Lu Zhong and Haijun: The savage who broke into the investment

In a suit of investment meeting, the peers are showing an investment report, dressed in casual haijun and a glance to each other said that we may not be able to make such a report in life, this can do.

This is from 8848 to million nets to Alibaba's entrepreneurial partners, with the cumulative 30 Internet entrepreneurial experience to start "All the sea investment", no returnees background no investment banking experience, the most important chip is years of combat experience and contacts.

"We're investing in a little bit of dirt, and we're not going to be able to write that detailed report. "Lu said. So the pair walked barefoot into the big investment circle.

Separation

Lu Zhong and Haijun have more than 15 years of friendship. Lu Zhong from Microsoft to 8848, the Haijun recruit, two people began the first cooperation. After leaving 8848, Haijun to start a business, Lu people in Oracle, AMD, and invest in Haijun founded two companies (and later by the air network and handheld Smart acquisition), began the first pioneering cooperation. Then Lu Zhong founded Smoke Network, continue to pull Haijun join.

Smoke network 2008 and million Nets merged, million Nets 2009 was Ali acquisition, two people have been cooperation to Alibaba. At the beginning million net independent development in Alibaba, 2013 merged into Aliyun, Lu Zhong as vice president of Alibaba Group, Haijun become general manager of Aliyun Business cooperation, and later served as Ali Group of wireless Division of the general manager of marketing cooperation.

Haijun has been in the line of business, the past 20 years of his life has been back figures, such as million net daily business volume, mobile Taobao daily download volume, the spirit of high tension. But in the 20 entrepreneurial process, he felt the internet for the entire ecological impact. After two successful startups, Haijun no longer has to prove himself by starting a new venture, but by using his entrepreneurial experience to help more entrepreneurs succeed and become Haijun's biggest dream of life.

Haijun's leader Lu Zhong had already moved.

In May 2013, Mr Ma announced his resignation as CEO, stressing that the opportunity was left to young people. Ali also discussed the need for senior executives over the age of 50 to take a backseat and use their experience and resources to help the front-line. This year's 51-Year-old, Bihlang 10-Year-old Lu public undoubtedly belong to the "second line" camp.

Liberated from the first line of business, the people responsible for foreign cooperation have more time to study Ali business. And in the course of his work, both the partner operators and the chairman of the Changjiang Business School, the traditional company, often ask the same question: what is the nature of Internet thinking? Why does the Internet have such a big impact? What does the Internet do to subvert traditional industries?

Lu people through their own experience and experience to give his answer, these friends will ask the solution, and the LU after the proposed solution, and was asked to recommend some Internet cattle to the company to implement. After several sets of similar series of services, Lu found that the results are not ideal.

"The traditional company gene is very exclusive to the Internet, and the Internet itself will change the traditional mode of the original enterprise, even if the recommendation of the Internet people to traditional enterprises, it is difficult to let the traditional industry self-revolution." "Lu said," Finally I and these private enterprise friends to reach a consensus, if they really want to do the Internet, it needs to be done outside the system, investment is suitable but, if really done, and then find ways to incorporate into the system or cooperation. ”

This kind of thing unceasingly occurs, the LU public realizes this direction and the domain best manifests own value.

In the idea of investing, Lu and Haijun hit. They from the first chat to put into action only one months, each first took out 10 million yuan, two people to set up the name of "All the Sea investment", do a lot of difficult to prepare for the preparation, on the arm of the sleeve opened dry.

The positioning of the investment is also clear: the Internet thinking and technology with the traditional industry, will produce a new business model and great impact, around this thinking, as long as there are similar opportunities in various fields, brave investment in.

Circle of Friends

When learned that Lu Zhong and Haijun left, they have invested their Arctic light first time to express support, and to the investment capital of the sea 10 million to become LP, the two sides bundled together for project investment.

This also solves the problems of the early days of the sea: both are not financial and financial legal origin, the team is now in addition to their two is an assistant, finalized the project after a series of professional services, are relying on the Northern Lights to coordinate treatment.

Lu Zhong and Haijun also had the honor to meet Dengkammin. Dengkammin joined Alibaba in 2004, following Jack Ma for 9 years, has been responsible for Ali human Resources, is Alibaba Group senior Vice president, has served as Alibaba Group chief talent officer.

After leaving Ali in 2013, Dengkammin founded Fuk Road Consulting to help the strategic transformation of the company to solve the human system and the Internet matching problems. Dengkammin also through 10 million yuan to become a public investment LP, the Office and the Sea investment together.

