Reinventing the Millennium

The flight from Shanghai to Tokyo only takes three hours. Fang Zhuo and his party arrived at Haneda International Airport at two o'clock in the afternoon.

When the flight landed, although I needed to see the development of panel screens with Xu Keden and see what problems there were in Sony's system, I had to complete an important milestone in the ice core and meet my traveling family, Fang Zhuo. My mood suddenly relaxed.

It’s so pleasant to look at the screen, come up with ideas, and visit attractions.

At 3:30 in the afternoon, Fang Zhuo checked into the hotel and met his parents, uncle, aunt, and sister. They had just arrived in Tokyo yesterday and just had a night's rest. They were in the mood to see the island city today.

Fang Zhuo had only been on a three-hour flight and was always full of energy. He took off a Panda Di and put on a new Panda Di, and then happily walked around Tokyo with his family.

"Brother, why are all your watches the same?" My sister Zhao Suqi was particularly surprised when she saw this scene.

"Perhaps everyone has the same idea, but although there are many watches, I can't give it to you. Let's buy a different style each when we go shopping today." Fang Zhuo rarely spends money like this.

His previous personal consumption was just sports cars and sports teams.

"Then..." Zhao Suqi rolled his eyes, "Then Sister Yu also said that she would look back at you to put on your watch."

"It's a matter, but I've probably thought about it." Fang Zhuo shook his head slightly and stopped discussing it, "Let's go, let's go shopping for watches and bags today. I have a meeting in the evening, and I have to have breakfast for dinner."

While Fang Zhuo and his family were browsing the cityscape of Tokyo, Stringer, who had arrived in Tokyo for two days, met with some executives of Sony Group one after another at the hotel and was about to hold another discussion meeting at 8 p.m.

Although there was some tacit consensus reached with the leader Nobuyuki Dei, the huge group empire is not so easy to control, especially when it comes to who to partner with will determine the future power structure.

Stringer wanted to hear from the think tank and his own people inside Sony.

On this trip to Tokyo, he did not come alone. It can be said that he invited friends to form a think tank. These people are also the candidates for Sony Group's future external directors.

Sony needs Western-style scientific board reform, which is a consensus reached with some current directors.

Eight o'clock in the evening, hotel conference room.

The main seat of the oval conference table is Stringer, with the think tank on his right and five executives from different departments of the Sony Group on the left.

The meeting time is set at eight o'clock sharp. At this moment, everyone on the left side is here. The seat next to Stringer on the right side is still empty. The other four international senior management think tanks are also sitting down.

Yoshio Yoshino, vice president of Sony Electronics, looked at the seat that had been empty for two days and became even more curious, but he still endured it.

Unlike the restraints of local executives, the Western executives who were invited were asked.

"Stringer, why don't you start?" Peter, the CEO of British Telecom, said with a smile, "Is this one coming or not? He's late today."

He sat next to the empty seat and was curious about who was in front of him.

Stringer checked the time and picked up the phone to make a call to ask about the situation.

Before he could dial the number, the door of the conference room was knocked first, then pushed open, and the last person arrived.

The person who came was a young man with an oriental face.

The think tank on the right was quite surprised, and the group executives on the left were very stunned. This reserved position was actually given to him?

Chairman Yike, who once appeared in the Japanese media and was called "Sony's enemy", is actually Mr. Stringer's guest?

this……

Yoshino Yoshio looked at Fang Zhuo who was getting closer and closer, and his heart was filled with emotions. He never expected to see this person here.

"Fang, let me introduce you." Stringer stood up to welcome the invited assistant and introduced with a smile, "This is Peter, CEO of British Telecom, this is Roland, CEO of Tremondo, and this is Xie Zhengyan, CEO of McKinsey The senior partner, this is Kawako Uchinaga, she is a famous entrepreneur in Japan."

Stringer was introduced in order of seating.

Peter, CEO of British Telecom.

Roland, CEO of Tremondo.

Xie Zhengyan, Chinese-American, senior partner at McKinsey.

Kawako Uchinaga, a famous Japanese female entrepreneur.

Finally, Stringer introduced the four children who had just arrived in Tokyo today.

Fang Zhuo, Chairman of Yike and the 158th Forbes richest person in the world just released this year.

The reason why the first person on the right is left is not only because of the young president's familiarity with Sony, but also because of his respect for his wealth - the richest person in this conference room.

Of course, wealth is not the only criterion. Once Stringer takes over as the head of Sony, the resources he can mobilize are not limited to personal wealth, but especially wealth that can be ranked globally will still have considerable influence. .

