If only our companies had more leaders like this!

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Over the past two years, in Lanzhou City in western China, there has been a person whose name is almost well-known and familiar to everyone. When problems arise or difficulties occur in this city, many people think of such a person: Yu Baocai, the general manager of Lanzhou Petrochemical. Taxi drivers know Yu Baocai, the elderly people who exercise in the streets know Yu Baocai, and even the children in the poorest areas of Gansu know Yu Baocai. Not to mention the 150,000 employees and their families at Lanzhou Petrochemical, as he is the amiable and respected \"President Yu\" in their eyes. 　　Yu Baocai worked at Daqing Petrochemical for 16 years, starting as a technician in a workshop and rising to become the general manager of Daqing Petrochemical Company. He devoted all his effort and sweat to the reform of Daqing Petrochemical Company, achieving fruitful results as a result. Yu Baocai himself thus became a hero in the eyes of the workers in Daqing. On September 26, 2003, Yu Baocai was ordered to be transferred to Lanzhou Petrochemical Company as its general manager. When he left Daqing Petrochemical, thousands of its employees bid him farewell in tears. Employees expressed their deep reluctance to part with President Yu online, with over 50,000 characters of comments totaling 60 pages. People say that such a scene has not been seen for many years. 　　The predecessor of Lanzhou Petrochemical Company was Lanzhou Chemical Industry Company and Lanzhou Refining and Chemical Engineering Plant – both of which were part of the 156 key infrastructure projects during the First Five-Year Plan period. With a history of over 40 years, they are regarded as the \"cradle\" of China’s petrochemical industry, often referred to as the \"eldest son of the Republic,\" and have made significant contributions to the country’s economic development. Under the conditions of reform and opening up as well as a market economy, Lanzhou Petrochemical faced many new problems; the company suffered losses year after year, and there was no sign of improvement in its operations. At the same time, due to the cultural integration issues arising from corporate restructuring, historical debts and burdens, as well as the livelihoods and interests of 150,000 workers and their families in the industrial zone, all these issues need to be addressed urgently. After arriving at Lanzhou Petrochemical, Yu Baocai started by addressing the most fundamental issue, namely the issue of \"people\". By guiding and educating staff and employees with advanced ideas and corporate culture, **it has stimulated their enthusiasm and creativity, injected new vitality and energy into the enterprise, and led to a continuous improvement in the quality of its staff. The company quickly turned losses into profits and has completed as well as is currently working on a series of promising and important projects, helping it move toward its goal of becoming \"the best company within CNPC, the best company in China, and a company with international competitiveness.\" As the leader of a large state-owned enterprise, Yu Baocai not only contributed to the regional economic development but also carried out numerous valuable efforts to benefit the local people; his story is widely told among them. 　　The following is the transcript of the interview with Yu Baocai at Lanzhou Petrochemical Company, conducted on January 8, 2006, by the school’s Career Guidance Center, the Party Committee’s Publicity Department, and the Alumni Association. From this, we can see the mental journey of an extraordinary Tsinghua University student as he grew up. Living in a remote area, he possessed a grand vision for the entire **; his deep affection for the people, his excellent character, his extraordinary insight, and his superior wisdom all reflected the qualities of a thinker. Rather than being an outstanding entrepreneur, he is more of a thinker, a person who constantly pursues the ideals and the true meaning of life. 　　The most important work carried out at Lanzhou Petrochemical Reporter: President Yu, could you please tell us about the main tasks you have undertaken at Lanzhou Petrochemical over the past two years? 　　Yu Baocai: The development of a company relies on its employees. From Daqing to Lanzhou, what struck me the most was the mindset of people in the western region. People from the northwest are as honest and simple as those from the northeast, but their desire and drive for development are not as strong as those of the people from the northeast. We proposed a concept: “Develop people’s needs, meet people’s needs, and change people’s needs.” In essence, it is about guiding and encouraging employees to pursue greater value and greater benefits. Once they have goals and desires to pursue, we create the conditions to meet those needs; by continuously satisfying his requirements, he will strive for higher goals. In this way, our employees’ enthusiasm is gradually stimulated. We also encourage and assist employees in realizing their own value and interests. On this basis, we developed the core corporate value: the \"value of benefiting others while benefiting oneself.\" In other words, we are valuable to businesses and society, and society and businesses will give us opportunities to serve society and businesses. We may also receive fair and reasonable benefits while providing the service. Over the past two years, employees’ mindset has undergone profound changes: shifting from a vague understanding of values and interests to a correct comprehension of them ； From having no ability to pursue values and interests to having the ability to pursue higher values and interests ； Shifting from pursuing individual values and interests to pursuing common values and interests ； Shifting from the pursuit of material benefits to the pursuit of spiritual benefits. This is the most important work I have done at Lanzhou Petrochemical along with my colleagues. The company helped me grow. Reporter: As far as we know, you achieved your first great success in Daqing Petrochemical. So, what is Lanzhou Petrochemical’s place in your mind, and what significance does it hold in your life? 　　