Ren Zhengfei facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ren Zhengfei
任正非
Ren in 2016
CEO of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
Incumbent
Assumed office 15 September 1987
Chairman	Liang Hua（梁华）
Vice Chairman of Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd.
In office 15 September 1987 – 22 November 2019
Chairman	Sun Yafang（孙亚芳）
Succeeded by	Meng Wanzhou（孟晚舟）
Representative of the 12th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party
In office 1 September 1982 – 11 September 1982
Chairman	Hu Yaobang（胡耀obang）
Personal details
Born	(1944-10-25) 25 October 1944 (age 80) Zhenning County, Guizhou, China
Political party	Chinese Communist Party
Spouses	Meng Jun (former) Yao Ling (current)
Children	Meng Wanzhou Yao Anna Ren Ping
Alma mater	Chongqing Jianzhu University (now Chongqing University)
Military service
Allegiance	People's Republic of China
Branch/service	People's Liberation Army Ground Force
Years of service	1970–1982
Unit	PLA Capital Construction Engineering Corps
Scientific career
Fields	Aerodynamics
Institutions	Liaoyang Petroleum Chemical Fiber General Factory
Chinese name
Chinese	任正非
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Rén Zhèngfēi IPA [ɻə̌n ʈʂə̂ŋféi̯] Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization Yahm Jingfēi IPA [jɐ̀m tsēŋféi] Jyutping Jam6 Zing3-fei1

Ren Zhengfei (Chinese: 任正非; born on October 25, 1944) is a Chinese business leader and engineer. He is famous for founding and being the CEO of Huawei Technologies, a major company in Shenzhen, China. Huawei is known as the world's largest maker of telecom equipment. It is also the second largest maker of smartphones.

Ren Zhengfei's Early Life

Ren Zhengfei was born in Zhenning County, Guizhou, on October 25, 1944. His grandfather, Ren Sanhe, was a skilled chef. He specialized in making ham. Ren's father, Ren Musheng, was a school president. His mother, Cheng Yuanzhao, was a senior teacher. Ren has five younger sisters and one younger brother.

Growing Up and School

Ren spent his early school years in a mountain village. He was a quiet student. He was not very social. In high school, his family was very poor. He often wore a thin coat, even in cold weather.

Around 1960, there was a severe famine in Guizhou Province. Ren's family faced starvation. To help his family, Ren carefully managed their food. He often picked wild fruits to ease his hunger. He made sure his younger siblings had enough to eat. None of them starved, thanks to his efforts. His father later found out he was mixing rice bran with vegetables to eat.

As college exams neared, his mother, despite their poverty, gave him a scallion pancake every morning. Ren later said this pancake was very important for his future success.

In 1963, at age 19, Ren started studying at Chongqing Institute of Architectural Engineering. He majored in building services engineering. His mother made him two shirts and a pair of sheets. He used these throughout his four years of college.

In 1966, during the Cultural Revolution, Ren's father faced difficulties. Ren learned his father had been criticized. He traveled home and encouraged his father. His father told him that knowledge was important. He urged Ren to use it to help his family.

Ren returned to college and taught himself about computers and other technologies. He also learned three foreign languages. In 1970, he joined the army for training.

Early Career and Military Service

In 1968, Ren Zhengfei graduated from university. He was assigned to an engineering corps. He helped build an aircraft factory.

In 1974, he helped establish a large petrochemical factory in Liaoyang. The same year, Ren joined the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA). He worked as a technician and engineer. He focused on automation in the chemical industry. While in the army, Ren studied the writings of Mao Zedong. He received awards for his understanding of Maoist ideas.

In March 1978, Ren, then 33, attended the National Science Conference in Beijing. He joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that same year. He had been denied entry before due to his family's background.

In 1982, the Chinese government reduced the size of the army. Ren was transferred to a research base. His wife moved to Shenzhen for work. Ren then moved to Shenzhen with his children. He ended his 11 years in the army. He attended the 12th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party that year.

He joined an electronics company as a deputy general manager in 1983. He faced a difficult situation where he lost a large sum of money. This led to him leaving that job. After this, Ren divorced his first wife. He lived in a small rented house with his parents and nephews.

Founding Huawei

Starting the Company

In 1987, Ren Zhengfei, at 43, started Shenzhen Huawei Technology Co., Ltd. with some partners. The name "Huawei" means "Having a Heart connected to Chunghua, and making a difference." At first, friends suggested he make quick money. But Ren wanted a long-term business.

He started by selling industrial instruments. Then he sold program-controlled switches. The Chinese market had many products from different countries. Ren decided to use Chinese-made parts and assemble small user exchanges. This helped the company save money.

He became president of Huawei in 1988.

By September 1991, Ren and his team assembled their own Huawei program-controlled switch. Huawei's products were affordable and in high demand. Because parts were scarce, Ren continued to assemble products while also starting research and development (R&D). He worked long hours, even making soup for his employees. Due to the high cost of R&D and lack of money, Ren had to borrow funds. Soon, he launched the new BH03 switch. To boost sales, he started working with agents.

In 1992, Ren Zhengfei invited professors and students from top universities to visit Huawei.

