Zhang Lizhou, CEO of Xinyuan Group. (Photo provided to Chinanews.com)
(ECNS) - The Chinese real estate industry has entered a new development cycle. Designations like “Silver Age” and “Second Half” reflect the cyclical downward fluctuations of the industry, but have failed to pull back the veil from future prospects. Where will property enterprises go? It is better to fight than to wait for death unmoving.
Facing the new market environment, Executive Director and CEO of Xinyuan Group Zhang Lizhou says, “The development of China’s real estate industry is facing a different era. Increased quality, new growth points and business areas are more critical. Besides, industrial and enterprise transformation must commence in the right direction.”
In 2018, Xinyuan Group, after more than ten years of development, put forward the “one core business and five auxiliaries” strategy, adopting real estate development as its core business. Construction financing, urban operation, intelligent technology, business management, and property management would be its five auxiliaries.
Zhang put forward the idea, different from the simple pursuit of scale maximization, of “doing the maximum” business via each auxiliary. In his view, the large-scale development of property enterprises cannot be achieved by every company. How to develop in a sustainable and healthy way has become a problem that enterprises must consider.
Xinyuan Group has constantly explored the large-scale development of “auxiliary businesses.” The emergence and promotion of auxiliary businesses, however, are not based on hypothetical assumptions, with every strategy closely related to market demand. Taking Xinyuan Property as an example, its role has undergone a radical change, as the “one core and five auxiliaries” strategy has expanded. The proportion of Xinyuan Property’s internal and external business has changed to 50% internal services and 50% external expansion.
During the transformation of Xinyuan Group, the real estate industry of China has undergone an unprecedentedly expansion. From 100 billion to 300 billion clubs and then 500 billion, large-scale property enterprises have broken through the original ceiling and ascended to the clouds. However, Xinyuan Group does not blindly pursue scale, but chooses to focus on rapid transformation.
“Rapid transformation is the clear goal of Xinyuan Group. We do not follow suit, but we must make rapid transformations. In this we will not lag,” Zhang said.
How to ensure the successful implementation of self-transformation? Zhang seems to have a well-thought-out plan: “Simply speaking, we must resolutely carry out our ‘seven weapons of executive strength’: make up our minds, keep our goals in sight, be practical and realistic, advance systematically, set an example, be concise and efficient, and ensure realization, to achieve our systematical goals as soon as possible.”
However, “Only changing how we do things is far from enough; more important is that we learn how to behave.” Zhang believes enterprises should establish a workplace atmosphere with positive energy, to ensure that every employee can function optimally. Therefore, he also put forward the “five elements of professionalism” as a spiritual guideline for regulating employees’ professional ethics and cultivating good moral habits.
“Human effort can achieve anything, and the right-minded person does things in the right way,” Zhang added.
