"The purpose of making money is to pursue happiness and well-being; making money is not the end in itself." In the view of Xu Wenlong, the founder of Chimei, who is more than 90 years old, family health is the first, and the career is the second.
Xu Wenlong, the most laid-back boss, usually does not go to work in the company, and the company does not set up his office. More than 30 years ago, he set out to promote artistic talents and devoted himself to art and culture. He said: There is a saying in Taiwan that describes rich people - "rich in soil", no culture and no art is soil, but Chimei runs hospitals and cultivates talents, and no one will say that Qimei is "soil"!
The company does not have an office, and Xu Wenlong focuses on art and culture
Couples who have a wedding at the Chimei Museum
In Taiwan, many young people mention the Chimei of the Xu Wenlong family, usually thinking of Chimei Hospital, Chimei Museum, so much so that they forget Chimei, which is actually a petrochemical giant and has long been the world's largest supplier of ABS resin. Founded in 1960, Chimei has spanned a 62-year history.
In the past, there was a saying that Taiwan's business circles "have Wang Yongqing in the north and Xu Wenlong in the south." In Taiwan, The influence of Chimei founded by Xu Wenlong is everywhere, in addition to Chimei Petrochemical, which ranks first in the world's ABS resin, there are also Chimei Electronics that were once surprised by the island, as well as The Chimei Hospital, which is closely related to the daily life of ordinary people, as well as the Chimei Museum and the Chimei Cultural Foundation.
Tell us a startup story related to Chimei Electronics! 10 years ago, Xu Wenlong and Gou Taiming "married" and transferred Chimei Electronics, which dominates Taiwan's panel industry, to Hon Hai Gou, which also ended Chimei's amazing journey in Taiwan's electronics industry.
Time has passed, in the past, The earliest industrial settlement in Tainan, Rende, which started from Chimei Electronics, has a subsidiary "Qiling" that specializes in plastic particle dyeing, and later engaged in waste plastic reuse, that is, turning old TVs, old home appliances, and even marine waste into inconspicuous "garbage" into recyclable recycled plastics. But who would have thought that this humble company would now return to the glory of Chimei's former electronics industry and become the first-tier supplier of AC, a major PC manufacturer.
In order to pursue environmental protection and zero emissions, people like Acer, ASUS and Samsung have increased the number of recycled machines around the world. At present, Acer's laptop chassis already contains 30% recycled plastic raw materials.
Xu Wenlong (right) with Zhong Daiting, who maintains the violin
Xu Wenlong, the founder of Chimei, who was born in 1928, is 94 years old this year, and he rarely appears in public this year or two, but as long as the "Chimei Art Award" is held, he will personally appear to present the award to encourage young artists.
A few years ago, at an award ceremony, Xu Wenlong said very emotionally: "I can still stand here in my 90s to give a speech, thank Tiangong Bo for shelter, I want to thank Tiangong Bo!" More than 30 years ago, Xu Wenlong, the founder of Chimei who devoted himself to art and culture, created the "Chimei Art Award" and opened the Chimei Museum in Tainan to help the cultural development of the next generation.
Xu Wenlong said that he grew up poor, had no money and no house, and his father rented a very small house and squeezed out 10 children; when he was a child, he sometimes borrowed tuition from others. He is well versed in hard work, so he is determined to promote medical treatment, art, education and give back to the community.
Xu Wenlong once said: Family health first, career second. The purpose of making money is to pursue happiness and well-being, and making money itself is not the end. Chimei, he said, shares the same belief in seeking the greatest possible happiness for people, rather than pursuing the highest company profits.
In the 2021 Forbes Taiwan Rich List, Xu Wenlong was worth $1.78 billion. But who knows, this entrepreneur who was surprised by the storm in his childhood, lived in the Japanese colonial Taiwan period, when he was in elementary school, Xu Wenlong, who came from a cold family, often ran to the museum near his home, which was the sustenance of his young soul. He created the Chimei Museum because the museum was the seed he planted, and he hopes that more children will be inspired as he was then and give back to the society when they grow up.
Chimei founder Xu Wenlong
Many people say that Formosa Plastics founder Wang Yongqing is the "god of management", in fact, Xu Wenlong also has his own set of operation and management, and the two are not distinguished. For success, Xu Wenlong said that it was "light and cloudy": I was lucky, I had some talent for making money, and I did things smoothly and smoothly, and then made money. Ordinary people want to spend more money, but I am more worried about how to spend money?
