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by Vivian Yang

At its IPO celebration dinner in New York in 2014, JD’s founder and CEO Richard Liu gave his special thanks to three people: his early investor Cathy Xu, his CFO Sidney Huang, but first of all, he thanked Zhang Qi, his very first employee.

Zhang Qi joined JD in August, 2, 2000, exactly one month after his 16^th  Birthday. At JD, people (including Liu) call him “Qi Ge (big brother Qi)” – even by colleagues older than him. As the very first employee in a company that today has over 220,000 employees globally, Zhang is absolutely a big brother in many people’s eyes. Turning 36 this year, he’s been with the company for 20 years. Now he is a director in charge of the company’s big sales and promotional events.

Zhang, who has an unassuming look and an honest face, has no desire to wear a “No.1 Employee” halo at work and always shies away from interviews. But just before JD’s “Employees Appreciation Day” on May 19th this year, we were able to get together with him and listen to his stories of early years.

Zhang Qi, in May 2020

1.Fleet of foot 

In 2000, Zhang Qi was introduced by his uncle to Richard Liu in the Zhongguancun electronics shopping market. People nowadays like to refer to Zhongguancun as China’s Silicon Valley, but in the early days the place was merely bustling buildings filled with small stalls, offices, storage centers, and hawkers selling electronic gadgets. At the time, Liu was one among the many, managing his small business called JD Multimedia, which gradually made its name by selling authentic products at reasonable and low prices. Through business, Zhang’s uncle met Liu and thought Liu was an honest and reliable man, so the uncle asked his nephew to work for Liu.

A quite green teenager from Fushun, an old industrial third-tier city of Liaoning province in northeast China, Zhang was excited to start a new life in Beijing. “It was August 2^nd in 2000, my first working day at JD. I woke up way too early that day,” Zhang remembered vividly.  “It took me two hours by bus to the office and I showed up at the door at 6 AM. My boss(Liu) was even confused about why I was this early.”

Though the work was challenging, the competition was fierce, and the salary was minimal about 500 yuan or US$70 per month, Zhang didn’t complain and gave everything he had to prove his value in this ruthless market.

In the beginning, Zhang was tasked to deliver orders from storage to the seller’s counters. Speed was everything. Usually when customers arrived at the seller’s counter, they would call up three distribution agents at the same time and wait for them to send the products. The first agent who arrived would get the deal, and even got 10 yuan more per order. To win more deals, Zhang had to be fleet of foot – there’s no doubt that since day one, striving to deliver products to its customers in the fastest possible way is key to JD’s success. It’s in JD’s gene.

Zhang’s early struggle was no different from that of millions of couriers in China. Coming from unprivileged backgrounds, they firmly believe in and are willing to work hard to get a better life. Today the majority of JD’s couriers are from rural areas, and they give their all in work to serve the people. JD offered them an opportunity to grow and in turn they continuously create miracles for the company.

JD Multimedia counter in 1998

2. Quick learning on the job

After being a runner for a while, Liu asked Zhang to take charge of after-sales services which involved coordinating repairs between customers and the manufacturers. As sales rose, demand for repair and parts replacement also increased quickly. To ensure the customer experience, Liu constantly pressed Zhang to shorten the maintenance turnover time.

To spare himself from Liu’s nagging, Zhang decided to have a try at repairing the products himself. To start with, he sorted the damaged parts by problem types, and then tried to fix those problems he frequently encountered and only sent the rest to the manufactures for further handling. To his surprise, he was able to fix around 60%  on his own. The turnover time was greatly improved.

This is an example of how one’s potential can be released. Richard Liu believed that one’s ability to learn quickly on the job is more important than past experience. To coach his team in the early days, Liu would ask his employees to listen to his phone conversations with clients to learn communication skills. Nowadays, JD continues to invest heavily in training its talent in the hope of cultivating many more home-grown leaders for the future. In addition to its management trainee program and the JD University, a TED-style staff learning platform, over 60% of director-level and above managers can pursue MBA studies at top Chinese universities with fees covered by the company unconditionally. For many logistics staff who have a lower educational level, JD provides sufficient resources and rewards to encourage them to acquire higher diplomas that help them with their growth and development.

