Chapter 18 Thursday, August 18th

Wu Bin and Cui Geng arrived at the Light and Shadow Studio and met Ruan Guangjian.

The interview with Ruan Guangjian had been scheduled previously during the interview with Teacher Qiao.

However, the work of summarizing and concluding after the interview was time-consuming, so the interview was delayed until today.

Wu Bin was well aware that Ruan Guangjian was also one of President Pei's friends and a long-term partner, so he must have a unique understanding of President Pei.

Ruan Guangjian fell into deep thought, "My first impression of President Pei..."

"Should be a rather special client."

"How should I put it?"

"The general clients I've encountered before, or seen online, all have some problems, more or less, such as..."

"Unclear requirements, opening their mouths to ask for 'a dazzling black,' or saying 'it doesn't feel right.' They have absolutely no concept of what they want in their minds, and they can't express it clearly at all, yet they demand that you create something they can't even imagine;"

"Modifying for the sake of modifying, as if they would be ashamed of the title 'client' if they didn't offer some opinions. They modify it again and again, and in the end, they still use the first version;"

"Completely disregarding the actual situation of the contractor, rushing the construction period as much as possible, pressing down on the final payment as much as possible, and often making very unreasonable demands."

"But President Pei, as a client, is completely different."

"He never puts forward specific requirements, and he doesn't interfere with your creation. However, he guides your creation in other ways, allowing the work and his original intention to merge at a deeper level."

"He fully trusts the contractors, gives them sufficient time and money, and never nitpicks or asks for rework. But in this way, the contractors, on the contrary, revise it responsibly because they get a lot of money, fearing that they might lose this big client if they are not careful."

"Moreover, in most cases, the contractor's first version of the project is the best, because the designers' inspiration is fully stimulated and their energy is at its peak when making this version. The later versions, on the contrary, will not be as good as the first version due to mental and physical fatigue and the client's crude interference in the design intention."

"So many times, the client will say: let's use the first version. This is often because the first version is indeed better."

"This should be the biggest difference between President Pei and other clients."

Wu Bin recorded quickly, nodding frequently.

"So, Director Ruan, what do you think is the reason for this difference?"

Ruan Guangjian thought carefully and replied, "I think the main reason lies in the concept."

"Why do clients make contractors revise repeatedly? I think the biggest problem is that there is a natural conflict of interest between the two parties, and the basis of mutual trust between them is seriously damaged. Therefore, most clients and contractors regard this cooperation as a zero-sum game."

"Some irresponsible contractors think that they can cheat if they can. They just make a garbage plan for the client. If the client doesn't make any comments, then the money will be earned smoothly, saving time and effort; if the client asks for revisions, then the contractor will revise it again, which is easier than doing it seriously from the beginning."

"This behavior destroys the client's trust in the contractor. Many clients will think that all contractors are irresponsible. Anyway, the first version you give me must be garbage, so I must make you revise it, revise it many times, and come up with many kinds of plans. Then, I will pick the most satisfactory one, so that my money is well spent."

"Moreover, the client is the party that gives the money, and is originally in a more dominant position. The personnel responsible for demand docking will continue to put forward more modification requirements in order to show their work results. If it passes once, it will appear that they have neglected their duties, so they must find fault."

"If there are several levels of personnel in the department responsible for docking, then each level wants to show a sense of existence, which is a disaster for one party."

"Therefore, in the final analysis, it is because the client and the contractor regard this cooperation as a zero-sum game: the client feels that they have lost if they use the contractor's first version; the contractor also feels that they have lost if they give the client the best plan in the first version."

"Both parties kept a hand, and finally entered a vicious circle. The more the client asks for repeated revisions, the less serious the contractor is about the first version; the less serious the contractor is about the first version, the more the client asks for repeated revisions."

"Over time, it has become the situation it is now."

"The reason why President Pei can become a special client is because he does not regard cooperation as a zero-sum game, but as a win-win situation, breaking the vicious cycle chain from the concept!"

"As a client, President Pei first gives enough sincerity: a quotation far higher than that of the same industry in the market, fully respects the contractor's professional quality, and strives to integrate his own ideas with the contractor's ideas, so that the contractor can give full play to their potential."

"As a result, the contractor produced works that far exceeded the general level, and with President Pei's ideas, the product became a big hit."

"Not only was President Pei's project a great success, but the contractor also gained a high degree of attention and recognition from more people because of the popularity of this project."

"As a result, a virtuous circle has been established. The client and the contractor trust each other and do their best to do every detail of each project well."

"The client can give a very high price without worrying about being cheated by the contractor; the contractor can fully stimulate their inspiration to design without worrying about being bossed around by the client, and without worrying about the work being repeatedly modified."