Some people may scoff at Xu Wenlong's words, and rich people love to say this set of words. In fact, Xu Wenlong, who respects Lao Zhuang's philosophy, likes to "do nothing, then there is no rule" in management. He once said: "The highest state of management is to achieve 'not feeling managed'. ”
Although Xu Wenlong still holds many titles in Chimei, in his eyes, he only occupies a "vacant position". Over the years, he has always authorized all the large and small affairs within chimei company, and he rarely has written instructions. Occasionally when he goes to the company for a meeting, he just goes to chat and talks. At Chimei, there is no dedicated office for Chairman Xu Wenlong.
One rainy day, Xu Wenlong wanted to go to the company to see, the doorman saw him and asked: "Chairman, what are you doing here?!" Xu Wenlong thought, yes, it's okay for me to do anything!" So, as soon as he turned around, the car turned around and left.
The highest state of management is not management. Many people in Taiwan's business circles, including Chairman Dai Shengyi of Wang Pin, regard Xu Wenlong as a benchmark and model for his learning. Here, let's list Xu Wenlong's few classic words of business management, you may wish to taste it carefully.
Xu Wenlong said: "Find the answer, don't find the responsibility." He added: "People who can do business, don't be afraid of tigers, and make stupid pigs for people to kill." "Management is an 'act of adapting to the environment.'" "Don't dare to go in and sell dogs on this street." Chimei, the world's ABS resin boss, also has a factory in Zhenjiang, Jiangsu Province. Xu Wenlong said: "What is studied is 'product', and what the market can accept is 'commodity'. ”
Pass on the sages without passing on the descendants, retire to enjoy a "happy life"
Xu Wenlong (right) received an honorary doctorate from Taipei University of the Arts
In 2005, Xu Wenlong issued a "retirement speech", he supported "Taiwan mainland belongs to one China", and said that because of the "Anti-Secession Law", he felt at ease! He mentioned: "Because we dare to invest in the mainland, that is, we do not pursue Taiwan independence, because we do not engage in Taiwan independence, so the development of Chimei on the mainland will certainly be more prosperous." ”
In the mainland, there is not only Zhenjiang Qimei, but also In Zhangzhou, Xu Wenlong's ancestral hometown, there are also Investment Industries of Qimei. In the past, because of his support for "Ah Bian", Xu Wenlong was once labeled as a green camp businessman, and his "Retirement Speech" also expressed his position. After retirement, Xu Wenlong retained only a few titles such as the founder of Chimei Group and the chairman of Chimei Art and Culture Foundation.
After retirement, Xu Wenlong and his wife Liao Xiulan enjoyed a personal "happy life", rarely asked about the specific affairs of the company, and devoted more efforts to art and culture. Over the years, Xu Wenlong's creation of the Qimei model, such as the "drawer theory", is very famous. He said that when faced with problems, it was like sorting out a drawer. If we want to pick out useless things from the drawer, we can generally only pick out 20%, but it is better to pour out all the things in the drawer and only pick up the most needed.
In addition to making money and being good at business management, Xu Wenlong pursues the "theory of employee happiness". On the island of Taiwan, Chimei was the first enterprise to promote "weekends", and there is also the famous "three noes policy" (no layoffs, no salary cuts, and no reduction in research funds). Xu Wenlong once said: When my father was unemployed when he was a child, I still felt sour when I thought of that tasteful Chinese New Year's Eve meal.
In terms of employment, Xu Wenlong said that you can be very at ease in doing things in Chimei, and you don't have to worry about losing the "head road" (work). I think that people are willing to come into my company, as long as the company has the ability, we have an obligation to make them feel happy, do not let their children worry about their parents! He has three secrets: "Let the work of employees be easy to do, let employees be treated better than others, and let the future of employees be guaranteed." ”
Zhangzhou Haicheng Guihai Xu Ancestral Temple
Xu Wenlong was born in Taiwan on February 25, 1928, with his ancestral home in Douxiang Village, Haicheng Town, Longhai City, Zhangzhou, Fujian Province. According to the "Guihai Xu Clan Genealogy", during the Shunzhi and Kangxi dynasties of the Qing Dynasty, due to war and "relocation", the Haicheng Guihai Xu clan was tragically destroyed, all the homes and houses were in ruins, the clans were displaced, died, fled, and few people were left. Among the more than ten people who fled to Taiwan, including the eleventh to the sixteenth, there was Xu Wenlong's ancestor.