Zhang has been quite serious about continuing his education in recent years. After finishing his computer science major studies from a night school, he is now enrolled in the EMBA program offered by Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, as he hopes to deepen his understanding of JD’s business growth as well as broaden his global vision.

JD supports its frontline delivery men to further their studies on the job

3. Do it now and do it right

“Place the document to sign on my table, B8 Zone A. Leave a note if copies are needed. For the urgent requests for original copies, please call xxx. ” This is the personal signature on Zhang Qi’s JD internal messenger — quite practical and efficient.

He learned to be organized and precise since the early days. Zhang recalled that Liu would often quiz him on the spot about the details of the products and prices on the market. A wrong answer would easily get his boss’ goat.

When asked what changed the most in JD over the years, Zhang thought it should be the fast-changing process of their warehouse upgrades. In the beginning, they just piled up all the products, CD players, burners, PC mainboards etc. in their 20-sqm or so office. After the SARS epidemic, the online business grew rapidly, they had to find an apartment in the neighborhood for storage. Since then, they found themselves moving storage locations and then seek larger and larger warehouses about every half year. Though it’s imaginable the frequent moving work was stressful, Zhang agreed with his boss that this is the most cost-effective way: “Liu had very high requirements for our inventory turnover and space utilization,“ he explained.

JD’s warehouse skills contest in 2014

4. To fight as a team

By 2005, online sales of JD had reached 1 million yuan. That year, Liu was offered 1.8 million yuan to sell his website and he nearly agreed. But when he discussed the offer with Zhang and Sun Jiaming, another veteran employee of JD, both were against the idea, seeing the company as their collective efforts where they anchor their life and dreams. In the end, Liu decided to carry on with JD.

Du Shuang, a diligent and capable woman, joined JD in 2008 and reported to Zhang at the beginning. She was later recommended by Zhang to several different positions where her abilities could be fully displayed. A few years later, because of her excellent performance, Du was promoted to the position as a vice president. Nevertheless, he worked with no reservations to help her manage the team well.

2010 JD.com’s June 18 kick-off event

5. Brotherhood beyond a job

It’s a simple truth for managers that when you take care of your employees, they take care of the company. At JD given its bare-handed start, the concern for employees originated from a rather pure sense of brotherhood well before mature HR management came into the picture.

When Zhang and Sun shared a flat in the early days, Liu would drop by on the weekends and if he saw empty instant noodles boxes strewn across the table, he would chastise them for not minding their health and sanitation. Zhang met his wife at work who was from Suqian, the same hometown of Liu. Both being very humble and low-key, when they got married, the couple hosted a nice meal in Beijing, attended by Liu and other colleagues. Today they continue to lead a satisfying life with two kids. Most housework has to be handled by his wife as he still works with the same intensity he used to.

Zhang also took his boss’ example in taking care of his colleagues. According to Yao Yanzhong, who later became a senior supervisor at JD, not long after he joined, one day it was raining heavily but he needed to go out to arrange merchandise, Zhang said to him: “You stay in. I’m an older employee. I’ll go.” Even 10 years later, this incident deeply impresses Yao.

Understanding many colleagues’ housing difficulty, over dinner at one night, several old employees including Sun and Zhang proposed a way to help employees afford apartments. As a result, in 2012, JD launched interest-free loans and provided down payments for employees who wanted to buy a property of their own – program that still exists today and has benefitted many employees to date. In April 2020, the company just announced to extend the “housing plan” fund pool to RMB 1 billion for employees.  Eligible employees can receive as much as RMB 1 million in interest-free loans.