The list of investment LP in the Sea, as well as Ali, Tencent and other well-known internet companies, the names of senior executives and several listed companies chairman. But this only finally reaches 200 million Yuan fund, the biggest source of funds is the LU Zhong and Haijun "The Circle of Friends".

At the end of June this year, after leaving formalities, Lu Zhong and Haijun respectively in the circle of friends, learned that they are going to do investment, Lu Zhong Changjiang Business School students, Haijun business school students in China and Europe have point praise, Message said "Finally have an acquaintance of investment", many said to become investors.

This is particularly evident among Lu's classmates, who are the president or boss of these traditional listed companies who are eager to get involved in the Internet myths. Lu Zhong also know that the success of the Internet entrepreneurship behind the thousands, he and every person who wants to invest serious talk, stressed that the first risk is high, the second does not promise return, third, if the investment failure will affect the life of money do not vote.

In Lu public persuasion, originally have three vowed to invest students give up.

Lu people with the Northern Lights venture partner Tan is a friend for many years, often play golf, whenever they talk about entrepreneurial projects, Tan will also give a lot of advice. In some of the project, Tan will suggest to see the trend, and then look at the team, but he thinks the investment has the vision ingredient, but also has the probability ingredient, after all, the team's execution ability is crucial, but many times the execution ability may change.

Investment in the sea and the former high Tang Weizhe Alibaba set up the Royal Fund (after the main investment B round) also have cooperation. Mr. Wei advised Lu and Haijun within six months to see more, less or even not cast. "We always remember these wise things," Lu said.

"Our money comes from friends, so we treat every project with great care." Lu people feeling. In the past six months, the venture market has been as hot as crazy, under the advice of friends, Lu and Haijun control their investment desire, 4 months although see more than 200 projects, but finally only a few, and each let the industry's friends to help check to reduce the risk of blindness.

The project also comes from a circle of friends. Status into Ali former employees, Haijun soon joined Ali staff organization "former Orange Will", and become Beijing "the former Orange will" activities organizer, Ali used to call "small two". For Ali leaving students do good public service at the same time, will also be exposed to the entrepreneurial or entrepreneurial students, often in exchange for entrepreneurship and financing views. And every day, Haijun and the micro-letter, there are many acquaintances introduced projects, two people go to talk.

Grounding gas

Although the initial investment would be a bit of a worry, Lu and Haijun soon found their advantage.

Inspired by the ecological architecture of Alibaba, the sea sets up a set of incubation system: Dengkammin team to solve the manpower problem, the perennial cooperation of law firms to solve the problem of legal affairs, Lu and Haijun are working origin, know how a company starting from 0 to do, how to solve the different stages of the problem, they are mainly responsible for solving business problems, such as strategy and team building.

"We have built an ecological environment where entrepreneurs only need to do business." "Lu said. Although Lu and Haijun together to see the project, but after the investment two role division of Labor also have different: Haijun long-term in the line of business, the Operation ground gas, execution is very strong, not afraid of making mistakes; in the traditional industry resources are deeper, more is to help the project strategic planning and seek cooperation resources.

But such cooperation is also flawed, the current amount of investment in the number of people and Haijun can also be exhaustive, but the amount of time needed to judge the industry data, so they are also looking for a strong analytical ability of the financial background of partners to ensure that the investment more rational.

In Beijing's Beijing Weigongcun International Mansion, the sea investment rented a floor of the half floor, Lu and Haijun each one office, all other to incubate the entrepreneurial team. For example, in the former Orange will find to start the students, all the sea to provide free office space, do not demand a certain investment, but I hope the product can be given a first glance.

Car Maintenance O2O platform "to keep the car" is the unique investment of the sea products, the founder of the car is Ali employees Wang Yubo, before the Alibaba has been sales management positions, with the idea of entrepreneurship, found it difficult to find the right products and technical personnel. To find the investment in the sea, Lu and Haijun also very agree with the direction of car maintenance O2O, but such a lame team is in any case not up to investment standards. According to traditional VC practice, the case will be pass away in a minute.

Lu Zhong and Haijun in the investment before doing one thing: The Ali department left out also good products and technical staff introduced to Wang Yubo, let them talk about good intentions and shares of cooperation, after a good team investment. This project the sea and the Northern Lights together Angel investment 5 million Yuan, the project launched the second month after the number of customers has reached hundreds of.

Relative to the billion-dollar funds, the sea 200 million yuan can only be counted as small funds, so Lu and Haijun to the fund positioning is also very clear, cast angel or pre-a round, single investment as far as possible within 5 million yuan.

