GE : imagination at work

领 导 力 连 线 Leaders’ ConnectionDare to Take on Challenges andExperience Life— An Exclusive Interview with Weiming Xiang, GeneralManager of GE Aviation Greater ChinaDuring the 1980s and 1990s in China, while everyone desperatelysought work, having a secure job seemed like the dream. Whenthey did find a secure job, few were willing to give up thosepositions in search of new opportunities. But Weiming Xiang,General Manager of GE Aviation Greater China, took a differentapproach in establishing his career that has led to a life full ofsurprises.After graduated from the Aero-Engine Design major of NorthwesternPolytechnic University in 1985, Weiming was assigned to former ResearchInstitute of MOA as a research engineer, later becoming a journalist for ChinaAviation News where he interviewed a number of stars and innovators in theaviation field. Due to his performance record, he became the newspaper’s leader ofpublicity, and increased his department’s revenue from 10,000 RMB to 1 million RMB. At the heightof his newspaper career in 1992, Weiming quit his job and joined GE, bringing his passion and enthusiasm to the company, which atthe time he knew little about.When Weiming started at GE Aviation, which was GE Aircraft Engines at that time, the entire business division had no more than10 staff, only three of whom were Chinese. Weiming was put in charge of local marketing development and helped US based salesstaff collect information and materials from each airlines. Thanks to his outstanding performance, he was quickly promoted to SalesDirector in 1995, but never stopped learning best business practices to reap benefits for GE. In order to make a larger contributionto GE, Weiming knew he would need to further this education. In 1997, with his leader’s support, Weiming participated in the GlobalMarketing & Sales Program held at GE Aviation’s headquarters in the United States. During three years of study in the United States,signed a long-term service agreement with a foreign enterprise. In2007, he was transferred to the GM role of Marketing & BusinessDevelopment due to the job requirement; he was responsiblefor ICFC and partnership in GE Transportation. With three yearsof tough negotiations, finally GE Transportation reached anagreement with CSR Qishuyan to set up the diesel locomotiveengine JV. Weiming said his five years at GE Transportation werehis biggest gains not only in terms of achievements throughchallenges tackled, but also for making a lot of like-mindedfriendsThe agreements signed with the Ministry of Railways are just aglimpse of Weiming’s accomplished track record. When he was atGE Aviation, it was his selling skills and excellent leadership thatensured the steady growth of the company’s performance. Hemanaged to introduce more CFM-56 engines produced by CFMInternational (a 50/50 JV between GE and Snecma) to China, andequipped CFM56-5B engines on 13 Airbus A320s, the debut ofthis type of engine in China, marking a historical moment for CFMengines. Additionally, the hard work and efforts of Weiming andhis team led to GE’s CF34-10A engine being selected as the solepower for China’s first regional jet, the ARJ21, which also providedsupport for the cooperation between GE/CFM and COMAC on theC919 aircraft program.But Weiming has never let his accomplishments inflate hisego, instead choosing to regard himself as but one memberof a great team. This humility has allowed him to gain a moreprofound understanding of what it takes to be an effectivesalesman. A qualified salesman, Weiming said, must be excellentboth internally and externally. “You have to first do the salesjob externally, keeping abreast with the changing market andmaintaining contact with clients to discover their needs. Butthese won’t be enough since, most importantly, you need to relyon your own judgment to provide corresponding solutions forclients to earn their trust. Second, you need to work on internalefforts or sales, by that I mean, learning to communicate yourideas and strategy clearly inside the company, and convince GEglobal teams to gain support.”Most people may think a top-notch salesman must be extremelyserious. Weiming, however, takes a casual and cheerfulapproach, often incorporating humor into his work. During theinterview, Weiming bursts out in laughter many times as he talksexcitedly about his life and work. As much as he loves work,Weiming also enjoys family time. From Monday to Friday he’sbusy in the Shanghai office, and visits customers in differentcities, but weekends are strictly reserved for his family in Beijing.It’s exhausting to maintain a life in this way, and for a manwho spends 250 days out of the last year on business trips, asingle phone call to his family is all the warmth he needs to staymotivated and get the job done.Weiming loves sports, visiting the gym two or three times aweek to jog and swim. He has also downloaded special exercisesapps for his iPad to assist his morning routine while he’s onbusiness trips, since sports is a key ingredient for Weiming tokeep himself sharp and mentally fit. He also enjoys travelingand experiencing new things. A one-week trip to the Caribbeancruise was one of the most unforgettable travel experienceshe’s ever had. Since there was no network signal on the cruise,he was completely disconnected from work and the rest of theworld, which disrupted his working habit of receiving and sendinge-mails everyday. It didn’t take long for Weiming to learn to enjoythis passionate life, free of the annoyances of busy office life.Everyone needs downtime to recharge their energy, relax andprepare for work and life ahead.Weiming gained a clearer and deeper understanding about GE Aviation’s organization structure and business process. This experiencealso cultivated his global thinking model, paving a solid foundation for his future career development.Weiming’s transformation from an engineer to journalist, then to a sales person marked major shifts in careers. In 2005, he againmade a significant job leap by being placed in GE Transportation as General Manager of Sales. While an expert in aviation, Weiming’sbackground knowledge of locomotives was shallow at best. But Weiming was born to take on challenges. At GE Transportation, hevisited key accounts and kept close communications with local departments and global leaders while continuously learning about thetransportation field. Eventually, he helped GE Transportation build a promising cooperative partnership with the Ministry of Railways,GE Transportation’s top customer. During his tenure, GE Transportation signed a contract with the Ministry of Railways for 300Evolution main line locomotives and also signed a 20-year QTR Locomotive service agreement, the first time the Ministry of Railways39 GE & MEWeiming’s keys to success:• Dare to tackle challenges• Never stop learning• Be passionate about your jobFun facts about Weiming:• Born in Northeast China• Loves spicy food• Golf enthusiast• Exercises using special iPad apps to increase workout effectivenessduring business tripsGE & ME 40