Tech giants start by disassembling systems

Chapter 5 A Fire

At 5 p.m. sharp, the production workshop on the first floor of Hongyuan Intelligent was packed with people.

The three assembly lines were temporarily moved to both sides, clearing a space in the middle where more than fifty employees stood in loose rows. Including the administrative and management personnel who came down from the second floor, the space was crammed with nearly sixty people.

For a small company with only 52 full-time employees, this is a true representation of the entire workforce.

The atmosphere in the workshop was subtle.

The news that Zhao Guoqiang was taken away by security guards in the afternoon and then taken away by the police has spread throughout the company, and everyone is whispering about it.

"Have you heard? Director Zhao got arrested. He's accused of stealing parts and embezzling hundreds of thousands of yuan."

"I was wondering why those flight controller boards felt off lately; the solder joints were all so rough. Turns out they changed suppliers."

"The new boss got his cousin arrested on his very first day in office. That guy's ruthless."

"It's better to be ruthless. Look at what Zhao Guoqiang did those past few days. If it weren't for him, would we have had to stop work?"

"Yeah... I wonder what the new boss is going to do next. Given the company's current situation, will he just shut it down?"

"Close the door? What do we do then?"

This last sentence silenced the nearby workers.

This is what everyone is most worried about.

Whether Zhao Guoqiang was arrested or not was of little concern to them; what they cared about was whether they would keep their jobs. Although the news of the return crisis hadn't been officially announced, it couldn't be kept secret in such a small company. Everyone knew there was a major problem with the product, and distributors had collectively stopped ordering.

Is the company even able to survive?

This problem weighs on everyone's mind.

At 5:05, Su Chen came down from the second floor.

He wasn't dressed in a suit and tie, but in a plain dark blue polo shirt and jeans, looking like a recent college graduate—and in fact, he was.

But no one dared to underestimate him because of his youth.

Three hours earlier, this young man had calmly sent his cousin to the police station.

Among those present, the oldest worker was over fifty years old. He had seen many bosses, but he had never seen a boss do something like this on his first day in office.

Su Chen walked to the front of the crowd and stood on a temporary metal tool cabinet—this was Zhou Ming's idea to make him visible to everyone.

He glanced at the faces below.

Nervous, curious, uneasy, indifferent... all sorts of expressions.

Su Chen took a deep breath.

In my previous life, I worked as a product manager for fifteen years and gave countless presentations, big and small, but those were always in a meeting room with a few or a dozen people. I never spoke to dozens of workers in the workshop.

But it's okay.

These people don't need fancy PowerPoint presentations or sophisticated wording; they need to hear the truth and the things they care about.

"Hello everyone, I'm Su Chen. From today onwards, I'm the boss of Hongyuan Intelligent."

A simple and direct opening.

The workshop fell silent, and dozens of pairs of eyes stared at him.

"I won't hide the facts. You've all probably heard about Zhao Guoqiang's situation. He privately changed the parts supplier, using inferior products instead of qualified ones, which caused serious quality problems in our last two batches of drones. All 47 distributors have stopped ordering from him."

Some people gasped – they knew there was a quality problem, but this was the first time the information that "all 47 suppliers have stopped ordering" had been explicitly stated.

"Zhao Guoqiang has been taken away by the police. We will do our best to recover the money from him, but that's a matter for later. The reality we face now is that the company's channel trust has been severely damaged, our funds are tight, and the days ahead will not be easy."

Su Chen's tone was calm and frank, without any embellishment.

The atmosphere in the workshop grew even more tense. Some workers already showed worried expressions on their faces.

"But..." Su Chen's voice rose a few decibels.

"I'm standing here today not to say goodbye, but to tell you what to do next."

He held up one finger.

"First thing. Starting this month, the monthly performance bonus for all employees will be increased by 15%."

A commotion broke out in the workshop.

When everyone thought the company was going to lay off employees and cut salaries, the new boss's first words were actually - "Give us more money?"

"You all heard me right." Su Chen saw the expressions on their faces and continued, "The company is indeed facing difficulties right now, but difficulties are not a reason to cut employee pay. People like Zhao Guoqiang would put money in their own pockets when the company is in trouble. My way of doing things is the opposite of his."

This remark elicited scattered applause in the workshop, which quickly spread and grew louder.

Su Chen quickly did some mental calculations.

