Step into the Great Emperor's deep roots in the earth.

　　My Great Emperor Connection

　　Speaking of which, my boss at Dadi—Chairman Yu—is actually a fellow townsman of mine, and we’re even slightly related by family ties. Back in 1983, after graduating from Luzhou Medical College, I was assigned to teach at the local secondary health school in my hometown. In those years, whenever I happened to visit Chengdu, I’d always make it a point to drop by Dadi Company at No. 36 Ma’anshan Road. One day, purely by chance, I introduced my cousin, Gan Qiuyan, to Dadi. Thanks to her, Chairman Yu and General Manager Li eventually met Ding Hong and Yang Hongying—both of whom later joined Dadi one after another. When it comes to hiring talent, I have to admit, these two leaders truly possess an exceptional eye for spotting potential. Every time we’d get together, my boss would try his best to persuade me to join the company. But at that time, while teaching, I’d already started my own clothing store and wasn’t ready to give up my entrepreneurial dreams. That all changed in 1997, when I had to close down my business altogether after welcoming my daughter into the world. However, unable to resist my boss’s persistent invitations, on December 1, 1998—just past the age of thirty—I finally took the leap: leaving behind my teaching career and stepping boldly into the world of Dadi, armed with both my dreams and newfound hope.

　　In 1998, Dadi was still a small-scale company with fewer than 30 employees and a simple organizational structure. It had just a few departments—sales, production, quality inspection, procurement, and finance—and some of these departments were even staffed by only one person. My boss assigned me the role of sales administrative assistant. As an administrative assistant, my daily tasks revolved around receiving and processing orders, managing sales accounts, contracts, and payments, as well as handling customer complaints. The workload was incredibly complex and demanding, yet at the time, my monthly salary was merely a few hundred yuan—far lower than what I’d earned as a mid-level lecturer with 15 years of teaching experience. This significant disparity initially left me feeling anxious and worried, making me acutely aware of financial constraints and the pressure to simply survive. But once I’d taken the plunge, there was no turning back. With no way to retreat, all I could do was adjust my mindset, stay grounded, and approach every task with meticulous dedication. I’m naturally fast-paced and highly efficient, always driven by a strong sense of responsibility. To quickly get up to speed in my new role, I seized every spare moment—whether during breaks or after work—to memorize customers’ frequently ordered products, models, prices, and even their phone numbers. My goal was to recognize each customer instantly when they called. And to better address their inquiries, I even spent evenings studying the fundamentals of fragrances and feed additives, keeping myself updated on industry trends—gradually transforming myself into someone who truly understood the business inside out.

　　Challenges and Promotion

　　At Dadi, the boss values not employees' expertise and experience, but rather their potential, learning ability, and proactive spirit. Thanks to outstanding work performance—characterized by being well-planned, organized, and strongly principled—I was transferred by the boss to head the company’s Administrative Department in October 1999. At that time, I was the department’s sole member. Yet, facing this new role—with neither managerial knowledge nor practical experience—I embraced a hands-on approach to learning. In 2000, the company sponsored my participation in a year-long advanced management training program for senior executives at Sichuan University’s School of Management. Each weekend, I dedicated two days to intensive study. Although juggling work and studies while caring for my young daughter, who was barely three years old, proved incredibly challenging, it marked the true beginning of my most rewarding professional journey. By applying what I learned directly to my role, I clearly defined the department’s responsibilities and drafted comprehensive job descriptions for each position. This helped establish a top-down framework of accountability and authority, ensuring smooth administrative operations. By September 2000, the company promoted me to Deputy Manager of the Administrative Department. Building on clearly defined departmental roles, I went on to draft the company’s core administrative policies and gradually implemented robust oversight mechanisms. My ability to assist the boss in tackling complex challenges—and my knack for thinking strategically from both the boss’s and the company’s perspectives—earned me the boss’s admiration and trust. In January 2001, I was appointed as Assistant to the General Manager. In addition to continuing as the Administrative Department Manager, I also took charge of overseeing the Technical and Quality Control departments. It was the boss who provided me with invaluable opportunities for growth, training, and empowerment. And precisely because of my role as Assistant to the General Manager, I gained firsthand exposure to the inner workings of every department within the company—laying a solid foundation for my future career in Human Resources.

　　During the first two years after joining the company, our sales performance hit a low point—partly due to industry conditions in the feed sector and partly constrained by our management practices. At that time, annual sales fell short of 1,000 tons. To fully tap into the sales team's initiative and effectively motivate, manage, and control our marketing staff, we aimed to achieve a significant breakthrough in sales results. In September 2001, upon returning from training in Beijing, I took the lead in introducing both target-based management and process-oriented management within the Sales Department. Following this, we rolled out performance evaluations among administrative personnel. After nearly a decade of exploration and refinement, we successfully established Dadi’s unique performance management system.

