitment of multinational companies to China's MDI technology. Blockade and monopoly, Yantai Wanhua has also become the first Chinese enterprise with independent intellectual property rights of MDI technology.

"In the beginning, people are inherently lazy." Ding Jiansheng teased his choice at that time: "We were forced out, and no one wants to suffer." Chen Guanrong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, once commented: China has introduced chemical production equipment Just like "smoking opium", from hundreds of tons to millions of tons, spending money to buy comfort, in the end, has to be controlled by others. "Independent innovation is a bumpy and thorny road that requires perseverance and perseverance." Large scientific research results often take more than ten years to complete the industrialization. The persistence and perseverance required by this process cannot be tolerated by anyone. And Ding Jiansheng realized the industrialization of China's MDI without technical support, making China the third country after Germany and the United States to have independent intellectual property rights for large-scale MDI manufacturing technology, which also made Wanhua become the The fastest growing company in the global industry in the past 10 years. Currently, Wanhua owns two of the three largest MDI devices in the world. Therefore, in the competition with international giants, Wanhua's product price is 300 yuan higher than that of the other party. The Japanese companies that originally exported MDI equipment to Wanhua have been left far behind by Wanhua.

In the early 1990s, Wanhua discussed the acquisition with the global chemical giant BASF. At that time, they only needed to invest five or six million US dollars to control Wanhua, but BASF believed that Wanhua would not develop, and it would not develop in a multinational The company will eventually die under the pressure, so it refuses to cooperate. Later, the president of BASF’s business unit often regretted the decision when he talked about the decision. “The failure to acquire Wanhua has made BASF an aggressive competitor not only in China but also around the world.”

From technology research and development to business management, Ding Jiansheng clearly understands his strengths and weaknesses: understanding technology can accurately grasp the development direction of the industry, but it is easy to be blinded by paying attention to technical details, ignoring the matching of research and development and the company's overall strategy. After seeing the shortcomings clearly, Ding Jiansheng always reminded himself "don't go astray" when he took the leadership position.

Ding Jiansheng put forward in the 1990s that the only test standard for enterprise application R&D is the market, and the only test standard for R&D combined with technological device transformation is the successful application of assembly and production, and the most important thing is to be able to successfully industrialize. Therefore, Wanhua has been moving forward along this technological innovation path.

Since its birth, Wanhua has been in a cruel ecological environment that competes with international oligarchs. Multinational companies such as Bayer, BASF, and Huntsman entered the Chinese market early. However, Ding Jiansheng, who dances with wolves, is full of respect when talking about his competitors: "We are grateful to these top multinational companies in the world, in the competition with them, by studying their development trajectories and market behavior, combined with With our own strengths and weaknesses, we will gain meaningful development enlightenment.”

After the successful development of Wanhua MDI, international chemical companies aggressively dumped their products into the Chinese market. However, by 2001, Wanhua had not yet formed an industrial scale. In order to avoid being overwhelmed by prices, Wanhua applied to the State Economic and Trade Commission for an anti-dumping case. This is the first enterprise in China's chemical industry to file an application for anti-dumping after my country's entry into the WTO. Within one or two years of the investigation and filing, Wanhua seized the time to innovate and transform the old installations, rapidly expanding the economic scale, and at the same time set up a new MDI project. Considering that foreign products can be used to pave the way for the cultivation of the downstream market, Wanhua decided to withdraw the lawsuit. Wanhua has protected itself by flexibly applying the rules of the international game, creating opportunities for further development.

MDI is a globalized industry. If Wanhua only has the advantage of production capacity in China, the higher the market share in China, the greater the risk. Because with BASF, Bayer and other international giants building factories in China, if Wanhua's profits are all in the Chinese market, and it does not enter other markets, it will not be able to resist competitors' price wars in the Chinese market. That means that if the other party loses one yuan, Wanhua will have to add five yuan. This lack of strategic restraint ability is very dangerous. Therefore, entering the main market of competitors has become an important strategic direction of Wanhua. As early as the end of 2001, Ding Jiansheng proposed the internationalization strategy of 3Is: international standard, international operation, and international competitiveness. Although Wanhua was still in a critical period of survival and development at that time, and its products were in short supply in the domestic market, Ding Jiansheng believed that global business must be deployed as soon as possible. Since 2002, Wanhua has been exporting to foreign countries, mainly in Europe, North America and Japan, where its competitors are profitable. "We must first market and then manufacture. Once the market is well laid out, the manufacturing capacity will come naturally." Ding Jiansheng devised a strategy.