In early 1993, Huawei employees held a meeting in Shenzhen. Ren decided to use switches for public telephones and telecommunications. He gave awards to outstanding employees. He also hired Xu Wenwei to lead the hardware department.

In May 1993, Ren launched the JK1000 office telephone. Over 200 units were sold. To attract talented people, Ren created a "Talent Recommendation Award." The JK1000 used older technology, which was a mistake. The company was short on money. Employees received half pay, with the rest recorded as a debt. Ren created a "everyone shareholding system." Employees could convert their unpaid wages into company shares.

In March 1996, Ren invited professors to help create the "Huawei Basic Law." This set out the company's rules and values. It was ready by 1998.

Ren wanted Huawei's management to reflect the ideas of the CCP. He said that if Huawei's interests conflicted with the CCP's, he would choose the CCP. He believed the CCP's goal was to serve people.

Growing and Changing

In 1998, Ren made changes in leadership due to internal disagreements. He moved Li Yinan to lead the product and marketing departments.

In 2002, a company called Harbor Network started taking Huawei's market share. Ren stopped Harbor Network from selling Huawei products. He set up a special office to compete with them.

In 2005, Ren brought the voice teams from Harbor Shenzhen Research Institute to Huawei.

On May 10, 2006, Ren Zhengfei met with Li Yinan again.

Working with Cisco

In January 2003, Cisco Systems filed a complaint against Huawei in a US court. They claimed Huawei used Cisco's software code. A neutral expert found that Cisco's code had been used. Cisco agreed to drop the case in July 2024.

Expanding Globally

Ren Zhengfei wanted Huawei to grow worldwide. He planned this in four steps:

• First, enter the nearby Hong Kong market.
• Second, gain market share in Russia and South America.
• Third, expand to Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Africa.
• Fourth, aim for developed countries.

To achieve this, Ren promoted "Huawei globalization." This meant globalizing management, R&D, talent, sales, and company culture.

Since 1996, Ren hired companies like IBM to help Huawei improve. They reformed Huawei's R&D, supply chain, finances, and market systems. This helped integrate product development, human resources, and quality control.

In 1996, Ren led Huawei into the international market. They partnered with Li Ka-shing's Hutchison Telecom. Huawei provided network products for them.

In 1997, Ren sent a team to visit Russia. He had seen the potential in the large Russian market. On April 8, Ren went to Ufa, Russia. He attended the signing ceremony for "BertoHuawei," a joint company with Russia.

Leadership and Ownership

Ren is currently a deputy chairman of Huawei's Board of Directors. He is not one of the three rotating CEOs. In 2017, Huawei's yearly income was US$92.5 billion. Ren owns 1.42% of Huawei's shares. In 2010, his shares were worth US$450 million. Huawei is largely independent of Ren because its shares are owned by its employees.

Ren Zhengfei's Family and Interests

Ren's younger brother, Ren Shulu (Steven Ren), has worked at Huawei since 1992. He is a member of the Supervisory Board. He also leads the company's logistics support.

Ren's first wife was Meng Jun. They had two children: a daughter, Meng Wanzhou (Sabrina Meng), and a son, Ren Ping. Both initially used their mother's surname. Meng Wanzhou, born in 1972, earned a master's degree in 1998. She has worked at Huawei since 1993. She is currently the company's chief financial officer (CFO).

After their divorce, Ren married Yao Ling. They have a daughter, Annabel Yao. Annabel is 25 years younger than Meng Wanzhou. As of December 2018, Annabel is a ballet dancer and a computer science student at Harvard University. She made her public debut at Le Bal des Débutantes in Paris in 2018.

Even though he leads Huawei, Ren uses Apple products. He has said that the "iPhone has a good ecosystem." He buys iPhones for his family when they are abroad. He believes that loving Huawei does not mean only loving Huawei phones.

Ren Zhengfei enjoys reading books about politics, economics, history, and art. He especially likes historical literature. He finds fiction and management theory less interesting. He believes fiction is too far from reality. He also thinks management books can limit creativity.

Ren is a fan of the TV series The Qin Empire. This show is about the reforms of Chinese statesman Shang Yang. Ren bought thousands of copies of the series for Huawei employees.

Among Chinese political leaders, Ren Zhengfei greatly admires Deng Xiaoping. He calls him the greatest reformer in China's history. Among foreign politicians, Ren respects Yitzhak Rabin the most. He even calls himself a student of the former Israeli prime minister.

Awards and Recognition

• In 2000, Forbes magazine ranked him third among the 50 richest people in China. His personal wealth was estimated at $500 million.
• In 2005, Ren Zhengfei and Zhang Ziyi were included in Time Magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world.
• In 2011, Ren appeared on the Forbes rich list for the first time with $1.1 billion. He ranked 1056th globally and 92nd in China.
• In 2018, he was named one of the "100 Outstanding Private entrepreneurs in the 40 years of Reform and opening up."
• In April 2021, the Forbes Global Rich List was released. Ren Zhengfei ranked 2378 on the list with a fortune of 1.3 billion US dollars.

See also

In Spanish: Ren Zhengfei para niños