Su Mingcun: "elasticity" that changes with customers

Flextronics is not a big name in the consumer electronics market. But the laptop or mobile phone that is selling well on the market may be the assembly line from Flextronics. It is the road that Flextronics has always adhered to to hide itself in a low-key manner behind many famous electronic technology companies and be their "actual manufacturer".

This Singapore-based EMS provider (Electronics Manufacturing Service) has design, engineering, manufacturing and logistics bases in more than 30 countries around the world, with total revenue of $14.5 billion in 2004 . "There are Flextronics customers all over the world, and in China, our customers have spread across the technology sector," said Mingcun Su, general manager of operations for Flextronics in Shanghai and North China.

The Flextronics spokesperson for the Chinese market is proud to say that since the company entered the Chinese market in 1988, it has established more than 30 production bases, which can provide integrated systems for almost all electronic products Manufacturing and Assembly Services. "What really makes Flextronics maintain its leading position in the industry is our flexibility with customers." In his view, Flextronics means Flexible.

As an outsourcing service provider in the electronics industry, what services can Flextronics provide to its customers?

Our services are divided into two types. One is that the customer provides technology and only entrusts us to process and produce; the other is that in addition to manufacturing, the customer also entrusts us to design and develop, which is the ODM method (Original Design & ).

We have a great advantage that we have design and manufacturing bases in more than 30 countries around the world, which can help customers enter the local market as quickly as possible. For example, now there is a domestic company that wants to enter the South American market. He does not need to build a local factory himself, but directly uses Flextronics' factories in Brazil and Mexico.

The current work of Flextronics has been involved in the whole process of the entire product cycle. Our goal is to provide our clients with end-to-end operational services, including new product design, testing solutions, manufacturing, IT expertise, logistics and back-office services, and more.

How is the end-to-end operational service implemented?

Flextronics assigns engineers and other workforces based on customers. We have equipped each customer with a corresponding CFT, which is the Customer Focus Team, including R&D team, engineering team, testing team and support staff. The CFTs operate completely in parallel with each other, serving their respective projects, so that they can keep pace with their clients. It should also be emphasized that because many of our customers are in competition with each other, communication between CFTs is strictly limited for the protection of customers' commercial confidentiality, and even employee access cards cannot be used with each other.

On many occasions, our employees will also go to the client's company to work with their employees and cooperate with each other. For example, there are two customers in the communication industry who are building base stations and need to splicing software modules, but their resources are limited and the speed is too late, so they entrust Flextronics to strengthen their R&D capabilities. We transferred 100 software engineers from India, each equipped with 50, and worked in the customer's factory, which is completely zero-distance cooperation.

Your customers include various types, such as both global multinational corporations and local Chinese start-up companies. What are the different services provided for different types of customers?

In addition to EMS and ODM, Flextronics also hopes to provide different customers with some advice that is beneficial to their decision-making from the perspective of experts. For multinational companies, our accumulated local experience and detailed local data are very advantageous. For example, in terms of product specifications, such as the amount of radiation, the control in Europe and North America is different from the control in the Chinese market, then we will provide customers with various data references and make adjustments according to domestic requirements.

For domestic companies, Flextronics' management experience is more helpful. For example, a local company commissioned us to manufacture his products, and he appointed local supplier partners for certain components. But when this product hits the international market, for example, to achieve local production in the Brazilian market, if these suppliers are used again, it will be very stressful from the perspective of the supply chain. Then we will give advice to customers and choose large suppliers with global bases to cooperate.

Now more and more electronics companies choose to outsource due to the pressure of rapid market changes and intensified competition. In fact, this also brings challenges to outsourcing service providers. How does Flextronics respond to changing customer requirements?

Flextronics' English name is "Flextronics", which means that we attach great importance to "Flexible", which means "flexibility". When customer requirements change, our hardware and software are flexible to adjust accordingly.

In terms of hardware, Flextronics is standardized in all factories around the world, and the equipment and production lines used are the same. Then some customers have reduced production, and some customers have increased production, and we can balance the utilization rate of production lines on a global scale.

In terms of software, including our personnel system, financial system, IT system and material system are also globally standardized. For example, if the company transfers me to South Africa tomorrow, I will not feel that this is a new company that can quickly adapt to local work. This allows Flextronics to be flexible in terms of personnel movement and enhances the flexibility to serve customers.

Another very important point is that Flextronics itself has always kept an eye on the market. Within Flextronics, it is divided into five categories according to computers, printers, mobile phones, communication products, etc., and each category has a special person responsible for collecting market information, making data analysis reports, and providing customers with reference. In this way, the two parties can communicate in advance. When the market growth of a certain product shows signs of slowing down, the customer needs to adjust the order, and we have prepared in advance. In addition, raw material procurement and other work can also make a more accurate budget in advance, and will not be caught off guard due to changes in product orders.

If there is a disagreement with the client, how will it be reconciled?

In the vast majority of cases, we will comply with the client's request. Because, after the order is signed, we are in the form of the customer's "Virtual team", their support team.

But sometimes, we express our opinions firmly. For example, a European customer wanted to enter the domestic market. He felt that the market demand for ultra-small mobile phones should be good, and asked us to cooperate with the development. In such a small volume, it is possible to arrange more than 100 parts and electronic circuits, and it is certainly possible to put them in, but if there are some minor problems, there is no suitable tool to enter it for maintenance. In this case, we will persuade the client to change the plan.

Generally speaking, for the coordination of differences, our principle is to weigh the interests for the client, and consider it from the perspective of long-term cooperation between the two parties. We do not believe that the customer is God, but communicate with each other in a respectful and very egalitarian teamwork attitude. The client is also rational, and he doesn't want you to think of him as God. Because his decision may be wrong, if there is a problem after insisting on production, it will bring more losses. Therefore, we will not blindly obey, but provide professional advice from the perspective of technical experts and manufacturing experts.

Do you need different communication methods when communicating with different clients?

That's for sure. We have different customers in different countries, and they have different cultures and preferences, which requires us to understand and adjust.

In Europe, for example, some clients have an intuitive decision-making style. Judgment is good or bad, not by looking at data, but by feeling. So if you show him the detailed data and keep meeting and discussing it, he will be very annoying. Later, after understanding the styles of these customers, we became more flexible. Instead of using data, we put parts, products, and scraps on the table so that they could see, touch, and feel, and he could understand. It's easy to convince him.

It can be said that communicating with different customers in different ways is a requirement of Flextronics for employees, which is another embodiment of "flexibility".

——Celine Wei