Confrontation with multinational companies has improved Ding Jiansheng's overall strategic thinking. He continued to study and study the market layout and capital operation mode of competitors, which made Wanhua, which grew up in the "war", develop rapidly. Ding Jiansheng observed BASF for many years, including when it acquired and how to acquire it during the economic crisis. He believes that BASF is good at seizing opportunities in the industry, especially the acquisition of some joint ventures in South Korea, which originally only accounted for 50% of the shares. Taking advantage of the Asian economic crisis in 1998, 100% of the shares were acquired and made by themselves, and the cost was only 1/3 of the usual price. more. Seize the peaks and valleys of the economic cycle and make acquisitions when assets depreciate. Ding Jiansheng used these experiences in Wanhua's expansion.

When Wanhua developed into the largest MDI manufacturer in the Asia-Pacific region, in 2007, Ding Jiansheng considered building factories in Europe, America and the Middle East, and chose Belgium and the Netherlands. However, when the financial crisis in 2008 came unexpectedly, Ding Jiansheng felt that the time-consuming cycle of building a new factory was too long, and the newly added production capacity had a great impact on the global industry as a whole, so it was not the best solution. So they focused on mergers and acquisitions. BorosodChem, Hungary's largest chemical company, became their first acquisition target. After two years of gaming negotiations, in 2010, Wanhua acquired a 36% stake in BorosodChem, and in January 2011, it fully acquired its 96% stake.

Inclusive of new things with an open mind

Ding Jiansheng realized again in the process of overseas acquisitions: "When a company talks about Wanhua's overseas road, Ding Jiansheng's family not only needs resources, but more importantly, Knowing how to allocate capital is deeply felt. Source, how to borrow a boat to go to sea." He clearly recognized the lack of Chinese enterprises in international mergers and acquisitions, and took the initiative to absorb international capital. Wanhua introduced some strategic investments when carrying out the shareholding reform, and absorbed Wall Street bank capital to participate in the company's equity. The participation of international capital helped Wanhua avoid the financial risk of acquiring Hungarian BC Company and ensured the smooth progress of the acquisition. With an open mind, Ding Jiansheng has the courage to accept new things and conform to the rules of the game in international competition. The main purpose of mergers and acquisitions in the industry is to eliminate competitors that are still in their infancy. However, Ding Jiansheng believes that Wanhua's acquisition of Hungarian BC is mainly based on the strategic consideration of occupying the European market. Pure capital output cannot achieve the integration of enterprise resources, and the integration of corporate culture must be completed through the output of technology and management.

Ding Jiansheng realized the difference between Eastern and Western cultures during the acquisition process. Therefore, he believes that international talent management requires an open mind. For example, Ding Jiansheng said: European companies have strong labor unions, and they need to make an appointment in advance when communicating, and they cannot just open the door to visit. In the past, knocking on the door of the Chinese headquarters could solve the problem with just a phone call, but it was understood as impolite when it came to BC Company in Hungary. Therefore, Ding Jiansheng formulated the policy of globalization strategy and localized operation, and incorporated mergers and acquisitions into the company's globalization strategy. Every overseas company has to rely on localized operations to realize its strategy.

With an understanding of the cultural differences between the East and the West, Ding Jiansheng was able to pay attention to the use of communication skills in his speech at the post-acquisition staff meeting. He said: According to historical records, the Hungarian people migrated from the East. In the whole of Europe, only the Hungarian people have the surname first and the last name, which has an indissoluble bond with China. Secondly, Hungary is a nation that advocates freedom and democracy. He also quoted the famous Hungarian poet Petofi's famous sentence "Life is precious, and love is more expensive. If it is for freedom, both can be thrown away." In his speech, Ding Jiansheng even listed 17 Nobel Prize winners. of Hungarians. His splendid opening remarks immediately aroused warm applause from 500 to 600 Hungarian employees at the scene and more than 2000 BC employees who watched the speech online, and suddenly shortened the distance between Chinese enterprises and Hungarian employees. In the Spring Festival of 2011, Ding Jiansheng and Hungarian BC employees celebrated the Chinese New Year together. The boss from China brought them the enthusiasm and friendship of the Orientals.

Ding Jiansheng, who grew up in "actual combat", has not taken off the rigor of "technical people", but at the same time has cultivated the open-mindedness and strategic concealment of leaders. When looking out the window with his hands folded, Ding Jiansheng must be thinking about Wanhua's next big strategy.