On every project, both Lu and Haijun have a veto, but even friends who are well acquainted with the roots will disagree. But the difference is not in the team and the talent, but on the project.

For example, Haijun children to primary school, he is very interested in children's education programs, but LU children have graduated from work to see all the related projects are not feeling. In addition, Lu people like to play golf, he thought some golf app is worth investing, but Haijun did not feel.

The solution is to keep the other person involved in the project, participate in the meetings and discussions with the team, and let the two people decide on a level of understanding of the project.

Generation Sense

In Haijun office There is a tea, if an entrepreneur appointment, Haijun will say: "Brother, do tea, what do you do, what are you going to do." "Usually one day the tea can drink 4 tea and talk about 4 or 5 entrepreneurs."

Do business people are too easy to have a sense of generation, Haijun often listen to the entrepreneur described, stood up to pull back the blackboard, began to write points, such as if it is their own doing will do. Of course, this is not the premise of Haijun investment, is purely a suggestion, but many entrepreneurs after listening to be very inspired, which makes Haijun feel particularly valuable.

Rich entrepreneurial experience, and Ali wireless business accumulation of resources, become haijun to win investment weight, but in the early days also let him make a lot of mistakes.

For example, invest in the first month, Haijun every day excited abnormal, think every project is so good. Later Haijun and Lu people feel this is wrong, how can every project is reliable. Lu people very directly pointed out that Haijun role positioning problem, Haijun also suddenly wake up: "I habitually put myself as an entrepreneur, every chat a project, I suppose I am doing, and even want to run to find who to do, technology to find who to do, this thing how to do." ”

But not everyone is haijun. "You let them do it, you grade it, and then you look at it." Lu Haijun said to the public. Of course, the sense of the thing in the LU often happen, especially for the company has invested, he always want to meet with each other to say how to do next 1234.

The second month of investing, Lu and Haijun only slowly find the feeling. They are also introspection, should not so in-depth to intervene, and later, there are many projects, there is no time to have the energy to participate so much. What's more, if you invest in a company and you get investors involved, that means you've got the wrong person.

All the sea investment in the car maintenance O2O project in the Sea Office hatch, before Haijun eager to stare every day to ask each thing progress, later feel too boring, slowly control their own. He and the car maintenance O2O team said that if you feel the need to come to him, he will not take the initiative to find a team to say anything.

Another mistake of "surrogate sense" is that investors are more excited than entrepreneurs. Lu Zhong and Haijun sometimes find a particularly good opportunity to start assembling the team to do it. Save a Half-day Lu and Haijun found, the most exciting is the two of them, "Assembly" team CEO and CTO often a face confused.

"There has to be a founder, he wants to do this thing, excited Aooh." "Haijun concludes.

It is these experiences so that Lu and Haijun sigh a lot, before often heard that investment is to invest in the team, the actual operation found too correct, and this is precisely the investment difficulties. Haijun found that there are too many lame items, the founder of the idea is very good, but the team is difficult to implement, the first Haijun will be very tangled still want to invest, but now will give up.

Lu Zhong and Haijun the most consistent idea is to cast a team, the first team has a business model, the other team is not a passion, the mind can do how large, the ability to implement the organization is to measure whether the focus of investment. Because Lu and Haijun are hands-on investors, many entrepreneurial teams are willing to use them to enter at a lower cost in order to gain entrepreneurial advice and help.

Experienced in 2000 and 2009 two times the internet bubble, the most worry is the entrepreneurial team impetuous. Especially contact with a lot of bat out of the staff, he felt that the halo of the company before so many employees to enlarge their ability, when these combative entrepreneurs in front of the Lu Zhong to describe a better future, the heart sigh: "God, investment may really harm them." ”

Some people came out of the big company and came up with a few pages of paper and said, "I'm going to do a very big job, and I'll do it for you, and it's worth tens of millions of billion." When you hear this, you usually don't want to go on listening. He thinks that quite a few young people do not understand fame and fortune: Halo is the collective success of enterprises brought, once from the enterprise down to their own reorientation, pay their sincerity to start the journey of entrepreneurship.

"No one can help them, only in the community beat it." "Lu said. But in the face of these entrepreneurs he would not like to say more, because the staff said to him, "Lu always you out, you do not have the spirit of the Times." Lu people think about it, maybe this time also need to have this spirit of people, someone can not buxinxie to have innovation, "but the essence of the law will not change." ”