In 2008, KMT defeated DPP in both parliament and presidential election. After that, the relationship of Taiwan and China went better than before. Activities including shipping, commerce and student exchanging are getting more and more frequent than it used to be. A great wave of people followed Taiwanese businessmen westward aiming to earn a great fortune in this “1.3 billion Market”. During that time, Hu had already gain her career success through many years of being journalist in “Commercial times” and “Business weekly”. She is very familiar with the financial circle of Taiwan. Yet she believes that Taiwan is too small for her and cannot give her more achievement if she stays. Since Beijing is a place of many important news, she asked her friend to introduce a job for her in Beijing.
In 2009, Hu accepted a cut in pay to get into “Caijing Magazine” in China. She then worked her journalist career in the field of foreign investment, finance and startup business. Eight years later, her salary went doubled many times. She can proudly say that she is one of the “Pusher” in techno-business startups in China of recent years.
Hu is not a Chinese citizen, therefore it’s impossible for her to have a press card. She thought it will influence her journalist career in China, but at the end it proves that there can always be an exception. ““Caijing Magazine” is special for they are backed by Prince Party. They had Taiwanese interns before, so I know they might consider me to get in because many important people had already switch to different companies. I am very important to them because I am a correspondent covering for foreign investments. So I get in without any difficulties.”
In addition, Hu explained that China still needs more professionals in many fields to meet its own development goals. Yet they do not want people from Europe or America. So the country welcomes many professionals from Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan. That is why many Taiwanese can work in China now.
Hu took banking and securities industry for example. She pointed out that Taiwanese professionals and experiences played an important role during the progress of Chinese financial liberalization. China Merchant Bank for instance, it was built solely on a team from Taiwan’s China Trust, and Yuanta Securities was established under the same condition. “When they create a new market, they prefer using many Taiwanese. Semiconductor industry must be the same. If Chinese investors has global market goals, they prefer hiring Taiwanese. ”
In her understanding, there is actually little restrictions working in China. The hard part is the job itself! She often worried about how to maintain a job for the media market here is often changing in rapid speed. There was a moment when Hu felt very frustrated and sad after failure. However, when you overcome those sadness and failure, a better and more skillful person you will become. That is the greatest lesson she learned from China.
She said, “Any industry is without possibilities if people has no possibility to create their own business. My characteristics suit China well. There are many people like me which Taiwanese often refer as wolves in Chinese saying. But I don’t think myself as wolf, I take good care of my younger colleagues. I want to do something different than others, something none has ever done before. I want to try if I can accomplish that. Just like I first came to Beijing, no other journalist in the financial field do as I do. I think that is really cool. A predictable life is not what I want. When people has more possibilities and more and more of them will try different things, the industries will have more possibilities. And you will get bolder and bolder in the progress. After winning once you certainly will hope to win a greater triumph and to do crazier things.”
During these years, Taiwan saw the shrinking of traditional media, unknown future of new media and the stagnant of economy. Hu witnessed the same changing progress of media in China. Yet she did not abandon her enthusiasm in media and switch position to PR department like her many peers. “Wolf culture in China” let her saw an eager spirit for survival which is different than Taiwan. Her ambition on accumulating knowledge of creating business and market expansion made her journalist career to chief editor, and later on chief executive. Now she is eagerly preparing to create her own business. She has discovered that she is actually suitable for China.
For a person who once suffered from depression due to career difficulties and see psychiatrist for half year, and also taunted by tens of thousands of “Pink Patriots” as “Taiwanese dog out of China”, it may be weird to say herself suitable for China. But this veteran financial journalist, who express her Taiwan independence speeches on Facebook and criticized mercilessly on Chinese society (and Taiwanese society also), said she actually has a different feeling toward China. This feeling came from several years of her witness of entrepreneur spirit in China.
She said “When I came in 2009, the world is not like this. There are little believes in startup business. But now my colleagues all believe that if you understand internet and know how to run business, you may just succeed without dinning with big media bosses or have Baidu resources. This are something I been through. I believe myself as one of the pusher. Alibaba’s slogan is make it easy to do business anywhere. That I think is a common belief of new generation in China. Nowadays, p2p financial service is leading one person directly to another person. It dissolves power to each person and gives everyone the equal right to do business. People can do business without banks and POS. Tricycles with QR codes stickers can be a business. There are too many thing happened such as these.”
“My feeling toward China is different with Taiwanese. Because I know what kind of agony they must suffered to change their own life. I am much localized at this part. Americans needs to fight with wilderness in old times while China needs to fight the party itself now. I worried the world created by these younger generation might be destroyed someday. We came from a place of total freedom, there are so many things (regulations) we cannot tolerate even compare to the Chinese. Although I know I can get out at any time, but they cannot run out.”
However, it is exactly because she are “localized” and has feeling toward China, Hu has more worries and concern on Taiwan’s situation. Compare to China, she of course loves Taiwan more, but she also said, “Taiwan’s payment is impossible to find talented employers. I dare not come back to Taiwan if no one want it invest me, unless I make enough money. Brain drain in Taiwan is caused by low payment which money is the most urgent problem. The other important thing is possibilities. ”
Hu thinks brain drain will give Taiwan permanent harm last for a whole generation. So now Taiwan’s most urgent plan should be attracting more talented people. And there should be less regulations on startup businesses. We must revolutionize our industrial structure and welcome more people from around the world.
“For now, we can only attract people from India and Southeast Asia. But it must be done one step at a time. Open our market little by little. Aiming to gain more quantity. As for what kind of business to open, let the market decides and not by government. When we hire foreigners there will be risks like different languages, cultures and local environments. Companies need to take care of them and must consider in a way that they benefit Taiwan more than they cause troubles. Let Companies decide by themselves without government intervention. Decisions should not be from above.”
Hu emphasized that we shouldn’t avoid seeing international talentss coming to Taiwan as “competition” or “stealing jobs”. Because, “working with smart people is not called competition. It is very pleasant! Calling it competition means you only see it in horrible ways. ” She thinks that in the past Taiwanese are only used to do business in Taiwanese market. But if you welcome more international talents to come they will bring new market. So we better open to the world. “If you see a foreigner as only a job-stealer, then you become more and more sealed. Acer had its foreign CEO aiming to do business in international market. We used to have these kind of experiences, how come we became so closed now? ”
As a Taiwanese working in China, she did not believe she understand China. She needed help so she learned to work with suitable team. They helped each other out and learned new things while quickly adapted to teamwork. If the working environment can be as open as this in Taiwan, then it will get better eventually. Finally, Hu emphasized that there is still a strong hierarchy culture in Taiwan’s working place. If leaders cannot adapt changing, then they must learn to resign. Welcoming international talents is a way to change Taiwan’s working place and industries.
“Learning to adapt new culture will change you. Maybe it gets very slow at first, but it is a start. No need to say anything, just give it a fight!”
