Introduction

Haier is the world's 4th largest white goods manufacturer and the most valuable brand in China. With 29 manufacturing plants, 8 comprehensive R&D centers, 19 overseas trading companies across the world and more than 50,000 global employees, Haier has developed into a giant multinational company. In 2008, Haier gained global revenue of RMB119 billion.

Guided by the business philosophy of CEO Zhang Ruimin, Mr. Zhang Ruimin Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Zhang Ruimin, a Chinese Han, was born on January 5, 1949 in Laizhou, Shandong. He holds the title of senior economist and was awarded a MBA degree from the China Technology University in 1995. He is now the Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the Haier Group.

Haier has experienced the development stages, noted as Brand Building, Diversification and Internationalization. At the end of 2005, Haier came to its 4th strategic stage of global brand building. Thanks to 25 years of efforts, its reputation throughout the world has been heightened significantly. In 2008, the brand value of Haier amounted to impressive RMB 80.3 billion. Since 2002, Haier has topped the Most Valuable Brand tally for seven consecutive years. Nineteen Haier branded products, including refrigerator, air conditioner, washing machine, television, water heater, computer, mobile phone and home appliances integration, have been awarded as Chinese Famous Brand products. Haier refrigerator and washing machine are among the first group of Chinese World Famous Brand products awarded by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine of the P.R.C. In March 2008, Haier was selected as one of the "China's Top 10 Global Brands" by Financial Times for the second time. In June 2008, Forbes released the world's "600 Most Reputable Companies", of which Haier ranked the 13th and the 1st among Chinese companies. In July 2008, Haier ranked first in terms of overall leadership among Chinese mainland companies in the Wall Street Journal Asia's annual survey of "Asia's 200 Most Admired Companies". Haier has become an international brand, and its prestige is rising fast with its expansion into the international market.

Haier's managerial models of "OEC", "market chain" and "individual-order combination" have been highly recognized worldwide. Its experience has also been introduced into case studies of many foreign educational institutes, including Harvard University, University of Southern California, International Institute for Management Development (IMD), the European Business College (in France) and Kobe University. Its "market chain" management practice has also been accepted into the EU case study library stock.

Haier believes that the essence of globalization is localization. For Haier, this means a "Three-in-One" operational framework: complete localization of design, manufacture, and marketing. Haier aims to use local financing and employees to become a part of the local community while creating a global brand.

http://www.haier.com/index.asp