"Once this virtuous circle is established, it becomes unbreakable, and ultimately allows both the client and the contractor to benefit from it."

"This is the most outstanding thing about President Pei as a client. He not only gives the contractor generous economic benefits, but also gives the contractor full trust and care in life. I have a deep understanding of this."

Wu Bin nodded frequently, deeply inspired.

Indeed, everyone has seen President Pei's care for Director Ruan.

Whether it is establishing the "Tengda Standard" to increase the quotation for purchasing contractor products, helping the Light and Shadow Studio, which has just moved to Jingzhou, overcome difficulties, or building the Thrill Hotel to satisfy Director Ruan's preferences, all of them demonstrate President Pei's care for friends and partners.

Wu Bin suddenly had a flash of inspiration and thought of something: "In this case, President Pei seems to have the same relationship with his employees!"

"The bosses of other companies regard the relationship between themselves and their employees as a zero-sum game. They believe that squeezing the employees a little more can reduce some costs and make more money."

"And the employees therefore do not trust the boss, feeling that they are being squeezed, slacking off at work, thinking about how to change jobs."

"President Pei also broke the vicious circle chain and re-established mutual trust with his employees by 'taking the initiative to show sincerity'!"

"That's why this magical phenomenon has occurred: originally it was a company on the verge of bankruptcy, and the employees were also unwilling to work and were just muddling along, but after President Pei took over, he could bring it back to life and make every employee start working seriously and strive to create value for the company!"

"I originally thought that this was a more mysterious 'Tengda spirit' at work, but now it seems that President Pei's efforts to establish mutual trust with his employees is also a very important part!"

Ruan Guangjian nodded, "Yes, I also agree with this view."

"This also shows that President Pei has never regarded his employees as his personal property, or as livestock that can be driven at will, like other bosses."

"Logically speaking, the status of employees should be lower than that of contractors. Because contractors are often a company, with a stronger voice; while employees are just individuals, and it is more difficult to refuse when facing the boss's demands."

"As a result, a chain of oppression is often formed. The client oppresses the contractor, and the contractor oppresses their own employees. This chain is in a high-pressure state all year round, and it will collapse if you are not careful."

"Therefore, the bottom-level employees of many outsourcing companies will resign in large numbers every year because they can't bear the oppression, and these companies can only recruit inexperienced newcomers in order to fill the vacancies. Without talent accumulation, it is more difficult for the output to satisfy the client, so they will usher in greater oppression."

"But President Pei is completely different. He completely treats his employees as collaborators like the contractors. How much effort the employees put in, how much reward they can get. Under this incentive model, the vast majority of people will be inspired to their potential, because this effort will not bring oppression, but is fighting for their own careers."

Wu Bin was in high spirits, feeling that today's interview was really a big win!

As a member of the human resources department, and having come to Tengda from another company, Wu Bin also clearly felt the difference between Tengda and other companies.

However, how exactly was this difference formed?

Wu Bin has never found a particularly accurate answer.

The Tengda spirit is indeed an explanation, but it is more like a summary and generalization, rather than a cause.

Now, the cause has been found.

That is President Pei's concept, which breaks the original vicious cycle of zero-sum game, and establishes a mutually beneficial and win-win community of interests between the company and its employees, and between the client and the contractor!

The interests of the company, employees, and consumers are unified, so everything seems so harmonious and smooth.

It sounds simple, but Wu Bin thinks carefully that only people with extraordinary courage and perseverance can do this!

In order to break this chain, the interests that President Pei has given up are extremely large, and may even exceed the imagination of all employees.

Under this huge concession, the wealth that President Pei, as the boss of Tengda, finally obtained may not be as good as some black-hearted workshops that squeeze employees.

But obviously, what President Pei cares about is the more long-term interests.

Perhaps the bosses of other companies that squeeze employees have wealth far exceeding President Pei, but their companies will lose their armor and be defeated in the competition with Tengda.

President Pei gave up a huge amount of personal interests. Only in this way can he create a rapidly developing commercial empire like Tengda in just two years, and still maintain a very fast growth rate and advance by leaps and bounds!

Wu Bin stood up and shook hands with Ruan Guangjian, "Thank you! Director Ruan, your words have inspired me a lot!"

"I think all the materials needed for the annotation of the Tengda spirit have been collected!"

"Next, I will start to retreat, deeply analyze the relationship between these materials and the Tengda spirit, and strive to make an annotation for the Tengda spirit, and analyze the most comprehensive and most real President Pei!"

Ruan Guangjian was also very happy, "You're welcome, this is all my duty. But... when this book is written, can you send me a copy?"

Wu Bin nodded, "Of course, no problem!"