There’s a lot happening at Xiaomi, the Chinese company that makes smartphones and much more. At the very top, there could be a succession plan set in motion with CEO Lei Jun’s position being strengthened by creating 2-in-C posts, as per a Reuters report.
To start with, 2 new sections have been created to assist the CEO in areas like strategy and the range of HR activities like hiring, promotions, compensation to the employees. These details have been conveyed to the employees personally by Jun and a copy of that communication has been shared with the media.
The CEO has gone on to mention that the company has decided to expand the SBUs from the current 4 to 10. These new SBUs will be headed by young managers so that they are offered the opportunities they might otherwise miss.
Lei Jun himself is just 48 and he expects that the move would lift the morale of the youngsters who have helped the company overcome a challenging situation two years back with dropping sales figures, but the company made many strategic changes and has regained the position in the market. The company is currently valued at around $52 billion.
Observers of the Chinese business environment find some significance in the development at Xiaomi coming close on the heels of the big-bang announcement by Jack Ma, the founder and Chairman of Alibaba that he will be stepping down and leave the leadership position to the CEO.
Though not immediately related to the above two cases, a third Chinese company is under scrutiny following the arrest of its CEO. Its Richard Liu of JD.com. He got arrested in the US on a rape charge but subsequently released. But with Liu holding around 80% of JD.com, there are reports that decision making has been affected in the company. He is still under investigation.