Chapter 492 The Art of Management

In the afternoon, sunlight streamed through the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, casting dappled spots of light on the office floor.

Song Ci was concentrating on reviewing the email on the screen, his fingertips jumping lightly and precisely on the keyboard, making a rhythmic sound.

"Knock knock knock." The knock on the door broke the silence.

"Come in."

He didn't even raise his eyelids, his eyes still fixed on the monthly report on cloud business growth.

Lin Haifeng, president of Yifutong, pushed the door open and walked in. Seeing the chairman's concentration, he stepped lightly, "Director Song."

"sit."

Song Ci only said one word, quickly typed the last few lines, and clicked send.

Not until the email was sent did he move his eyes away from the screen. He leaned back slightly and turned to Lin Haifeng, with a calm and scrutinizing gentleness on his face.

"Haifeng, ever since you joined Tengda and took over Yifutong, I have always been very satisfied with your performance."

Song Ci starts straight to the point and sets the tone directly.

Yifutong is the financial infrastructure at the core of Tenda Group's "Connect Everything" strategy. It initially entered the personal payment market by relying on the two major social ecosystems of WeChat and Weibo.

Under the leadership of Lin Haifeng, the business has penetrated into the enterprise end, building a supply chain finance and merchant service platform, and its market share and revenue have exceeded expectations for several consecutive quarters.

This report card is indeed worthy of recognition.

Lin Haifeng smiled modestly: "It's mainly because the group's platform has a good foundation. The traffic and data advantages give me room to display my talents. I just implemented the group's strategy."

"Achievements are achievements. There's no need to be modest." Song Ci waved his hand, his tone unquestionable. "Tengda believes in results-oriented approach. Your achievements are noticed by the board of directors."

After a pause, he continued, "This time, arranging for you to prepare for the establishment of MyBank is a heavier burden, but it is also a sign of confidence in your abilities. The group will reserve your options for you."

Lin Haifeng was overjoyed upon hearing this and thanked him solemnly: "Thank you very much for your trust! I will definitely live up to your trust!"

A huge stone in my heart fell to the ground.

Tengda has not yet gone public. If the options are redeemed due to job changes, it will still be a huge amount of money, but compared with the potential value after listing, the loss is huge.

A sentence from Song Ci preserved wealth that could increase dozens of times in the future. This is not only a reward for the past, but also a strong motivation.

After his subordinates calmed down a bit, Song Ci added casually, "There are so many things to consider when setting up a bank. Just having an internet mindset is not enough. Someone has to understand the rules and tricks of the financial industry.

I've found you an assistant, a senior person I hired from a traditional bank with strong business capabilities. He'll be your deputy and help you handle professional matters."

Lin Haifeng's expression froze for a moment, but he quickly returned to normal, even with just the right amount of gratitude:

"I was just about to ask for help with banking knowledge, fearing I'd run into problems due to my lack of experience, but I didn't expect you'd already arranged it."

Song Ci seemed to have anticipated his reaction and nodded slightly: "Having someone who has worked in the system to help you can save a lot of trouble and make the regulators feel more at ease."

"I wonder who this talented person is? I want to communicate with you about my work ideas in advance." Lin Haifeng asked tentatively.

"His name is Lu Yugang. He currently works in the Electronic Banking Department of ICBC. He's a hard-working man." Song Ci said calmly. After a pause, he added, "He was my roommate in college. We know him well."

Lin Haifeng's mouth twitched slightly. The meaning behind the words "college roommate" was far more than just "recruited talent."

This person must be the chairman's best friend and his most trusted confidant. The intention of parachuting such a person into the core team is clear:

On the one hand, we will strengthen our professional strength, and on the other hand, we will place a pair of absolutely reliable eyes in MyBank, of which Tenda is the largest shareholder but not wholly-owned, to ensure the implementation of the group's strategic will.

At the same time, it is also a perfect check and balance for myself who is about to stand on my own.

Although MyBank was initiated by Tengda, it is an independent licensed financial institution with a complete corporate governance structure.

Song Ci needed to maintain its innovative vitality while ensuring that this "son" of Song Dynasty, which could potentially carry trillions of yuan in funds, remained under control. Therefore, placing "its own people" in the fold was the inevitable choice.

The office fell into a brief silence, and Song Ci gave Lin Haifeng enough time to digest the information.

A few minutes later, he changed the subject quite naturally: "After you leave, Yifutong cannot stop running. You have worked hard for many years. Is there anyone you can recommend to take over as president?"

