Chen Zongxian’s business methodology: a comprehensive strategy from data decision-making to team management
In today’s rapidly changing business environment, business operators are faced with many challenges: generational change, intensifying market competition, globalization risks and digital transformation. Effective business operations no longer just rely on intuition or experience, but require systematic methodologies and scientific management tools. Professor Chen Zongxian, a well-known business consultant in Taiwan (https://rcsa-consultant.com/index.php/about/teacher#1), has helped countless companies transform and grow over the years. His [Business Methodology] (https://sat.cool/course/124) provides clear guidance and practical framework for companies.
I am very happy to have the opportunity to participate in the [live lecture] (https://www.accupass.com/event/2503050306432036817811) hosted by the Strategic Thinking Business School tonight, where I can hear Mr. Chen Zongxian’s personal remarks. With his rich business management experience, Mr. Chen Zongxian shared a series of unique business methodologies, covering the exploration of market opportunities, changes in organizational management, innovation in performance appraisal, and the shaping of corporate culture.
Make good use of global thinking and break through the ceiling of growth
Teacher Chen Zongxian has rich experience in business management and has served as a professional CEO and consultant for many companies. He found that one of the biggest challenges faced by Taiwanese companies is that it is difficult for entrepreneurs to transform from “professional executors” to “business operators.”
When formulating business strategies, companies should not just rely on intuition or past experience, but should use data analysis to find market opportunities. Statistical analysis can help companies understand consumer behavior, predict market trends, and formulate effective market strategies. For example, if a company can grasp changes in consumer purchasing behavior, it can adjust its product mix and sales model in a timely manner to enhance market competitiveness.
Teacher Chen Zongxian reminded us that business operations require overall thinking and the establishment of a system that allows various departments to collaborate.
Teacher Sun Zhihua also mentioned: “You don’t know what you don’t know.” Many entrepreneurs don’t know that the qualities they lack are the systematic thinking and methodology of business management. When an enterprise develops to a certain scale, without a systematic management method, it is easy to encounter growth bottlenecks.
Planned management: the cornerstone of a successful enterprise
Planned management is one of the cores of Mr. Chen Zongxian’s business methodology. He believes that the success or failure of a business largely depends on whether it has a clear and executable plan.
“Planned management is like Sun Tzu’s emphasis on ‘Win with righteousness and surprise’ in the Art of War,” explained teacher Chen Zongxian. “You must plan a strategy in advance to win in the market competition.” Effective planned management includes clear annual goal setting, comprehensive market and product analysis, clear execution paths and quantitative performance evaluation standards.
When it comes to business operations, [SWOT analysis](https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/Strength, Weakness and Crisis Analysis) (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) is an indispensable tool. “Many companies do SWOT analysis just as a formality,” he pointed out. “A truly effective SWOT analysis should help companies identify market opportunities and formulate specific action plans based on their own strengths.” SWOT analysis is not only a tool to identify the internal and external environment of the company, but more importantly, it transforms the analysis results into executable strategies.
Ansoff Matrix and Growth Strategy
Teacher Chen Zongxian cited [Ansoff Matrix](https://zh.wikipedia.org/zh-tw/Ansoff Matrix) in his methodology as an important tool for formulating product market strategies. Through the Ansoff Matrix, companies can be helped to choose appropriate growth strategies, including market penetration, market development, product development and diversification.
“Using the Ansoff Matrix allows businesses to think about growth strategies systematically,” said Mr. Chen Zongxian. “When choosing strategies, businesses need to consider their own resource conditions and risk tolerance.”
Different growth strategies are often accompanied by different risks: the market penetration strategy has the lowest risk and is suitable for conservative companies; the market development and product development strategy has moderate risks; the diversification strategy has the highest risk, but also the greatest potential returns. Teacher Chen Zongxian observed that Taiwanese companies are often too conservative and lack a systematic growth mindset, which somewhat limits their development potential.
Concentric circle theory and innovative growth
The most distinctive part of Chen Zongxian’s methodology is undoubtedly the concentric circle theory he proposed. This theory is about how to expand product lines around core business to create more revenue sources and growth opportunities for the company.
Teacher Chen Zongxian proposed the concentric circle theory, emphasizing that enterprises should extend outward from their core business and expand performance through cross-border operations:
-
Core business (first level circle): The company’s main business, such as a food company selling beverages and a shoe store selling leather shoes.
-
Peripheral products (second level circle): Extend products based on the needs of existing customers, such as restaurants launching frozen food and clothing brands selling accessories.
-
Cross-industry cooperation (the third level of the circle): Provide cross-industry products that customers may need, breaking traditional industry boundaries. For example, a leather shoe brand launches New Year dishes, successfully creating new revenue sources.
“99% of companies in Taiwan only sell products of their own industry,” Chen Zongxian pointed out. “There is only one in the middle. It is difficult to double the performance in this way.”
The so-called concentric circle theory means that companies should start from their core business and expand their product lines outwards:
- Core business: the company’s main business, the products or services it is best at
- Peripheral products: supporting products related to core business
- Cross-industry services: Provide cross-industry products or services based on understanding customer needs
Teacher Chen Zongxian used a surprising example to illustrate this theory: “I am the consultant of Ah Shou Leather Shoes, and I let them sell New Year vegetables.” This seemingly unrelated business combination actually has profound business logic. The main customer group of Ah Shou leather shoes is working women aged 35-55. They not only need beautiful shoes, but also face multiple pressures from work, family and holiday meal preparation.