JD employee’s dormitory in Suqian, Liu’s hometown

At the end of the casual conversion with Zhang, he made an unexpected apology for being too shy to share enough of his experiences and thoughts for the company and his fellow colleagues. What does it take to forge a loyal employee?  Is it measured by the length of one’s service time? In Zhang’s case, working for JD for two decades certainly makes a footnote.

Zhang’s path is impossible to be copied. In a fast-changing world, especially in the internet industry, job opportunities and personal choices are increasingly diversified, and employees who put in five years are typically considered to be long-serving employees. Even so, the strong passion and willingness to give one’s best to improve the company that Zhang demonstrated in his stories defines loyalty at another level.

Being there for 20 years, and counting, is the best testimony of loyalty.

 

(vivian.yang@jd.com)

by Ling Cao

“Teamwork, collaboration and execution are the core factors that helped us get through the toughest time ever.” shares Ms. Guangle Ren, general manager of JD’s central region.

The epidemic is one of the hardest times people have ever experienced, especially for those located at the outbreak’s epicenter, Wuhan, which is one of the regions under Ren’s management. When asked to recall the most challenging days, Ren was unequivocal: “It’s the uncertainty of how COVID-19 would develop. We had to plan and take quick response each day, making adjustments to our approach based on new local policy requirements and actual scenarios. It’s been totally new and unprecedented for all of us.”

Ren oversees the operation of JD Logistics in the entire central region of China, including Hubei, Henan, Hunan and Jiangxi provinces. On January 19^th, she realized the severity of the epidemic and asked her team to prepare accordingly, including checking body temperatures every day and buying protective supplies, Vitamin C, and reporting this information to headquarters in Beijing each day. At the same time, she encouraged and led her core team to keep working during the Chinese New Year holidays.

She comforted her team to stay calm and made the necessary arrangements step by step. “People were scared, of course. But, we tried our best to protect our employees, because they work on the frontlines to help more people, and their safety is our top priority,” she said.

To act in accordance with this need, Ren arranged to secure protective supplies, including masks, disinfectants, thermometers for every warehouse and delivery station so that warehouse staff and couriers could safely work throughout the period.

She tried to best protect employees because she knows how important employees feel during this time. She sought to far exceed the industry standard for JD employees in Wuhan. Regardless of whether they work at warehouse, based in a delivery station or at an office, JD has consistently provided them with N95 masks, top of the line, during the epidemic. For those who deliver to hospitals there are additional supplies, such as goggles and protective clothing. Ren also proactively bought preventative medicine for employees that was recommended from hospital staff, such as a special traditional Chinese medicine and Lianhua Qingwen (连花清瘟) capsules. One JD driver said, “I felt very proud of my work, and I don’t feel as anxious as I was in the beginning. One customer told me that the medicine our company provided to us is similar to that of preventative medicine given at hospitals, and we feel safe at work.”

When road transportation was suspended in Wuhan during the epidemic, Ren quickly collaborated internally to provide an overall solution. Leveraging big data to forecast sales demand, placing product inventory closest to customers in smaller warehouses, and leveraging other regional warehouses, such as those in Changsha, Nanchang and Zhengzhou to relieve the pressure in Wuhan. She worked on the belief that operations may be a bit slower than usual but disorganization or halting operations is absolutely unacceptable.

The closure of offline restaurants and convenience stores in Wuhan during the lockdown created significant challenges for daily meals. Ren’s team sought to address this through two specific ways. First, keep the employee canteen in full operation for warehouse staff, while ensuring the strictest health and safety measures are in place. This includes disinfection, body temperature checks, distancing people into four sections per table by cardboard, and others. Secondly, have a team dedicated to buying groceries to ensure efficiency of supply from partnering supermarkets. She also arranged a team to support the couriers, preparing a range of food such as instant noodles and other fast meals, milk, bread and fruit, ensuring both convenience and variety.

Through these seemingly simple efforts, Ren ensured that operations continued smoothly.