Fang Zhuo shook hands cheerfully and exchanged business cards, knowing that these four people were invited by Lao Si to make suggestions just like him. At the same time, there might also be some implicit competitive relationship.

As for competition...

If Sony's board of directors is to be moved, someone must be able to take over. Which one or two people it is will probably depend on their performance this time. There are only so many seats on the group's board of directors, and they cannot all be replaced by Stringer's people at once.

After Fang Zhuo finished his greetings and sat down, he saw Stringer waving to the five people on the opposite side.

The five Japanese people stood up one after another and introduced themselves. It sounded like they were senior executives of different subsidiaries and businesses.

Needless to say, the treatment between the two sides is different. Sony's internal executives are Stringer's subordinates, and there is no intermediate introduction. Instead, it is more like a low-level debriefing.

Fang Zhuo turned his thoughts around and happily listened to the names of the five executives, memorizing them in his mind.

Including Stringer, there were a total of 11 people in the entire conference room, and the matters discussed were quite high-end.

Fang Zhuo sipped his coffee without saying a word. After listening to the reports of five Sony executives to Stringer for a while, he got a vague impression of the group's affairs. According to financial report estimates, the overall profit of Sony Group last year was 8 About US$100 million.

But this profit includes input from Sony Financial, life insurance, and entertainment businesses. Sales of flat-panel TVs, digital cameras, LCD rear-projection TVs, Walkman products, CRT TVs and other products have all declined sharply.

However, compared with the previous year, this modest profit figure increased by 85%.

Stringer asked about the performance of several indicators in detail, and after pondering for a while, the topic turned to the sensitive group power.

"Mr. Nobuyuki Idei wants to see me on the 28th. If nothing else happens, the shareholders' meeting at the beginning of the month will determine the positions of the new chairman, president, CEO, etc. Now it is very likely that Ryoharu Nakahachi will succeed the president, but it is also possible that There may be an accident, and Idei-san will probably ask for my opinion.”

“Do you think this shareholders’ meeting should propose more radical reforms?”

The five Sony executives all lowered their gazes and remained silent.

The five members of the think tank were also thinking deeply.

BT CEO Peter confirmed something first: "Is Mr. Idei confirmed that he will nominate you?"

This is a relatively basic premise.

However, Stringer hesitated and did not answer immediately. The previous repeated resignations were not direct communication between him and Nobuyuki Idei, but were expressed euphemistically through Sony Group's current external directors.

Logically speaking, there should be no problem, but after arriving in Japan, I never saw Nobuyuki Dei in person.

In addition, Ken Kutaragi, another person who is said to be a strong contender for the position of group president, publicly opposes having a foreign chairman take charge of Sony. For a while, it really can’t be said that there is no problem.

Ken Kutaragi is known as the "Father of PS" and is an important person in charge of one of Sony's brightest businesses today.

If Sony Group no longer chooses a foreign chairman, Kutaragi Ken may even hope to succeed Nobuyuki Idei.

You know, choosing a foreigner's news is called "unprecedented", and "not unprecedented" is the approach that is in line with more people's perceptions.

Stringer did not meet Nobuyuki Idei, and without going through the procedures of the shareholders' meeting, there is really no way to say that he is sure to succeed the leader.

"Only Stringer can save Sony. The current Sony Group, Mr. Idei, Nakahachi Ryoji, and Kutaragi Ken can't do it." Fang Zhuo said calmly, "Sony's TVs and DVDs are being taken away by Panasonic and Samsung. Market share, music players have also lost their magic due to competition from Apple and Yike, and the most important thing is..."

"This is a challenge to Sony's leadership position in the consumer electronics market. Different product lines are encountering competitive crises around the world. Sony's image in the past two years has deteriorated in the minds of consumers."

"Sony now needs a leader who has a global perspective and is familiar with Sony's affairs."

"The U.S. market is one of Sony's most important markets, or one of the most important markets. Stringer has the experience to manage such a market, which neither Nakahachi Ryoji nor Kutaragi Ken has. At the same time, he also has a global perspective. , which is also rare.”

Fang Zhuo glanced at the five Japanese people opposite him and said affirmatively: "It's okay that Mr. Idei didn't bring up Stringer's name. Once it was brought up, once considered, everyone would abandon the 'foreign' factor and focus more on how to make Sony It is better to consider the development of this global enterprise."

"Idei had previously raised the possibility of Stringer taking over for whatever reason. Once it was raised, it was out of his hands."