“You never think from the customer’s point of view,” explained teacher Chen Zongxian. “These women have to go to work to make money, do housework, and cook during the holidays. They are exhausted. If you thoughtfully prepare New Year’s dishes for her, she can also dress beautifully.”
This cross-border business generated revenue of 190 million yuan in the first month after its launch, fully proving the commercial value of the concentric circle theory. In other words, the core of the concentric circle theory is to start from customer needs rather than traditional product thinking, which represents a disruptive way of thinking about business.
OKR and Performance Management: A Culture of Autonomy and Responsibility
Teacher Chen Zongxian’s business methodology also includes a complete performance management system, the core of which is the application of OKR (objectives and key results). He emphasized that effective performance management is the key to building high-performance teams.
“In OKR, O is the denominator and KR is the numerator,” Chen Zongxian explained, “O is the objective (goal), and KR is the key result (key result).”
His OKR implementation steps include: the superior gives clear annual goals (O); ensures that the goals are accepted through sufficient communication; employees decide how to achieve the goals and formulate key results (KR); and conduct objective evaluations based on the achievement of KRs. “The superior only needs to give O, and O needs to explain it clearly and get his approval,” said Chen Zongxian. “Then he has to work hard by himself, create the numerator and divide it by the denominator. The fate of the outcome is determined by himself.”
When evaluating performance standards, teacher Chen Zongxian set a clear threshold: “70 points is a threshold. Only those who pass it can survive. We have to use the institute’s standards to review. Even if you reach 69.9 points, you may die. That is You are nothing.” This clear standard makes performance evaluation more objective and transparent, avoiding disputes caused by subjective evaluations.
The leadership philosophy of “Four Commons”
In Mr. Chen Zongxian’s business methodology, performance management is not only an evaluation tool, but also an important means of shaping corporate culture. He proposed the leadership philosophy of “Four Cos”: coexistence, co-prosperity, sharing and mutual benefit.
Teacher Chen Zongxian said that enterprises should take coexistence, co-prosperity, sharing and mutual benefit as their core culture:
-
Coexistence: develop together with employees, customers, and partners.
-
Co-prosperity: A win-win situation is achieved through mutual support.
-
Sharing: Corporate profits should be given back to employees to promote mutual growth between employees and the company.
-
Mutual benefit: Ensure that all three parties, including the enterprise, employees and customers, benefit.
“I advocate four coexistences: coexistence, co-prosperity, sharing and mutual benefit,” said Chen Zongxian. “I don’t do things, I plan them and let everyone do it. If I am so powerful that I do everything, that would be wrong. We should work together and share the money with everyone.”
The core of this leadership philosophy is to create a win-win business ecosystem, in which interdependence and mutual growth are formed between enterprises and employees, and enterprises and partners. Teacher Chen Zongxian agrees that the OKR model can make everyone responsible for their own performance and create a healthier organizational atmosphere.
Generation Change and Talent Management
Teacher Chen Zongxian pays special attention to the challenges faced by enterprises in the change of generations, which is also a key issue in business management in Taiwan today. He divides workplace talents into four generations: Baby Boomers (born before 1970), Generation X, Generation Y (born 1985-2000), and Generation Z/Generation Alpha (born after 2000).
“In Taiwan’s current society, when we talk about the workplace or the labor market, there are people of various generations in this market at the same time,” Mr. Chen Zongxian analyzed. “And the majority of people in the entrepreneurial generation are baby boomers.”
He pointed out that generational change is one of the biggest obstacles for Taiwanese companies: “Because there is no way to understand the boss of the earlier generation, because he will always face these people with his old thinking, and then talk about what he thought about back then.”
He advised business operators: “Stop talking about the past. They didn’t have time to participate in your past, and you don’t understand their present.” This generation gap is a pain point in many business managements, especially in family businesses.
In the face of generational differences, Teacher Chen Zongxian proposed a performance-oriented management method and suggested that everyone use the method of formulating annual goals to plan and manage.
He believes that performance management is a management tool that transcends generational differences: “You decide how much you take, because you create the performance.” This management model is especially effective for the younger generation because it provides clear goals and expectations, increases security; creates a fair evaluation mechanism based on results rather than qualifications; and empowers autonomy, which is in line with the work expectations of the younger generation.
The path of transformation from professionals to operators
After listening to tonight’s live lecture, I have a rough understanding and knowledge of Mr. Chen Zongxian’s [Business Methodology] (https://sat.cool/course/124). From planned operations, SWOT analysis, HPA matrix to Ansoff matrix, concentric circle theory and OKR performance management, these tools together constitute a comprehensive operating system and also provide entrepreneurs and business operators with a set of systematic tools and thinking framework.
In the rapidly changing business environment, we need guidance from our predecessors: Teacher Chen Zongxian’s methodology is like a bright light, guiding entrepreneurs to the road to success. Through systematic management methods and the leadership philosophy of “Four Commons”, companies can not only achieve long-term and sustainable growth, but also create an organizational culture that can transcend generational differences.
Teacher Chen Zongxian’s business methodology provides a complete business framework of data orientation, performance management, generational leadership and cultural shaping. In the current era of drastic market changes, if companies can use these methods, they will be able to improve their competitiveness and achieve long-term growth.
Ultimately, successful operators are not only professional executors, but also creators of visions, leaders of teams, and builders of systems. It is this kind of transformation that can create a truly everlasting enterprise. Whether you are an entrepreneur, a business executive, or a professional who wants to improve your business capabilities, you can gain valuable inspiration from these experiences.
Further reading
📖 深入探索相關主題
