Song Zhiping reviewed his 38-year work experience, focusing on the experience and understanding of state-owned enterprise reform. He recalled that in the early days of reform and opening up, the transition from planned economy to market economy had a great impact on state-owned enterprises. At that time, enterprises had to change their ideas and products occupied the market to survive. The reform of state-owned enterprises in the late 1990s was a thoroughly remoulded change. State-owned enterprises have been out of trouble for three years, and Beixin Building Materials, where he works, is a reform sharp knife class, and obtained development funds through listing. In the 20th century, his company constantly explored reforms and achieved two Fortune 500 companies by taking the road of mixed ownership.
Looking back on these experiences, Song Zhiping said with emotion that enterprises can only survive and develop through reform. He talked about three experiences: first, today's state-owned enterprises have been transformed from the market, and most of them have entered the field of full competition, which can be said to be "new state-owned enterprises." The survival and development of state-owned enterprises depend on reform. Second, we should seize the opportunity and make up our minds in the reform of state-owned enterprises. Only those who reform first can survive, and those who reform thoroughly can succeed. Third, reform needs entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship, simply put, is to be able to persist, dare to innovate, and have feelings of home and country; This is also the spirit of state-owned enterprise reform. In the new era, it is even more necessary to stimulate such enthusiasm and spirit of reform.
The following is a record:
Dear Dean Liu Qiao, leaders, colleagues and classmates of Guanghua, hello!
First of all, congratulations to the 19th Guanghua New Year Forum in Peking University. I was inspired by the speeches made by the leaders and guests just now. The host wants me to talk about the reform of state-owned enterprises and some of my experiences with my personal experience.
After more than 30 years of state-owned enterprise reform, I have made two fortune 500 companies.
1979 graduated from university and entered the state-owned enterprise, which is known as the listed company today-Beixin Building Materials. I studied polymer chemistry in college and went to be a technician. At that time, we began to enter the socialist commodity economy. The problem at that time was that the products had to be sold by themselves, because the funds of the planned economy were arranged in the past, and so were our production plans and our supply and marketing. In the face of market economy, we call it socialist commodity economy. One is that the market supply depends on its own procurement, and the other is that the product sales depend on its own sales. The transformation of banks into commercial banks was called "weaning" at that time, so the state-owned enterprises at that time were very difficult.
After the reform and opening up, foreign capital came in. At that time, township enterprises developed rapidly, so many state-owned enterprises were struggling and very difficult. The most important thing is that the product should be sold. Worked as a technician for four years, and resolutely became a salesman to sell products in the 1980s. Why? Because the products produced are all full of workshops, they can't be sold, and everyone has nothing to do. So I took everyone to the fair at that time, and later worked as a sales director for seven years. At that time, we had a saying, "The market doesn't believe in tears and doesn't look for the mayor to find the market." Therefore, in the 1980s, many state-owned enterprises could only survive if their products occupied the market and did a good job in it. In the 1990s, I became the factory director and the head of Beixin Building Materials. I am faced with a dull enterprise mechanism and frustrated employees. Although I said I was the sales director and the products sold well, I couldn't do it. Moreover, enterprises have no funds in bank accounts, and workers have low incomes and no houses. Everyone has a lot of opinions.
How to revitalize this enterprise? At that time, I thought, first of all, let everyone be enthusiastic, so I proposed to light the fire in the hearts of workers. Wages go up year after year, houses are built year after year, workers' enthusiasm suddenly emerges in generate, and enterprises are thoroughly remoulded. But as we all know, at that time, we had to conduct a major financial inspection every year, which was considered as a pass. Many state-owned enterprises are very sad about this. On the one hand, our employees need motivation; on the other hand, our traditional system is very rigid. This makes us face a new problem, that is, how to change these, so institutional innovation was put forward at that time. 1994, to carry out a pilot project of 100 households. Beixin Building Materials, which I lead, is one of the 100 pilot enterprises in China. What are the requirements for the 100-household pilot? There are four sentences still in use in the report of the 19th National Congress, namely, the modern enterprise system with clear property rights, clear rights and responsibilities, separation of government from enterprise, and scientific management. At that time, the deputy director of the Economic and Trade Commission came to Beixin Building Materials and said that the pilot should be a sharp knife class for reform. It is very painful to completely transform, but the reform must go through this level.
As we all know, from 1998 to 2000, during the three years of state-owned enterprise reform, tens of millions of state-owned enterprise employees were laid off. Looking back today, it is still very unpleasant. Our employees paid a heavy price in the reform. Beixin Building Materials 1997 was listed. At this time, it is necessary to solve the problem of where the money comes from and where people go. The so-called people refer to redundant employees. Beixin Building Materials has taken such a road by obtaining development funds through listing and arranging employees at the same time. Therefore, in the process of getting rid of difficulties for three years, no employee of Beixin Building Materials was laid off. I often think that most of the state-owned enterprises that survive today are survivors of that reform.
Now sometimes when it comes to state-owned enterprises, people ask if there are many special offers. In fact, our reform affects state-owned enterprises, which can only survive if they adapt to the reform. At that time, so many state-owned enterprises closed down because they did not adapt to reform.