The analysis is well-founded and convincing.

Stringer was reserved and did not nod. The other four international executives felt that it was reasonable and natural. Sony's Japanese operations were outdated, and of course they had to rely on Western experience.

Fang Zhuo took a sip of coffee and muttered: "As for Zhongbo Ryoji..."

He didn't say anything further, thinking about this person's information, but at this moment, the Japanese executive Yoshino Yoshio opposite him raised his head and lowered his eyes again.

Fang Zhuo didn't know whether the atmosphere in Japanese companies was strict, but the other four Japanese executives bowed their heads slightly. Why did Vice President Yoshino have a slight reaction? thirsty? Want to see the new watch on your wrist?

He raised his hand and took another sip of coffee, swallowing the words that came to his lips.

"This Nakahata Ryoji is a local elite at Sony. He was initially proposed to have a 'representative director', right? Now it has been agreed to remove it." Roland, Tremondo's CEO, mentioned the changes in negotiations before and after Nakahata Ryoji, " If he takes over the position of president, he will definitely get the support of more local elites, and I think this support will probably not change depending on whether he is a 'representative director' or not."

What he means is that regardless of whether Nakabachi Ryoji is elected as a "representative director" on this board of directors, it is likely that Stringer's power will be taken away on behalf of Sony Group's local interests.

Xie Zhengyan, a senior partner at McKinsey, agreed with this expression: "Perhaps, we should express our opinions to Mr. Idei more often. First, we must ensure that this 'representative director' status must be suspended. Secondly, since Kutaragi Ken strongly objects, Nakahachi Yoshiharu is quite popular." Support, just don’t use these two people and replace them with others.”

He smiled and said: "Sony can't have only two such high-level executives, right? We can change a president who is not too threatening. Otherwise, there will be great resistance to the reform of Sony's board of directors and complicated business."

Once Stringer takes over, he will reform not only the board of directors, but also all aspects of Sony Group.

"Reform is never easy." Stringer expressed a clear understanding. "I think that for Sony's current bad situation, it is necessary to use the future to lure and encourage them to make changes."

"I need a president who will move with me."

"I met Ryoharu Nakahachi yesterday. He gave me the impression that he is very cautious and cautious. It is a very typical Japanese management style."

"Is this what I need?"

Stringer used rhetorical questions to express his thoughts, does Japanese management style match Western scientific management?

After saying this, he looked at Fang Zhuo, who had been silent for a while: "Fang, your judgment has always been accurate. The compromise of the 'representative director' really surprised me. What do you think now?"

The representative director is the junior chairman.

It was because of Stringer's words that everyone knew that the young CEO's opinions played a role in the compromise of Nakahata Ryoharu's "representative director".

Everyone in the conference room looked at Fang Zhuo, and the five Japanese executives also glanced at "Sony's enemy".

Fang Zhuo smiled and said: "Now I don't think it's impossible for Nakaba Ryoharu to be elected as the 'representative director'."

Stringer was stunned, and the four international executives also frowned. Compromise at this level takes a lot of effort, so why should it be returned all at once at this juncture?

Fang Zhuo raised the coffee cup with his right hand, turned his head slightly, and winked at Stringer who was looking at him.

"A foreign chairman needs the support of Sony's local elites, Ryoji Nakahachi." He thought about this glorious resume and commented, "Not bad."

Xie Zhengyan retorted loudly, disagreeing with Mr. Fang's completely different statement.

While listening, Fang Zhuo took out his cell phone and sent a text message to Stringer next to him - "I said this today, maybe Nakahachi Ryoji will contact me and you tomorrow."

Stringer saw Mr. Fang pressing the phone and felt the vibration in his pocket. He remained calm and did not take out his phone immediately. He continued to listen to the opinions of the McKinsey senior partner for a while.

After a while, when Roland analyzed the job authority of Sony Group, he took out his mobile phone, took a quick look and put it on the table, his expression unchanged.

Stringer got it.

This is a test.

This is why Mr. Fang suspected that among the five Sony executives, there was Ryouji Nakahata.

The "representative director" should have already compromised with Nakahata Ryoji. If he suddenly offers benefits again tomorrow or in the next two days in exchange for this shelved condition, the news of today's meeting will definitely be leaked.

"I will consider the representative director of Nakabo Ryōji." Stringer said calmly, "Maybe he can agree to my reform plan and is someone I can cooperate with."

The four international executives frowned.

Fang Zhuo nodded slightly to express his attitude, raised his hand to drink the slightly cold coffee.