Yu Baocai: I have worked at Daqing Petrochemical for 16 years; it is Daqing Petrochemical and the people of Daqing who have trained me. The moment I left Daqing, I realized a truth. I am valuable because of everyone’s needs; I have **because of others’ hopes; and I find my own happiness because of others’ happiness and joy. I came to work at Lanzhou Petrochemical with such values, and I aim to return the kindness shown to me by the employees of Daqing Petrochemical to those at Lanzhou Petrochemical as well. Lanzhou Petrochemical’s operating conditions are indeed somewhat worse than those of Daqing Petrochemical, and it faces many difficulties and contradictions as well. But these past two years have been the two years of fastest progress in my nearly twenty years of work. Because Daqing Petrochemical has provided me with the fundamental ideas and moral principles, as well as work style, experience, knowledge, and skills. Going to a new company is a challenge for me, as well as an opportunity to surpass myself. Choosing difficulty and risk means choosing opportunity. 　　By choosing businesses and employees, one can gain infinite wisdom and tremendous strength. Journalist: You are a person of great insight and wisdom; where does this wisdom come from? 　　Yu Baocai: Great wisdom comes from great employees ； Great causes stem from great actions ； Great achievements stem from great creativity. In fact, each of us, by participating in the creative activities of our colleagues and by experiencing the **spirit of creativity and vitality that exists among us all, can continuously improve our thinking, develop our character, and gain infinite wisdom and strength. For example, we are building a large ethylene plant, with about 200 people working on it. 80% of them had never worked on a project of this scale before; having to complete an investment of 7 billion within a relatively short period as required by the company placed a great deal of pressure on them. They will have to face many difficulties and risks, make many mistakes, and experience many failures. Through my interactions with them, I felt their tenacious will and their determination to complete the project to first-class standards. Through them, I came to understand even more deeply a truth: by choosing our motherland and our people, by choosing our enterprise and our employees, we choose a noble cause, a life without regrets, and a bright future. Only then can there be a tenacious will, as well as infinite wisdom and strength. 　　Inspired by their creativity and spirit, I wrote a message for them. The employees posted it in the office building. They say that by reading it once before going to work each day, they feel as if they have endless energy for the whole day. I remember writing something like this at the time: We, who were once ordinary, are now achieving extraordinary results; and it is these extraordinary results that are shaping our extraordinary lives. 　　Ideals foster firm beliefs, goals inspire a strong fighting spirit, and entrepreneurship fills us with enthusiasm. By choosing the motherland and its people, and by choosing the enterprise and its employees, one chooses a noble cause, a life without regrets, and a bright future; one then possesses a tenacious will, infinite wisdom, and great strength. 　　We confront risks, difficulties, obstacles, and pressures with a mindset of strength, viewing them as the greatest opportunities and the best rewards. We are not afraid of failure, and we accept it. If we fall, we shouldn’t lose heart; we get back up and keep moving forward with determination. Every setback we face, every obstacle we encounter, and every crisis we go through makes us stronger, more mature, more confident, more thoughtful, wiser, and more magnanimous, as well as giving us the ability to achieve greater things. (Written to the builders of Lanzhou Petrochemical Company’s 600,000 tons/year ethylene expansion project) Choice determines destiny; quality determines success or failure. Reporter: From the perspective of choosing a career, what do you think is the most important thing, or what should a college graduate consider above all else? 　　Yu Baocai: From my personal experience, I feel that from the moment a person leaves school, they should have a clear goal in mind. What kind of path shall I take in this life? What industries are suitable for my development? Another issue is that of values; even if you choose the right path and have clear goals, without proper values, it will be difficult for you to do things well along that path in the future. In other words, it’s difficult to navigate the path ahead well. I have come to realize that choices determine success or failure, while qualities determine one’s destiny. 　　In fact, the reason why a person can make the right choices often lies in whether the ideals and goals in their heart are correct, or in other words, whether they are in line with the direction of **social development. Human qualities are multifaceted, including intellectual and physical aspects, but what is more important are the mental qualities. To some extent, a person’s moral and ethical qualities have a greater impact on the way they act. A person with good morals, who knows how to respect others and is willing to work with them, will find things to go more smoothly. Being able to work well with others is often a fundamental requirement for being able to get things done. 　　These days, many students in society place a high value on income when choosing a career, preferring to work in industries, companies, or regions with higher earnings. However, how much you can achieve in ten or twenty years has little to do with your current income. My experience is that material things are easy to satisfy; as long as I keep working hard, study diligently, and know how to respect others, our income will naturally increase as our performance improves. The spiritual aspects often become apparent five, ten years after we graduate, or even longer. If the choices made back then were somewhat flawed, it becomes more difficult to meet spiritual needs, and to some extent, it may even be impossible to do so. http://b44.photo.store.qq.com/http_imgload.cgi?/rurl4_b=94ead255264b79106b92c712f1a1bc6340677985d869da12d4216922181bb4ab74b8fc12793a51c5f58fcc03ebeecde8e12675c9c6d73c54b6783ecee585f1a8c39c83167d1b92f0505ec3428f9df43a7bab83c9&a=37&b=44 Postscript: Yu Baocai has left Lanzhou Petrochemical, and his successor has essentially overturned his management approach. Here, we will not discuss which management method is better or more suitable for Lanzhou Petrochemical’s employees. However, there is one question that has been bothering me: why do successive leaders always try to overturn or even reject the methods of their predecessors? Why can’t we carry forward and improve upon a good set of management practices? Over and over again, it’s overturned and rebuilt – it’s such a waste.