14/9/2018-1

Logistics people must have an international perspective to help Jiali transform and break monopoly. Witness the changes in the transportation industry.

The logistics industry is one of the four pillars of the local economy. In recent years, the government has actively promoted the development of Hong Kong into an international logistics center. Unfortunately, the outside world often misunderstands the industry and even ridicules that “the hour does not study, the bulk of the transportation”, resulting in a lack of new blood in the industry; Kerry Logistics (00636) (hereinafter referred to as Kerry) President Ma Rongzhen (William), this is deeply felt.

Ma Rongzhen, 56, joined Kerry in 1999 and has led the company’s transformation over the years. With a market capitalization of 20 billion yuan, it is a large regional logistics company in Asia. Witnessing the changes over the years, he said frankly: “The most important thing to do in logistics is people.” He sent a message that the government should actively cultivate management talents, and advise young people to have an international perspective and look higher and further.

Ma Rongzhen was in charge of leasing and property management in Shui On Land (00272) after his graduation in early years. In 1998, the Asian financial turmoil broke out and the property market in Hong Kong deteriorated. In the following year, he transferred to Kerry. “At that time, the group had several vacancies. Warehouses, and the debt is high, I have two choices: one is business transformation, the second is selling warehouses.”

As a result, he prefers the former between the choice of “positive” transformation and “negative” sale. In the late 1990s, Hong Kong’s logistics management was not popular and lacked expertise. Ma Rongzhen and a group of colleagues did learning while referring to relevant international companies such as DHL. They found that economies of scale were needed and prices were advantageous. The international courier company already has a global network and supply chain, so the local industry is almost monopolized by it.

He recalled that when the Group was in transition, Hong Kong’s operating environment was very poor. It was quite difficult to find a source of customers. Fortunately, soon after the rise of the network stocks, the net enterprises became the first customers [see another manuscript]; unfortunately, the situation is not normal, the network tide is short. After more than a year of blasting, “Kai Zi” rushed to the end of the business, Kerry needs to find a new source of customers, although not starting from scratch, it will take a few years of struggle to get better.

The lack of new blood on the front line is difficult to solve

Today’s Kerry city has a market value of 20 billion yuan and is a large regional logistics company in Asia. Even with the Sino-US trade war, under the general trend of global integration and increased trade volume among countries, the demand for services in the future will only grow. Of course, the world may not be satisfactory. In recent years, due to the shortage of labour in Hong Kong, as one of the industry leaders, Kerry is self-reliant.

Ma Rongzhen said: “The most important thing in logistics is people.” The members of the management team are generally starting from low, working for more than 10 years, and gradually accumulating experience. In recent years, the government has actively developed the logistics industry. Some young people think that the industry has good prospects. I am willing to join.

Asked what conditions should be met by newcomers who are interested in entering the business. He said that because the client is from all over the world, language ability is very important, and biliterate and trilingual are necessary.

However, he did not forget to add that the new generation of future generations seems to be more concerned about Hong Kong affairs. “One time I asked young colleagues: “What is the main religion in Russia?” No one knows.” He believes that youth should be concerned with local culture and economy. And politics has a basic understanding, and more contacts with background people from other countries to broaden their horizons. In recent years, Kerry has hired many people of different nationalities. It is hoped that local employees will learn more about local culture through daily life and work exchanges.

It takes time for professional management talents to be cultivated, but Kerry has no shortage of new blood. Instead, it involves front-line employees in transportation and distribution. The shortage of people is much more serious. This may be related to people’s perception. There are even so-called “hours are not reading, big ones are doing transportation. Said one. Ma Rongzhen admits that among the many types of work in the logistics industry, transportation is the most difficult to attract young people. First, the physical demand for moving goods is large, the working hours are long, and many parents do not want their children to enter the business. “It is unique in Hong Kong, all in Asia. Faced with the same problem, I believe that it is difficult to solve the situation once and for all.

Foreigners must follow the customs

Over the past decade or so, more and more Chinese and Hong Kong companies have “goed out” to invest overseas. Kerry has taken the initiative to enter the mainland, Taiwan, Southeast Asia and the United Kingdom and other countries and regions since 2002 to acquire local logistics companies. Combining the different development experiences in various places over the years, Mr Ma has a view: “Hong Kong is a free port. It is very convenient to do business. The legal and tax system is very clear. For many companies, Hong Kong is a comfort zone. But when When Hong Kong people go to other countries to do business, they will quickly understand what is cultural difference.”

To overcome this problem, you must do as the Romans do. He believes that since people are in a foreign land, they should not take Hong Kong people’s thinking. For example, Hong Kong culture emphasizes “restraint” and “execution”. Western countries only value execution ability. Even if there is a problem in the project planning process, they will not change it. However, it is only after the completion of the project, so it is necessary to integrate into the local culture. Perhaps to a certain extent, this is also a kind of “strain” and “execution”.

Ma Rongzhen is optimistic about the future development of the logistics industry. The expansion process needs to be backed by experienced staff. In fact, regardless of the front or middle level, as long as there is good performance, it is not difficult to climb the ladder of promotion.