If Silin Group is to revitalize itself, two issues must be addressed: the general direction of its future development and the problem of corruption among its internal staff.
The overall direction of Silin Group's development cannot be decided in a short period of time. Real estate companies have a period of high returns, during which everything they do is right. However, now that they are facing difficulties, any mistake could plunge the company into an abyss.
Therefore, after much deliberation, Chen Zhe decided to address the internal issues first.
He accepted Chen Si's appointment and came to Silin Group without any foundation. With Chen Si gone, he had no backing here, and it could be said that no one listened to him. Although he held the position of president, none of his orders could be carried out.
Those below him will find all sorts of reasons and excuses to deal with him. If you want to reform the company, you must place people you can trust in some important positions.
It's difficult to fire just anyone. Those people have banded together, and if you dare to fire even one of them, the management will go on strike.
Luo Guifang also deeply understands this point, as she is currently fighting against those people within the company.
Chen Zhe knew one person who could handle internal issues very well: Hu Ling. Although he and Hu Ling had different views on some things, he had to admit that Hu Ling was much more effective than him in managing people.
So he humbly sought advice from Hu Ling.
“Solving internal problems is not difficult. You just need to divide them and then defeat them one by one. They may look like a group, but in reality, they also have internal struggles. You just need to understand this, seize the opportunity, let them fight amongst themselves first, and then you appear, support the other side to take the lead, and when the time is right, you just find someone to replace them.”
Chen Zhe understood immediately. Xie Laodao had given him a book before, which contained similar information to what Hu Ling had said, but the book focused on theory while Hu Ling's explanation was more practical.
He went to the Silin Group and called in each of the management members for a talk.
He first looked for those in lower-level positions, such as supervisors and managers.
He deliberately controlled the duration of his conversations, but he clearly extended the time much more when talking to his deputies.
"Deputy Manager Liu, I've looked at your resume, it's outstanding! You graduated from Tsinghua or Peking University, right?"
The chubby Liu Zhipeng nodded, pushed up his glasses, and puffed out his chest slightly; "That's right, Mr. Chen, I still have a master's degree."
"Wow! That's great, but... how come you've been here for 5 years, and apart from the first and second years when you got a promotion and a raise, you haven't moved since?"
This sentence seemed to have turned on some kind of switch.
Liu Zhipeng sighed, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.
Chen Zhe smiled and said, "Today is just a simple conversation. There's no one else here, so you can speak freely."
"Mr. Chen, I know this might not be a good way to put it. Please don't blame me if I said anything wrong."
"you say."
"Is it...is it because of the chairman? Oh, the former chairman."
"Sister Chen?"
"Yes, the former chairman was used to employing people she trusted. Many people in the company were related to her, so I definitely wouldn't get a promotion."
Chen Zhe nodded slightly.
She twirled the pen in her hand; "So you think you're not getting promoted because Sister Chen is targeting you?"
"This... I dare not say. I only said that I have no connection, and perhaps I didn't do enough..."
Chen Zhe knew that was what he meant, but he just didn't dare to say anything bad about Chen Si to his face.
"Hehe, Deputy Manager Liu, don't be nervous. As I said, we're just having a casual chat today. I've also seen Manager You's resume. Compared to you, he is indeed not as outstanding. You think it's because Sister Chen is biased, and I won't argue with that. Maybe there's some truth to that. But the most important thing is that you still need to work hard. Sister Chen is gone, and all those relationships you mentioned no longer exist. This is a new era. Only those with strong abilities can rise to the top. Do you understand what I mean?"
Liu Zhipeng's eyes lit up. If he couldn't understand this sentence, then he would have wasted the past few years.
"Mr. Chen, don't worry, I will do my best."
Chen Zhe nodded and didn't say anything more. Some things are better left unsaid; making too many promises would seem fake.
After seeing off Deputy Manager Liu, they departed.
We've basically finished talking to the middle and lower management levels. Next up are the middle and upper management levels, and these are the key personnel.
Basically, all the corruption issues mentioned below were backed by them.
These people are not as easily fooled as the middle and lower management; they are all like cunning foxes from the mountains.
Chen Zhe waited in the office for a long time, almost an hour after the scheduled time, before a fat middle-aged man slowly knocked on the door and came in with a water glass and some documents. He put the water glass on the table and casually sat down opposite Chen Zhe.
He showed no remorse for being late; on the contrary, he was somewhat displeased that Chen Zhe suddenly wanted to talk to someone.
"Mr. Chen, you can just discuss any issues at the conference. It's really difficult to schedule a time to talk to us here. Just now, I was discussing cooperation with the material supplier. It's a bit of a waste of my time to call me here with this phone call. But since you're already back, please sign these documents."
Chen Zhe did not show any annoyance at the other party's lack of manners. Instead, he proactively poured the other party a cup of tea.
"Minister Zheng, the issue with the material suppliers can be handled by my subordinates. Is there anything I can do to trouble you?"
Zheng Dagang picked up his teacup without any politeness, took a sip, and said casually, "President Chen, you haven't been with our company for long, and there are many things you don't understand. Right now, these material suppliers are desperately raising prices. The development of Lijing Park has given those bastards an opportunity, and they've all driven up their prices. Business is already tough right now, and sending your people to communicate is completely useless."
