Guest of honor
He Xianhan is currently vice president of Ferrotec Holdings Corporation, vice chairman ofHangzhou Dahe Thermo-Magnetics Co.,Ltd., Shanghai Shenhe thermo-magnetic Electronics Co., Ltd., chairman of Jiangsu Ferrotec Semiconductor Technology Co.,Ltd., Ferrotec（Jiangsu）Quartz Technology Co.,Ltd., etc.
Interview notes
In 2018, Ferrotec (China) established two companies successively in Dongtai City of Yancheng (Jiangsu Ferrotec Semiconductor Technology Co.,Ltd. and Ferrotec（Jiangsu）Quartz Technology Co.,Ltd.). Although the company has not been established for a long time, relying on Ferrotec (China)'s strong technical force and market resources, Ferrotec（Jiangsu）has stood out in the regional economic development. As a result, chairman he was awarded the title of "outstanding entrepreneur" in Yancheng City, in recognition of his contribution to promoting regional economic development. Chairman he has a full schedule in Dongtai this time. In order to accept our exclusive interview, he postponed the original meeting for a while. In this short interview, he told us about the experience of studying abroad and starting a business, as well as some experience of enterprise management and development, which made us feel the perseverance and struggle spirit of an entrepreneur. For better development, he chose to return to China and join Ferrotec after studying abroad. "Ferrotec was very small in China at that time, and the factories were all leased, but I thought it was very good .because in this way, I would have the opportunity to start a business," he said It is true that difficulties are only opportunities in front of him, and the more difficulties, the more opportunities. At the beginning, they produced a semi-conductor refrigerator with imported raw materials. As a result, they lost 20 dollars when they sold the finished product to 40 dollars. In order to change this passive situation, he began to research and develop products by himself. In order to introduce talents, he established a company in Shanghai. After continuous research and development, we have devoted ourselves to mass production within half a year. Now, this product has occupied 40% of the global market. Under his leadership, Ferrotec (China) has already become an internationally renowned supplier of semiconductor products and solutions. But when I asked him if he had realized his dream of starting a business, he said: "I don't think the expectation has been met, because what he envisioned at that time was that we must continue to do it no matter what." Maybe it's a goal without a goal, but it's also a big goal. His goal is to always move forward, never stop, never meet, and constantly push his career to another peak. This kind of dedication and persistence to the cause is worth learning from each of us, but he said: "now many Chinese people lack this kind of dedication, do not like the long-term, just want to make fast money, can not bear to do business." His words need us all to ponder. It is true that countless facts tell us that any brilliance has to go through countless accumulation, but many people are only willing to see the results of the harvest, not willing to accept the long and even painful process. As an entrepreneur and the leader of a large international enterprise, chairman he is not only thinking about the future for the development of the enterprise, but also making unremitting contributions to the progress of science and technology in China. "China is lagging behind in terms of materials, but the three areas we are working on are the technologies that China most wants to introduce," he said I think the reason why a person can be called an entrepreneur is not because of how much wealth he brings to himself, but how much value he creates for the industry and society. We believe that under his leadership, Ferrotec（Jiangsu） and Ferrotec (China) group will continue to innovate and develop, and will continue to create more brilliance with science and technology, as well as contribute to helping make China stronger.
Interview excerpts
Time: December 28, 2019
Location: fuleide, Jiangsu (No.18, Hongda Road, Chengdong new district, Dongtai City)
One
Chen Jianhua: At that time, many people studying in Japan wanted to stay after graduation, but why did you resolutely go back to China to start your own business?
He Xianhan: Well, in 1988, I used to be a teacher at Shanghai University of Finance and economics. Later, I wanted to study abroad. Then there was a chance: Japan recruited overseas students in China, and later I took the master's degree in Waseda University. I studied there for two years. After that, my tutor introduced me to Japan University and went to study two more Year. So in the last year, the teacher came to me and asked me: do you want to get a doctor's degree or what? But he said Japan's Ph.D. in economics won't be available until 45. At that time, there were a lot of people who wanted to stay in Japan, so I said it was a little late to be 45, which was not good. So later, I went to the employment department to register. At this time, several companies came to me. Later, I thought I would go back to China. Why? Because I didn't have a chance in Japan. In fact, when I was 40 or 50 years old, I was still a section chief. Only those over 50 years old could become ministers. At that time, I said that I would still go back to China. Then I went back to Hangzhou in 1992 to start my own business. That's when I joined Ferrotec. At this time, Ferrotec is still a small company in Hangzhou, and the factory is also borrowed, and there is no good product to be made in China. But I thought it was a very good chance, because in this way, I would have the opportunity to start a business. In addition, he was our president of Japan at that time. He knew our overseas students very well. He said, "all things are given to you, and you can do what you want." I think he trusted me so much that I decided to do it later. This is the whole process that I went to Japan to study and then returned to China to start my own business.
