Zhang Ruimin
| Zhang Ruimin | |
|---|---|
| Native name | 张瑞敏 |
| Born |
5 January 1949 Laizhou, Shandong, China |
| Nationality | Chinese |
| Alma mater | University of Science and Technology of China |
| Occupation | Chairman & CEO, Haier Group |
| Signature | |
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Zhang Ruimin (Chinese: 张瑞敏; pinyin: Zhāng Ruìmĭn; born January 5, 1949 in Laizhou, Shandong) is a Chinese businessman and chief executive officer of Haier Group. He is known for his work in turning a little-known, bankrupt refrigerator manufacturer into the world's fourth-largest white appliances company.
Zhang Ruimin was born on January 5, 1949 to a working class family in Qingdao, Shandong; his parents were employed in a local garment factory. As a youth, Zhang was swept up in the Cultural Revolution and like many other students, he joined the Red Guards as the movement cascaded across the country. He visited Mao's birthplace and attended rallies in Beijing since all schools had been closed, and when the movement was finally disbanded, he was able to avoid being sent down to the countryside. Due to the widespread upheaval, Zhang was unable to attend university (most having been shut down); instead, he began his career in obscurity at a state-run construction company in Qingdao in 1968.
Despite his humble roots and abbreviated education, Zhang had a voracious appetite for learning, and between his shifts working at the factory, Zhang would bicycle back and forth to management courses; he also read extensively on his own. Slowly climbing up the hierarchy of the company, he was promoted to workshop supervisor and then deputy director of the company in 1980 after 12 years of hard work. In 1982, he was promoted to deputy manager of the "Household Appliance Division" of the Qingdao municipal government. In a twist of fate, Zhang was dragooned into taking over as general manager of the Qingdao Refrigerator Plant when the previous manager left. He was the fourth person to hold the position and by then the company was in deep financial trouble with more than $10 million in debts.
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