Companies

Firms in Quanzhou look overseas for talents

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-09-09 11:06

Several private companies in Quanzhou, East China's Fujian province, are looking for talent worldwide as the city's booming private sector gears up to optimize its structure amid the trend of globalization.

These companies are keen to lure designers and managers, and R&D experts from around the world.

The Hong Kong-listed sportswear maker Xstep China has hired a South Korean as its chief designer, whom the company expects to use colors and styles in an innovative way.

"South Korean professionals are good at colors while Japanese are experts on quality control and R&D," an official from Xstep said.

Investing more than 100 million yuan ($14.6 million) annually on design, apparel maker Lilanz has hired top designers from home and aboard. The Hong Kong-listed company is also cooperating with Federation Francaise de la Couture, the French fashion industry governing body, to improve the firm's design.

Another apparel maker, Green Group, known in China for its children's wear brand Dadida, signed a strategic cooperative deal with its Spanish counterpart Kids Gallery earlier this year. Under the partnership, Kids Gallery's senior designer has been hired as Green's chief designer. Green has also relocated design parts to Europe to pursue a good mix of Chinese and global elements.

Experienced managers are also on the hunting list of Quanzhou companies. For example, chewing gum producer Fujian JJW Foodstuff Co Ltd has hired Zhang Zhihong, a senior manager of US-based Wrigley, the world's leading gum producer.

This recent enthusiasm to recruit overseas talents is to cope with the mounting challenges resulting from a combination of factors such as rising raw material prices and foreign exchange fluctuations.

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These firms, many of which are contracted apparel makers, have to survive by upgrading industrial structures and adding value to their products and services.

"To lure high-end talents is to promote the development of the enterprise. Hiring them is like adding new blood because they will help eliminate old-fashion management ideas and propel the development of the company," said Cai Zhulong, chairman of clothes producer Zhu Long International.

"In addition, if a company wants to globalize, it has to employ more international talents."

Experts said the lack of high-end talents with a global vision has put a severe dent in the creativity of private companies. Therefore many have been competing for these talents as they are eager to penetrate the global market.

The trend, some industry insiders said, will help narrow the gap between private and foreign-funded companies. The difference between them will diminish, as foreign firms will learn to localize from private firms while private companies will learn from their foreign-funded counterparts in terms of management and internationalism.