In 2000, I transferred to China Building Materials, a central enterprise. At that time, China Building Materials only earned more than 2 billion. At that time, he was also a creditor, which was very difficult. Although it is called a central enterprise, it is not large in scale. At the sasac director meeting at that time, it was said that if any central enterprise did not enter the top three in the industry, its serial number would be cancelled. China Building Materials has neither funds nor difficulties, and its scale is small, so I often say that we are "grass-roots central enterprises". How can we develop? I also remember that only reform can "market-oriented operation of central enterprises", that is, central enterprises can operate in the market. The way is to take the road of mixed ownership. The capital comes from the capital market, private capital and private enterprises. Together, we have developed together, which has promoted the reorganization of the whole building materials industry, especially the cement industry, and made China building materials develop rapidly and become one of the top 500 enterprises in the world. In 2009, the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission (SASAC) asked me to be the chairman of Sinopharm Group. From 20/2009 to 0/4, I served as the chairman of China Building Materials and China Pharmaceutical Group at the same time, and put the experience of mixed ownership of China building materials into Sinopharm Group, which also developed from a small company to the top 500 in the world.
This period of history shows that both companies grew up through reform, and they also made two Fortune 500 companies through reform.
There are three experiences about the spirit of state-owned enterprise reform.
I have three experiences.
The first experience is that the current state-owned enterprises do not rely on the monopoly that some people always talk about. Among the central enterprises 100 enterprises, only about 10 enterprises have natural monopoly elements, and most of them are in the field of full competition. Therefore, they can grow and develop, not by the monopoly imagined by everyone, nor by the traditional management methods that some people talk about sticking to the past. Some people say that since state-owned enterprises are doing well, it is wrong to prove that our past things are good. As Minister Gao said just now, in fact, our survival and development are entirely due to reform. Professor Stephen Roach, a senior professor at Yale University, asked me, "Teacher Song, does the vitality of China's state-owned enterprises today come from that thing that your government decided to go public twenty years ago?" I said, "Yes, your question is the answer". In fact, the state-owned enterprises in China are different from what some people understand. This state-owned enterprise is not another state-owned enterprise, but all state-owned enterprises have undergone market-oriented transformation. At present, 76% of the total assets of central enterprises are listed companies, and pure state-owned enterprises are few and almost non-existent. Therefore, our state-owned enterprises are actually new state-owned enterprises, which are different from those known by westerners. Because in the west, state-owned enterprises are good at nationalization and private enterprises are good at privatization. China takes the road of common development of public ownership and diversified ownership.
The second experience is that whoever reforms first can survive, and whoever can completely change can succeed. This is also a very important point of view. Over the years, many state-owned enterprises have not survived because they refused to reform, or because the reform has been delayed.
Third, reform needs entrepreneurship. In the past, there were many successes in the reform of our state-owned enterprises, and many people failed and fell, but we should not forget them while paying tribute to the reform. Today's economic development in China benefits from the development of enterprises. The development of state-owned enterprises in China has promoted today's economic prosperity. In the reform of state-owned enterprises, we have many excellent reformers, such as Bu Xinsheng and Ma Shengli. Today, many people may forget them. They are equivalent to Ma Yun and others today, and they were also very popular at that time. It is not easy for everyone to come here so hard, which laid the foundation for today's reform.
When we discuss reform, we will think of entrepreneurs and entrepreneurship. At the 19th National Congress, we talked about protecting and encouraging entrepreneurship. In the process of enterprise reform, it is especially necessary to protect and stimulate entrepreneurship. Entrepreneurship has persistence, innovation and feelings of home and country. Can it persist? I have been in state-owned enterprises since 1979; Innovation is innovation system, that is, change; Feelings of home and country, love for the party and patriotism are our main themes. I think these spirits should be the spirit of our state-owned enterprise reform. Therefore, the pillars of "1+N" state-owned enterprise reform have all been established today, but we need to stimulate entrepreneurs' enthusiasm for reform and let them take the initiative, that is, to combine top-level design with initiative. It is enterprises, entrepreneurs and our broad masses of cadres and workers who really promote reform. They are full of enthusiasm and should be mobilized.
Question and answer session: "I didn't speak for six days when the enterprise was in the most difficult time."
Moderator: Thank you, Teacher Song, for sharing his experiences and feelings with us. There are many young students at the scene and on the platform. In the whole enterprise development process, you have also encountered many difficult moments, difficult moments. How did you get here? What should be the greatest inspiration of such a process of overcoming difficulties for students today?
Song Zhiping: Actually, I have met many, many difficult times. If it is the hardest thing, I think of 1993 as the factory director at the beginning, because at that time, the factory could not open the pot and thousands of employees were starving. What should I do? I basically didn't talk at home for six days during the Spring Festival. Have you ever thought about what it's like not to talk for six days? It's so uncomfortable. Everyone thought it was an official or a factory director. In fact, it was a very difficult decision to be a factory director at that time. I did what I just said. I first raised some money for the enterprise from the employees. I took out all my family's money myself and asked my employees to raise 4 million yuan to start the factory before it went public. So I often think, in fact, the most difficult time is that employees and everyone helped this enterprise. This is "water can carry a boat, but it can also overturn it". In the most difficult time, we still rely on employees and everyone.
(Article source: Financial Times)