As a female leader working in the logistics industry for nearly two decades, Ren has been quite strict when performing her job, but she can always find ways to smile and relax, and seek to offer personal help to them. She says, “I want everyone who works with me to make good career development, and this is one of my responsibilities.”

She also maintains a high level of personal self-discipline. She always tries to find time to keep herself healthy and fit. She stands more instead of sitting, and walking upstairs instead of taking elevator.

Ren’s family always offers consistent support as a safe harbor. While her husband and 11-year-old daughter are apart from her in her home town in Henan province, they will do video calls every day to chat.

“After the outbreak, many merchants found that it’s more efficient to stock their products at a JD warehouse,” she expresses. “Using JD’s delivery service, and opening our logistics business to external partners is one of the key steps in our future development.”

Ren is emblematic of the type of employee JD is celebrating this month, bearing significant responsibility to get the job done and being all in to set a standard for the others to follow.

 

(ling.cao@jd.com)

by Ling Cao

On May 15^th, Jianqiang Yu, head of R&D at JD Logistics, spoke about the importance of 5G in smart supply chain during Huawei’s summit on 5G. He said, “Combining JD’s technology capability with the industrial upgrade opportunity, JD will work with partners to accelerate 5G application in the logistics industry.”

Yu spoke about JD’s application of 5G in JD’s logistic parks. He emphasized that 5G-powered smart logistics is a multi-stakeholder effort involving operators, smart device manufactures such as Huawei, internet service providers, and those who can provide real application scenarios such as JD. JD Logistics was the only logistics service provider invited to attend the summit.

In 2019, the total value of social logistics goods in China reached RMB 298 trillion yuan, accounting for 14.7% of GDP and far exceeding that of developed countries such as Europe or the U.S. At the same time, high costs, low efficiency and low digitization are pain points in China’s supply chain development.

“Leveraging 5G for new innovative technologies will promote the development of the digital economy, helping us address these challenges,“ Yu shared. JD is a pioneer in the field of using 5G for smart transportation, warehousing and management.

JD has created a platform called LoMir, which is short for Logistics Mirror, which aims to build a smart logistics application system based on 5G, IoT and AI. The platform has cooperated with institutions, enterprises and research centers. Current partners include the likes of Huawei, China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom, Tencent, and Baidu.

“5G is the backbone for innovation and transformation of logistics, while logistics is the best scenario in which to apply 5G.”

 

(ling.cao@jd.com)

by Tracy Yang

“Our health business can make good use of the existing customer base. JD.com also has very good consumer awareness. This mutual trust will continue from retail to the health industry.” said Lei Xu, CEO of JD Retail, last Friday at JD.com’s Q1 2020 earnings call.

As for the future development direction of JD Health, Lei Xu said that JD Health’s positioning is, based on supply chain and starting from medical services, to use science and technology to promote and help users with health management. Moreover, its capabilities in pharmaceutical supply chain and medical services will be further strengthened and improved.

JD Health’s rapid growth in the first quarter was a highlight, among which the growth rates of core businesses including pharmaceutical retail and Internet hospitals stand out. In the meantime, the number of Internet consultations increased dramatically during the epidemic.”

From late January to April 30^th, JD Health’s free online consultation service has served a total of more than 11 million visitors. “The outbreak of the epidemic has provided an opportunity for rapid growth of our health business. Our young team and young business have assumed a lot of social responsibility in the fight against the coronavirus, ensuring the supply of epidemic prevention materials, providing online consulting, conducting live broadcasts and more,” said Lei Xu.

JD Health urgently launched a variety of products and services during the epidemic, providing not only services for online purchase of drugs and medical devices, but also online medical and psychological consultation, medical management and other services. The company also set up a special channel for the purchase of epidemic prevention supplies. At the same time, it also continues to develop its business to meet the needs of users and medical institutions, launching initiatives such as the “Hubei chronic patients withdrawal help registration platform” to help solve the problem of drug shortages.

 

(tracy.yang@jd.com)