The "Guihai Xu Clan" has four major sectarian branches, namely the Meishan Sect, the Wenshan Sect, the Gangbian Sect, and the Yuegang Sect. Xu Wenlong is the seventh generation of the Xu clan of Yishitang in Guihai Harbor after entering Taiwan, and "Yishitang" is his hall number. In April 1991, Xu Wenlong's brother Xu Hongbin took his wife to the Xu Family Temple in Yishitang, Hong Kong, to worship the ancestors, and in the autumn of the following year, Xu Wenlong made a special trip to the ancestral land of Zhangzhou to recognize his ancestors and donated a teaching building in the local primary school.
Xu Wenlong has 10 brothers and sisters, and he ranks eighth. At the end of 1933, his father Xu Shuhe was unemployed, and the family lived in a canal-side "slum" in Shennong Street, Tainan, and the house was rented. It was also this painful experience that Xu Wenlong did not easily dismiss employees later.
At the age of 22, Xu Wenlong completed the mechanical science course of Tainan Senior Technical College by working part-time and studying part-time. In 1950, the Xu family bought a small shop in Asakusa, Tainan, and ran a children's clothing business, named "Chi Mei Xing". Later, In 1960, Xu Wenlong opened Taiwan's first acrylic (transparent plastic glass) factory, also named "Chimei", which he and his siblings jointly raised 2 million yuan to establish.
Xu Wenlong interacted with robots on the 25th anniversary of the Chimei Museum in 2017
In terms of intergenerational inheritance, Xu Wenlong chose to employ talents, did not take the usual road, and did not hand over the baton to his son Xu Jiazhang. For a long time, Xu Jiazhang, the son of Xu Wenlong, only served as the chairman and general manager of New Vision Generation Technology, which was 100% invested by Chimei Industry.
Xu Wenlong has a son and two daughters, and the two daughters are married to Japan and the United States respectively, and neither works in the Chimei Group. The son served as chairman and general manager of Chimei Investment's Xinshidai, but did not serve in the parent company, Chimei Industrial. In terms of wealth inheritance, Xu Wenlong has an attitude, that is, do not leave property, and the younger generations work hard!
Xu Wenlong once said: "Many rich people leave a large amount of property after death, there will be disputes, no matter how these properties are divided, it is unfair, and as a result, their brothers become enemies." Leaving money for my son is just to let him marry a few more wives, so I told my son very early on not to expect what I would leave for him, especially if the third generation can't spend a penny on me, I hope they make money on their own. ”
In fact, his son Xu Jiazhang's appointment as the chairman of the new vision is not his intention. He said: "I don't expect my son to take over, because I know very well that entrepreneurship must have some talent, and if there is no innate talent, it is very painful to do business. What I am most worried about is that in the future, the third generation will come to the group.
Xu Wenlong (center), Liao Jinxiang, chairman of Chimei Group (2nd from right), Xu Chunhua, chairman of Chimei Industry (1st from right)
Xu Wenlong, in May 2004, handed over the baton to his wife and uncle Liao Jinxiang, the chairman of Chimei Industry, and in June 2012, he launched the third stick pass. Liao Jinxiang, who was 75 years old at the time, once again passed the baton and handed over the chairmanship of Chimei Industry to Xu Chunhua, who was 21 years old and 63 years old.
Xu Wenlong, born in 1938, and his uncle Liao Jinxiang, are 10 years apart. Xu Chunhua, who served as the third chairman of Chimei, graduated from the Department of Agricultural Economics of National Taiwan University, and he is The cousin of Xu Wenlong, who joined Chimei in 1977. In 1996, when Xu Wenlong founded Zhenjiang Qimei in Jiangsu, Xu Chunhua served as the chairman of Zhenjiang Qimei, which was the main promoter of Chimei Group to explore the mainland market. For a long time, Xu Chunhua shuttled between Taiwan, Hong Kong and the mainland.
Interestingly, after retirement, Liao Jinxiang, like his brother-in-law Xu Wenlong, devoted his efforts to art, culture and medical treatment.
The word "Qimei" was named after Xu Shuhe, Xu Wenlong's father, who hoped that the company would want "KitKat beautiful". At that time, when Xu Wenlong set up a factory, the earliest was 3 people. Unlike Wang Yongqing's "live to be old, work until old", after Xu Wenlong retired, he insisted on his set of "the purpose of making money is to enjoy happiness" philosophy of life, he is not fishing, or playing the violin, painting, and fully enjoying life.
Xu Wenlong once said to future generations, "If I leave in the future, don't build a tomb for me", Taiwan's population density is so high, the land is not enough, after death, it is best not to occupy a piece of land, maybe a concert is enough.
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