Fifty-two people, with an average monthly salary of six thousand yuan—this is roughly the level of front-line employees in Shenzhen's manufacturing industry in 2016—with a 15% increase in performance bonuses, the additional cost per month is approximately forty to fifty thousand yuan.

This money will certainly put an even tighter strain on his already strained cash flow, but he needs to do it.

On the one hand, it's about stabilizing morale. News of the return crisis has already spread, and if no concrete actions are taken, once morale is broken, it will be impossible to win it back.

On the other hand, the system's "industry-benefit halo" is taking effect. The overall employee productivity and assembly yield rate have increased by 10%, and this implicit benefit will eventually manifest in product quality and output efficiency. But if outsiders notice "why the quality has suddenly improved," there must be a reasonable explanation.

Salary increases and management upgrades are the best cover-up.

Su Chen extended his second finger.

"The second thing. Starting next week, the company will fully implement a lean production management system, including 5S on-site management, standardized operating procedures, and a comprehensive incoming material inspection and outgoing inspection system."

These terms may be unfamiliar to frontline workers, but they can roughly understand the meaning—management is going to become stricter.

"I know everyone might think that stricter management is a hassle. But Zhao Guoqiang's case has proven one thing: without institutional constraints, one person can ruin an entire company. From now on, every product from Hongyuan will undergo rigorous quality inspection before leaving the factory; no one will be allowed to take shortcuts."

"This isn't about causing trouble for everyone; it's about protecting everyone. If a drone with quality issues flies out, it will damage Hongyuan's reputation and ruin the livelihoods of all of us."

The workshop was quiet for a few seconds, then applause broke out again.

This time, no one thought that stricter management was a bad thing—after all, the last person to "relax management," Zhao Guoqiang, had just been sent to the police station.

Su Chen extended his third finger.

"Thirdly, the company will launch an internal skills enhancement program within the next two weeks. Assembly line workers can enroll in training on drone debugging and testing techniques. Those who pass the assessment will be promoted to quality inspectors or debugging technicians, with a corresponding salary increase. Administrative staff can enroll in training on supply chain management and customer service skills. All training is free and will be scheduled after work hours or on weekends; participation is voluntary."

This statement elicited an even greater reaction than the previous two.

For manufacturing workers earning five or six thousand yuan a month, "learning skills, getting a raise, and having career advancement opportunities" is more attractive than simply getting a pay rise.

A female worker who looked to be in her thirties was the first to clap, and then the applause spread like a tide, almost drowning out the entire workshop.

After the applause subsided, Su Chen gave a final speech.

"Hongyuan Intelligent is indeed facing difficulties right now. But I took over this company not to shut it down and liquidate it. My father invested his life savings into this company, and I won't let his hard work go to waste."

"I need everyone to get through this with me. If we do, Hongyuan will not just be a small assembly plant in the future."

He didn't make empty promises, didn't paint a rosy picture, and didn't make any grand pronouncements like "making the best drones in China."

He simply said, "Let's get through this together."

But it was this sentence that brought the loudest applause of the meeting to the workshop.

Sending your cousin to the police station is a sign of power; a raise and training are a sign of kindness; facing difficulties honestly is a sign of sincerity.

From this moment on, Su Chen's authority at Hongyuan Intelligent was fully established. Not because of his shareholder status, not because of his title as boss, but because of the way he did things.

After the company-wide meeting ended, Zhou Ming walked up to Su Chen and whispered, "President Su, Zhang Lei just sent a message saying the warehouse inventory is complete."

"And then what happened?"

"Zhao Guoqiang still has 120 substandard flight control boards and motors left in stock, all of which have been marked and sealed. There are approximately 60 sets of qualified components remaining from Hengxinda and Jingwei."

Sixty sets.

In other words, if production resumes using qualified parts, the existing inventory can only assemble another sixty drones.

This output is a drop in the ocean.

"Have Zhang Lei send the detailed list to my email. Also, contact Hengxinda and Jingwei to ask when they can restock and what the price will be." Su Chen paused after speaking, "And don't wait for me tonight, you can go home first."

"Mr. Su, aren't you going back?"

"I'll be spending the night in the second-floor lounge; I have some things to work on."

Zhou Ming didn't ask any further questions, nodded, and left.

Su Chen returned to the small lounge on the second floor alone and locked the door.

Tonight, he's going to do something he's wanted to do ever since he was reborn.