"Oh, I see. So, did Minister Zheng's talks about cooperation have any effect?"
"Although the price wasn't drastically reduced, they still promised to give us a discount out of consideration for me."
Chen Zhe took the documents he brought and looked at them.
"Minister Zheng, this price is still high. Compared to before, it's much higher."
Upon hearing Chen Zhe say that the price was still high, Zheng Dagang exclaimed, "This is high? This is not high at all! They charge other competitors much more than we do. Look at this chart, the market price is right here. I'm not lying to you."
Chen Zhe glanced at the other piece of paper he was handed over and shook his head. "Minister Zheng, are you lying to me? We can discuss that later. But as far as I know, the price you're offering isn't very useful to us. I have connections to find cheaper options."
Upon hearing Chen Zhe's words, Zheng Dagang's expression changed.
His voice rose; “President Chen, what do you mean by that? Are you saying I’m incompetent? To tell you the truth, I’ve been here since this company was founded, working my way up from the bottom to where I am now for over a decade. I’m known for being reliable. I know which companies in Donghai have the best channels, and I don’t know where the cheapest materials are. My price is already very low.”
"Minister Zheng, please don't get agitated. Let's discuss this matter objectively. Your prices are indeed high, and I cannot sign these contracts."
"Can't sign? I've already reached an agreement with them, how can I not sign? How am I supposed to explain this to them? Mr. Chen, you have to sign this today, or I'm not leaving."
Seeing that the other party was resorting to shamelessness, Chen Zhe wanted to laugh. He had already called Gu Jingyan to ask about the price of these materials, and the price was very different from the price Zheng Dagang had quoted. This old man was obviously trying to make a quick buck. Did he think his money was so easy to take?
"Minister Zheng, I hope you can be reasonable. I don't want things to get ugly."
"Ugly? What? You want to have me kicked out?"
Zheng Dagang looked at the young Chen Zhe with a sense of disdain.
"Minister Zheng, I respect you as a veteran of the company, so I try to be polite to you. But I hope you won't take advantage of my kindness. I have already made the issue very clear: I cannot sign this document."
"You still remember I'm a company veteran? Even when Chairman Chen was around, he never spoke to me like this. Who do you think you are? You think I'm taking advantage of you? Fine, then I'll take advantage of you today. What are you going to do about it?"
Zheng Dagang became arrogant. He used to be a construction foreman and later joined the Silin Group, so he always had a bit of a江湖 (jianghu, a term referring to the world of martial arts and chivalry) air about him.
Faced with his threats, Chen Zhe simply made a phone call, and Mo Xiaohao, who was standing outside the door, opened the door and came in, knocking Zheng Dagang to the ground without saying a word.
Because the door wasn't closed properly when he came in, many people in the company gathered around. Zheng Dagang was pinned to the ground by Mo Xiaohao and was furious.
"Damn it! Chen Zhe, you better tell him to let go of me right now, or I'll never forgive you!"
Chen Zhe got up from his office chair, walked over to him, and then squatted down with a smile. "Zheng Dagang, I was going to give you some face, but you old bastard are too arrogant. You want me to sign that contract? If I sign it, I'll really be a fool. According to my estimate, if you sign this contract, you'll probably pocket 3 million. You old rascal, you're really greedy!"
Zheng Dagang's expression changed again.
"You fucking framed me! I've been working diligently and conscientiously..."
Chen Zhe took a stack of documents from the table and threw them directly in his face.
"Diligent and conscientious? You fucking look at this! This is evidence of your embezzlement over the past ten years. How much money have you stolen from the company? Do you think I don't know?"
Chen Zhe signaled Mo Xiaohao to release Zheng Dagang. Zheng Dagang picked up the documents on the ground and looked at them. His arrogance immediately turned into panic.
"This...how is this possible?"
Upon seeing this evidence, Zheng Dagang panicked. If he handed it over to the police, he would definitely go to jail.
"What do you mean it's impossible? I've kept a record of every single penny you've embezzled over the years. Show me which one of them is wrong."
"I...I...You're framing me! This is all fake!!!"
He sat on the ground, holding the documents, and shouted to the onlookers.
Chen Zhe pointed to someone in the crowd.
"Manager Li, come out here for a moment. Minister Zheng suspects that these things are fake. You need to confront him."
A middle-aged man wearing glasses and looking somewhat thin came out.
"Mr. Chen, I can prove that these materials are all genuine; I have records of them."
Zheng Dagang was furious when he saw this person come out.
"Li Da, you bastard, you betrayed me!!! Do you think you're clean?"
Li Da was startled by his threat and became a little scared, trying to shrink back. Chen Zhe quickly went over and pulled him away.
"Manager Li, don't be afraid. The company has already investigated and found that your problem is not serious. As long as you come forward, the company will not pursue the matter further."
Having received Chen Zhe's promise, Li Da took a deep breath; "That's right, Zheng Dagang did do these things. He has been using his position to engage in corruption. I can't stand by and watch anymore, so I'm going to stand up and point out his mistakes."
Upon hearing Li Da's words, everyone in the company looked at each other and began to whisper among themselves.
...
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