　　Entering the HR field

　　As the company’s business volume and growth demands expanded, the existing workforce—and our management capabilities—could no longer keep pace with the needs of corporate administration and development. This created a situation where the human resources that had previously managed to meet the company’s requirements now became a bottleneck, hindering further business expansion. In January 2002, the company established a Human Resources Department, and I was appointed as its manager, though I had no direct reports at the time. Having transitioned into HR from another field, I had to learn on the job while simultaneously building and refining the department’s operations. Starting with organizing and maintaining comprehensive personnel files for all current employees, I gradually streamlined key processes such as employee onboarding, internal transfers, and formalizing employment status. I also took charge of managing employee insurance and implementing day-to-day HR practices related to labor relations. However, as the company continued to grow, my existing knowledge and skills soon proved insufficient to meet the evolving demands of the role. From March to May 2004, I successfully passed the national unified examination and earned the prestigious National Level-2 Human Resource Management Certification. Later, from July to December 2005, after six months of dedicated study in psychology, I obtained the National Level-2 Psychological Counseling Certification. These achievements not only enhanced my expertise but also gave me greater confidence and efficiency in handling HR responsibilities. During those same years, the company experienced rapid growth, creating an urgent need to attract top-tier talent. Armed with improved HR tools and methodologies, we achieved significant breakthroughs in recruitment and talent selection. More importantly, we clearly defined Dadi Group’s core talent standards, enabling us to bring in a wave of exceptional professionals, including Zhao Jianping, Lü Jirong, Wen Hao, Tan Jian, Nie Haitao, and many others. As a result, the company’s headcount soared past 100 employees. To ensure long-term employee retention, I initiated a comprehensive review of the company’s existing compensation system. Through in-depth analysis and evaluation of each position, I developed a standardized, fair, and competitive salary framework. On one hand, this included establishing a job-based salary structure that aligns pay directly with individual roles, ensuring salaries evolve alongside job responsibilities and promoting a merit-based talent competition system. On the other hand, recognizing the diverse needs of our workforce, I designed flexible, buffet-style compensation and incentive plans tailored to different employee segments, effectively motivating and retaining top talent. These accomplishments not only highlighted my personal value but also reinforced my unwavering commitment to advancing my career in HR. Today, I remain determined to become a true HR expert, dedicated to helping organizations build stronger, more resilient teams through innovative and strategic people management practices.

　　Leap forward

　　As the company entered a period of rapid business growth, its operations surged alongside a sharp increase in workforce—so much so that internal management struggled to keep pace. Coupled with mounting pressure from rising operational costs, the company had inadvertently accumulated some level of redundancy, making it inevitable to streamline the organization. Due to limitations in the management skills of department heads and their reluctance to personally let go of employees they’d nurtured and developed over time, the responsibility for layoffs ultimately fell on the Human Resources department. Despite facing significant challenges and resistance, as the HR manager, I knew I had to shoulder this tough task. At the time, our CEO’s guiding principle was: "First, change mindsets—not people; if mindset remains unchanged, then it’s time to replace individuals." By implementing a bottom-performer elimination system—where one sales representative was phased out each quarter within the marketing department—the company successfully reduced its workforce by 30% over two years starting from early 2007. Crucially, establishing an effective competitive elimination mechanism ensured that the remaining employees could better align with the company’s evolving needs. Meanwhile, the company placed greater emphasis on attracting top-tier talent while simultaneously nurturing its existing workforce. In today’s era, as China becomes increasingly intertwined with the global economy, domestic enterprises are confronted with intense competition from multinational corporations. To stay competitive on the international stage, we must align our talent development and recruitment strategies with global best practices. By adopting standards that meet the demands of international competition, we aim to cultivate a new generation of professionals who not only excel domestically but also thrive in the global marketplace. Leveraging the company’s unique talent development framework, we’ve created multi-level career advancement pathways and robust job competency models. Additionally, we’ve rolled out targeted training initiatives—such as overseas assignments, cross-functional rotations, assistant programs, and opportunities for international study tours and technical workshops—to nurture and build a cadre of globally-minded leaders ready to make their mark both at home and abroad.

　　My Future

　　On a rapidly evolving platform like Dadi, with over 10 years of HR experience under my belt, I’ve grown steadily—both personally and professionally—from an ordinary employee into a seasoned HR management expert. All of this has been made possible thanks to my boss’s unwavering commitment to nurturing talent, as well as their trust, recognition, and complete empowerment of my work.

　　Talent drives enterprise development, and enterprise growth, in turn, nurtures talent. For Dadi, the key lies in innovation and breakthroughs—achievements that can only be realized by bringing in fresh talent to strengthen our team, thereby embracing cutting-edge management philosophies and pioneering new technologies that will propel Dadi into uncharted territories. At the same time, it’s essential for our "veterans" to both preserve and evolve Dadi’s unique culture, distinctive style, and time-tested best practices. Therefore, establishing a robust corporate strategy for talent development—and firmly implementing Dadi’s long-term talent roadmap along with our "new vs. experienced" integration strategy—are critical steps toward ensuring Dadi’s sustained growth and laying the foundation for building a century-old legacy. Yet, as we move forward, Dadi’s strategic approach to human resource management still has a long and challenging journey ahead.