Lin Haifeng immediately became more cautious. "Mr. Song, personnel appointments are the highest decision-making matter for the group, especially for a crucial division like Yifutong. It's not for me to comment."

Song Ci understood and tapped his fingers lightly on the smooth tabletop: "Don't worry.

As a recent addition to the group, I'd like to hear your perspective and opinions. After all, you know best what kind of leader Yifutong needs.

Lin Haifeng looked at the chairman deeply and was slightly surprised by the seemingly casual but profoundly meaningful sentence "joined later".

It seems that he has a clear understanding of the invisible factional connections and delicate balance within Tengda.

Tenda is now the largest Internet giant in Asia, with a huge scale and complex structure.

The "veterans" who helped Song Ci build its empire in the early days and now hold high positions are mostly gathered under CEO Zhang Yong and COO Wang Jing.

The "new generation" that was later brought in with high salaries and expanded the territory with their professional abilities, led by CFO Chen An, inevitably had resource competition, ideological conflicts and power games with the veteran faction.

This kind of friction is an inevitable byproduct of any large organization.

Lin Haifeng himself is generally regarded as a leader of the "new generation".

He immediately understood the chairman's intention. After his transfer, he did not want the important position of President of Yifutong to fall into the hands of the "veterans" and thus disrupt the current balance.

He hopes that this position will remain within the "new generation" system for the time being, so he lets the representative of his faction recommend a successor, which is both a sign of respect and a test.

Song Ci saw Lin Haifeng's expression change several times, and finally he showed a look of sudden realization, and nodded secretly in his heart.

As the group grows, factions and frictions cannot be eradicated. The key is to provide scientific guidance and effective control, turning internal friction into healthy competition and curbing its destructiveness.

Previously, the overly powerful Zhang Yong faction among the "veteran faction" was weakened through methods such as executive rotation and strengthening of OKR assessments.

Now that the group is about to go public next year, it is particularly important to maintain a delicate internal balance.

Yifutong and WeChat are the core sectors of Tenda. The position of president has enormous power, and leaving it to the "new generation" is a key step in balancing the game.

Lin Haifeng pondered for a long time, as if weighing the pros and cons, and finally spoke sincerely: "Mr. Song, if we look purely at his ability and understanding of the business, I am most optimistic about Ling Tianyu, the Director of Payment Business.

He's young, energetic, and has a deep understanding of technology and user needs. However, having just been promoted to director this year, he's too inexperienced to suddenly be promoted to the position of president, and I'm afraid it would be difficult to convince people."

"Ling Tianyu?" Song Ci remembered this unfamiliar name. "What are your specific responsibilities? How are your performance?"

"He is responsible for all C-end payment product lines, including QR code payment, red envelopes, transfers, credit card repayments, etc.

In the past two years, his team has been one of the teams with the fastest growth in user activity and transaction volume, and has also done very well in several large-scale marketing campaigns.

The Payment Business Department and the Financial Management Department are the two major engines of Yifutong, and he is the most core engineer of the payment engine."

Song Ci pondered for a moment. "Qualifications are certainly an issue, but ability is even more scarce. Let's put it this way. MyBank's preparations and opening will take at least six months. During this time, let the vice president of Yifutong take over the day-to-day responsibilities."

At the same time, based on your recommendation and his performance, give him six months to prove himself. Whether he can be promoted to vice president after six months depends on his performance and your vision.

Lin Haifeng was certain in his heart that this was the greatest support and the most secure arrangement that the chairman could give.

I said with sincere admiration: "You have thought it through carefully. You have given young people opportunities while stabilizing the overall situation. Thank you, Mr. Song!"

The matter was settled and Lin Haifeng said goodbye and left.

Song Ci did not return to his work immediately. Instead, he stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window, overlooking the heavy traffic and the rows of buildings in the distance.

I couldn't help but sigh softly, and a clear word echoed in the silence: "Difficult!"

Technological trends, product experience, and ecological strategy are his strengths, but they also involve the refined management of people, especially balancing the complex web of interests and power within a large group.

I have to admit, I'm not as tactful as Zhang Yong, nor as decisive as Wang Fengying. This is a more complex and laborious art.

But he's not passively coping. He's constantly learning, observing, and evolving. The core of his management philosophy is simple: be the ultimate "arbiter" and "balancer."

When factional struggles reach a stalemate and endanger the interests of the company, decisive decisions must be made based on transparent data and clear rules to ensure that the winners are fair and the losers are convinced.

More importantly, he himself must be a staunch defender of the rules.

