The mystery of the decline of Taiwan's technology brands: lack of talent the board is not perfect

Beijing Time September 24 news, Taiwan's two leading brands in science and technology: Acer's two consecutive years of serious losses, fear of mergers and acquisitions rumors flying, HTC in the past two years, the market capitalisation of 900 billion NT dollars (about 186.22 billion yuan), the internal breaking espionage case highlighted the management model there are major loopholes. Why is the brand dream of Taiwan's technology industry always scarred?

"From Acer to Asus to HTC, the challenge is essentially the same," said one founder of the brand in private.

Taiwan's local market space is too small, naturally difficult to have the technology industry's most critical industry standard definition ability, such as operating system source code, basic communications patents. Taiwan will not choose the Korean model and try its best to build a brand.

"Small areas of resources to gather, more or less tolerant of the spirit of capitalism," Taiwan's political Science and technology management and intellectual Property Research institute Director Chiuliga pointed out that Taiwan's science and technology policy pay attention to fair, multi-yuan, but like the wolf skin (capitalist) sheep (socialism), so that target the world's 7 billion people, Taiwan's technology brand, Acquired disorder.

Acer, HTC, which has been the leader in two different areas, now faces the same fate: sharp changes in corporate profits.

There are several reasons for the decline of Taiwan's technology companies:

1. Lack of international talents

"HTC's market size is more than 5 times times that of Acer, but it is 6 times times shorter, and the pressure is naturally strong." There's nothing to be surprised about such ups and downs like HTC. The founder of a technology company explained that today's technology industry is competing for more resources globally than ever before, especially the "brand marketing", which requires a lot of money to be burned.

"Taiwanese brands are hard to survive. Samsung sells handsets like shampoo and trains salespeople to learn from Procter and Gamble (Tesco), "a former Samsung executive revealed that Samsung used technology brands as fast-moving consumer goods, boldly burning money, and Samsung invested more than three times times more in marketing than HTC. There are rumors that any dealership salesman, as long as the sale of a Samsung mobile phone, you can get 500 NT award.

Another resource that needs a lot of input is talent.

"It takes a global battle to have international talent," Acer's chairman Wang said Acer was willing to use international pay standards for global hunting and rewarded.

"Taiwanese companies have low international visibility and a lack of market development advantages, so they can only get top international talent with more than the general level of pay." "A professor of management in Taiwan's big business Administration," observes Lotus.

Acer has not spent money on international talent, but has been weak.

Opening Acer's 2012 annual report, Acer's former chief marketing officer, Dipler, the world's senior vice president for Asia Pacific Operations and Lin Yiwan, the world's senior vice president for Europe, has a salary level between 50 million and 100 million NT dollars (about 10.34 million to 20.68 million yuan), higher than Acer's global president, Wong. But Acer's market share fell from 13% to 8.3% over the same period.

"With a high salary but no improvement in corporate performance," one Acer Insider complained that Acer had no financial means to hire a better international talent after Lanci left.

HTC reuses the former Sony management team, relying on the former chief operating Officer Costello (Matthew Costello) to pull strings, a big stake in the U.S. headset brand beats, but also sell equity, for investment adverse hemostatic.

By Ronald Luke, the former chief technology officer, HTC has spent 45 million of billions of dollars on a multimedia content platform Saffron Digital, which has sold 47 million dollars this year. Both mergers have failed to give HTC a real role.

"With a group of foreigners, do a bunch of mergers and acquisitions, is called internationalization?" "A senior executive from HTC is resentful.

2, the Board of Directors is not perfect

Why can't Taiwanese tech companies work with international teams?

"Because Taiwanese companies do not have powerful, well-functioning boards," Chiuliga points out, Taiwanese technology brands rely too much on the CEO's personal capabilities.

Looking at the United States, the IBM board can find Gerstner (Louis Gerstner) back to the dead. Yahoo's board is also looking for Marissa Mayer to reinvent Yahoo.

"The board mechanism should be sound to build the management power step after stage," Chiuliga said.

3, the ability to relocate at any time

In the past, HTC relied on technology to make the world's first Android phone, the major operators to become the preferred partner. But relying on the technology to stand the pinnacle of success, HTC but despise the rapid development of smart phones to the middle and low-end market trends. HTC Interior, also is not not launched in the low-end mobile phones, from the high channel MediaTek various mobile phone chip solutions, various price segments, have also been tested.

"Peter (HTC CEO Peter Chou) asks for perfection and asks for the top, who dares to propose a low-end phone in front of him?" If you mess with him, you're not going to get a bonus this year, "one insider said.

Smartphones have grown at a high speed for five years, and the focus has changed from "specification" to "price".

"When Apple has to emphasize the function of the phone processor, you know that the product differentiation is not big." Only by brand, can not be decided, "a foundry manufacturer of the chairman of the analysis said.

HTC's "nobility" has sparked dissatisfaction among operators. "When you're just buying people's panels and processors to assemble, why do you sell high prices?" HTC wants to reposition itself, his rivals are not Samsung, Apple, should be Sony, LG, Huawei, "said one operator general manager bluntly."

Repositioning at any time is a necessary survival skill in brand warfare.

"Mastering the business model and the paradigm shift is the growth of the technology brand plant," said Zhu Bo, a professor of management science at the University of Tianxian in Taiwan. No. ”

Acer is also limited in its product flexibility. Single product line, a single new dealer tactic, the times have changed, the past success factors have become today's failure. More than five years ago, Chevy, Packard Bell and emachines, the market-share takeover, are now a heavy burden for Acer. The impairment of the brand's intangible assets will greatly weaken Acer's physique, making it difficult to make a profit this year.

Summary: Small areas should learn Switzerland

"Small areas can still ' outsmart ', as long as they know how to focus," Liu Shunren, a professor at the Taiwan University Business School, suggests that Taiwan can make another battleground and plow its Business-to-business brand.

The Swiss model is worthy of reference. "Switzerland emphasizes ' only ' that, through focus and mastery, Switzerland controls the 80% share of global banknote ink, and watches make a high profit," Liu Shunren, who advises Taiwan to become a global "invisible champion" in the Hudoliki market.

The hard road, will not go white.

The Dutch semiconductor industry, although only the semiconductor equipment maker Esmole (ASML), but the global semiconductor manufacturers have to it, last year's gross margin of 42%.

Although Britain failed to imitate Silicon Valley, Cambridge was born with a handset processor technology license maker Arm (ARM), although small as nails, so that the strength can also make elephants such as Intel worried.