Two
Chen Jianhua: what difficulties did you encounter in the process of entrepreneurship and how did you overcome them?
He Xianhan: there are many difficulties, because what? Because you don't have a product. At that time, we took a semiconductor refrigerator (now 40% of such a product in the world) to produce. When we took it, its raw materials were composed of two parts: one is our ceramic substrate, that is, a circuit board, which was imported from Japan. The other is that there is a semiconductor polycrystal in it. This one is electrified, mainly to turn the circuit. This one is from the United States. After that, this 40 × 40 size semiconductor refrigerator will cost about $40, but I still have to lose $20, so I can't do it in this case. So at this time, I began to find someone to do research and development on my own. Later, I formally established a company in Shanghai in 1995 to do this product. In fact, I only spent half a year to mass produce it. At one time, the cost was 3 / 4 cheaper. I made 40 dollars worth of things, and the final cost was 10 dollars. With this product, the later enterprises began to go up. Because it has a wide range of applications, from household appliances to medical equipment, and also used in 5g communication, Huawei now uses 100% of our products. We have a micro refrigerator in the communication equipment, which can account for 60% of the world's share, and the whole refrigerator accounts for 40% of the world's share.
Three
Chen Jianhua: do you think the original goal of entrepreneurship has been achieved?
He Xianhan: I don't think the expectation has been met yet, because what was envisaged at that time was that no matter what, we must continue to do it and be able to make it bigger. And what to do? To do what the Chinese can't do, and to contribute to China's technology accumulation, especially after the country proposed the "made in China 2025" plan in 2015, our goal will be more clear. So the three areas we are now doing are the technologies that China most hopes to introduce: one is semiconductor related materials, China is backward in materials; the second is our semiconductor refrigeration system; the third is some application products needed in the current electric vehicles.
Four
Chen Jianhua: how do you carry out talent management in enterprise operation so as to give full play to their value?
He Xianhan: I prefer to study, because I used to teach in the University, and I grew up with such a habit, hoping to absorb some new things. So we attach great importance to talents. We should work with them, especially to help them create a good environment. For example, we used to have a doctor here, but this time we introduced another one. Now we have two doctors in total. Then we will try our best to create a good R & D environment for them, so that they can safely play their technical capabilities here. And we should encourage him to see when they are good, and let them see what they can achieve in the future on this stage, so that they can bring their intelligence into play.
Five
Chen Jianhua: how do you understand the views that "enterprise development needs innovation and persistence"?
He Xianhan: innovation is very important, and you have to keep looking for it. We are right in saying "mass innovation, mass entrepreneurship", but China is short of it. There are many American start-ups, and they are good at innovation. They will think about everything and try it. I think innovation is very important for China to surpass the United States next.
But the Chinese also have a common feature, that is, they hope to make fast money. When they see a loss, they can't bear it. I have made a medical instrument product for DNA blood analysis, and a matching device for blood analysis. I started to make these two products in 2003, and have been doing so now. Three years ago, I began to reorient the whole direction, and then they burst out. So it's important to be patient. You can't always think about how much money you're going to make today. I often tell them that if you want to start a business, you need to do your current work as a business, and you can do it well. Because it takes a lot of time and money to make any most advanced thing, or some of the most basic things, such as materials. But if you want to do it well, you need to be patient.
Six
Chen Jianhua: fule's products are recognized by many users at home and abroad. What do you think are the main reasons for this?
Hexianhan:The first is to rely on our technological innovation; the second is our quality management; the third is that we can meet the needs of customers, what do customers need? We need service and quick response, which we have achieved. The other key is that your quality should meet his needs. He can buy it when he wants to buy it abroad, but if you buy it here, you can make it more reasonable than others in terms of price, in addition, you can make it better in terms of service, and in terms of response, you can make it better than others. In this way, people will naturally produce demand for your products.