He will decisively take down any "mountain boss" who breaks the rules, harms Tengda's overall interests, and forms cliques, no matter how great his contributions or how strong his abilities are, without showing any mercy.

A few years ago, despite widespread opposition, the then CFO was removed from the company as a warning to others. At Tengda Group, no one can be above the overall interests of the company.

Song Ci couldn't help but recall that lightning-fast action, his gaze still sharp, without a trace of hesitation or regret. Maintaining the health of an organization sometimes requires surgical determination.

On the other side, after leaving the chairman's office, Lin Haifeng took the elevator down to the 17th floor of the building, the Yifutong office area.

As I walked through the open office area, my eyes inadvertently swept to the director's office on one side.

He saw his capable subordinate Ling Tianyu sitting alone in front of the computer, brows furrowed, as if he was trying to solve some technical problem.

Lin Haifeng paused slightly, then raised his hand and knocked on the open glass door.

"Boss Lin?" Ling Tianyu looked up and saw that it was the CEO. He immediately stood up, a look of surprise and respect flashing across his face. "I'm off today, so why are you here?"

"The boss has something to do and needs to come over for a meeting." Lin Haifeng said calmly, sitting down naturally on the sofa in the meeting room. "Are you on duty today?"

"Yes, I'm on duty this week." Ling Tianyu skillfully brewed a cup of Longjing tea, the president's favorite, and gently placed it on the coffee table.

The tea fragrance rises and the leaves slowly unfold in the water.

Lin Haifeng's eyes wandered briefly, as if he could see the years since he joined Tengda through the cup of tea.

From the doubts when it was first parachuted in, to gaining a firm foothold step by step and making Yifutong bigger and stronger, the past is like smoke, but it is still vivid in my mind.

After a moment, he came back to his senses and his gaze fell on Ling Tianyu again. His tone was unusually gentle: "Tianyu, how many years have you been in the company?"

Ling Tianyu sat upright, sensing that the CEO seemed to have something to say, and replied cautiously, "I joined the company in the summer of 2008, so it's been four and a half years now."

"Four and a half years..." Lin Haifeng nodded, a hint of nostalgia in his words. "Come to think of it, you were the first employee I personally interviewed and recruited after I started working at Tengda."

Ling Tianyu's heart warmed, and he said sincerely: "Thank you, Mr. Lin, for your cultivation and care over the years!"

This was a sincere statement. Relying on this "direct lineage" relationship, coupled with his own ability and hard work, he received numerous exceptional promotions over the past four and a half years.

Now he is the director of the core business department, at level 11 in the management sequence, with an annual salary plus options of nearly one million, making him a leader among his peers.

Lin Haifeng suppressed his emotion and said solemnly, "I came here today to give you a heads-up. My job might be relocated in about six months."

"Transfer?" Ling Tianyu's heart trembled. Lin Haifeng was his supporter and benefactor. If this big tree left, his situation would become delicate.

Without waiting for his subordinates to ask further questions, Lin Haifeng said calmly: "For me personally, it is a new challenge, and it is also a good thing."

Ling Tianyu reacted quickly, suppressed his uneasiness, and put on a congratulatory smile: "Then congratulations to Mr. Lin on his promotion!"

Lin Haifeng did not specify his specific destination, but he changed the subject, staring sharply at his beloved general, and said in a low and solemn voice: "Half a year! I'll give you half a year.

In the next six months, you must make every effort to make the payment business more outstanding, especially the B-side merchant expansion and risk control data, and make breakthrough progress.

Your performance is your strongest passport. Only then, when I leave, will I have sufficient reason to fully recommend you to the big boss and the group's senior management for a higher level of promotion."

Ling Tianyu was surprised and delighted. He hadn't expected the CEO to even offer him a hand before leaving. This was a rare opportunity in life!

He immediately straightened his back and said in a resounding voice, "Boss Lin, don't worry! I will do my best and will never waste this opportunity! I will always remember your kindness in my heart!"

Lin Haifeng nodded with satisfaction and patted Ling Tianyu's shoulder meaningfully. He had another plan in mind: although MyBank operated independently, it still needed the support of the Tengda system.

Placing a capable and grateful "individual" within a core business line is crucial for future resource integration, information sharing, and consolidating influence. This is a far-reaching move.

After seeing the CEO off and closing the door, Ling Tianyu leaned against the cold glass, his heart still pounding. Outside the window was a dazzling cityscape, and his heart was pounding. The next six months would be the most crucial battle of his career.

(End of this chapter)