For decades, the "Development State" theory was a way to understand most of us of how the Asian tigers' economies flourish during the period from the 1960s to the 1980s, where these successes were linked to wise interventions by government technocrats.
But starting in the early nineties, the effectiveness of the governmental role began to decline, and global markets became more complicated, forcing East Asian companies to rely on themselves in their endeavor to find ways to compete in global markets.
Three methods have been pursued by Asian companies that have succeeded in developing a business model that is able to compete globally, during which they linked themselves to the largest global supply chains.Some of them know how to specialize in specific industries and are distinguished in them, and this is exactly what large shipbuilding companies did in South Korea and Singapore.
While another succeeded in finding a foothold for herself on the global scene as trademarks that enjoy significant market classes, such as "Acer" in Taiwan, "Samsung", "LG" and "Hyundai" in South Korea.While the third category focused on providing design and manufacturing services to the leading brands, the Taiwanese "Foxconn" does with "Apple".
"Fxcon"..Typical rise story
- In his book "Strategic Context", "Henry Wi -Chung Young" reviews the conditions of the rise of prominent companies in the economies of Asian tigers, and explains how these companies, which are essentially the product of the state's industrial policy in making their own way and linking their capabilities to global supply chains.
- "Hoon Hai Limited for Microphysics" known as "Foxconn" fell under the global media radar when it first appeared in the "Forbes Asia" list of 2005.The Taiwanese company has succeeded with confident and thoughtful steps in linking itself to the largest brands in the world.
Perhaps "Foxconn" is the most exceptional state of a family owned by a family, which was able to grow quickly during the first decade of the twentieth century, to become the largest industrial company in Taiwan and the largest provider of electronics manufacturing services in the world.
Foxconn was established in 1974 as a company that works in the field of plastic spare parts manufacturing, such as changing handles in black and white TVs, but its business did not achieve tremendous growth except in the late 1990s.
- During the 1980s, "Foxconn" has become a manufacturer of a variety of electronic parts, including connectors and cables of desktop and mobile computers.By 1996, the company's revenues reached about half a billion US dollars.
- Until that time, and by measuring the annual revenue, "Foxconn" was smaller than other Taiwanese companies such as "Quanta Computer" and "Komal Electronics", and the situation continued in this case after the beginning of the third millennium.
But by 2010, Foxconn's annual sales exceeded the $ 100 billion barrier (its revenues in 2016 amounted to more than $ 140 billion).Its annual growth rate since 1996 was about 46%.
Towards the top
- But how did the submerged and unknown Taiwanese company until the late nineties become the largest electronics manufacturer in the world with annual sales that exceed the revenues of its nine largest competitors in the world together?
- The secret lies simply the adoption of the Taiwanese company, which is employed by several million for a business model through which it succeeded in launching strategic partnerships with the largest international companies, such as "Apple", "Dell", "HP", "Intel", "Nokia" and "Motorola, "Sony" and "Toshiba".
- The first achievement by "Foxconn" in its endeavor to launch strategic companies with the leading international companies was in 1995, when its founder "Terry Joe" met with "Michael del" in southern China.
- On their way to the airport, the Taiwanese businessman succeeded in persuading the founder of "Dell", the 30 -year -old, to visit the company's factory in the Chinese city.
- At that time, "Dell" and other computer companies were buying electronic components of their suppliers before they collected them in their private factories.But Foxconn has created a full production line during which most of these parts were combined, and the product comes out of a device for sale.
After this visit, "Foxconn" became the largest electronics supplier for "Dell".Through close cooperation with leading companies in the field of personal computer such as "Dell" and "HP", the Taiwanese company by 2004 became the largest electronics manufacturer in the world.
- In the year 2005, her strategic partnerships with Motorla and Nokia helped her also become the largest provider of mobile mobile components in the world, as its revenues from this activity reached only about 6.3 billion dollars.
"Apple" and "Foxconn"..The two sides of the same coin
Among all the strategic partnerships launched by "Foxconn" with major international companies, its cooperation with "Apple" is highlighted as the most important and most influential in the history of the company.
- With its subsidiary, Foxcon International, which is based in China, which was established in 2000, Foxconn is almost exclusively manufacturing and producing the famous "Apple" iPhone (since its first launch in 2007) and "iPad"(Since its launch in 2010), it is also considered one of the few manufacturers of the iPod that was launched for the first time in the uncle of 2001.
- Foxconn's competitiveness as an electronics factory was an important and embarrassing factor in the success of "Apple" since the launch of "iPhone".When Steve Jobs revealed the first version of the iPhone on January 9, 2007, the company had only 6 months before the date it announced as the date of the availability of the product in the markets.
Apple received the first shipment of "iPhone" from "Foxconn" on June 29, 2007.After 5 years, the time difference between the announcement of the new version and the date of its launch was reduced to less than two weeks.
The design of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus device was revealed on September 9, 2014, and by the nineteenth of the same month, the two devices were available for purchase in the United States, Canada France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Portricho and the United Kingdom.
- This time gap that separates the announcement of the design and the date of its launch in the markets is very short, and it is a competitive advantage for "Apple" and at the same time highlights the success of "Foxconn" that undertakes manufacturing and distribution.A lot of "Apple" competitors usually range from this period from month to several months.(Foxconn can produce 500,000 units of "iPhone" daily).
Your problem is my problem
- "Foxconn", which has made more than 500 million units of "iPhone" since its launch, has become a decisive part of "Apple" success thanks to its capabilities that include the speed of intensifying the volume of production, high quality control and competitive prices, which made it a significant force, contribute toThe success of "Apple" and other leading brands in the technological sector.
- "Foxconn" for "Apple" cannot be considered just a subcontractor, but rather an important and major commercial partner, and although both sides are taking steps in the recent period to reduce the size of mutual dependence between them, their commercial interests are still very intertwined.The success of "iPhone" depends on "Foxconn" and the growth of "Foxconn" depends on "iPhone".
- "Apple" and "Foxconn"يتقاسمان النجاح والفرص، وفي نفس الوقت تواجه الشركتان المخاطر نفسها تقريبًا.
For example, Apple found itself in the fire, after press reports indicated repeated suicide cases by Foxconn employees in China..Critics directed their arrows to the American company, which they considered responsible for the harsh working conditions of its main resource.
- Following this incident, Tim Cook, who was still director of Apple operations in June 2010, rushed to China to meet the President of "Foxconn", accompanied by two risk management experts with him.
Apple conducted an investigation that lasted for a month in order to reach how to deal with the situation, and took the actions of the Taiwanese company to implement it..Since then, "Tim Cook" has visited the Foxconn factories himself on three other occasions: in 2012 shortly after the death of the company's founder, Steve Jobs, in 2014 and 2015.
Using the people of the country
- For the purpose of absorbing foreign technologies and developing their administrative capabilities, East Asian companies, including "Foxconn", were keen to take advantage of the "migration of minds" in the opposite way, through the use of returnees from abroad who studied the best universities and worked for the largest global technology companies in the most competitive and most competitive marketsTechnologically advanced as Silicon Valley.
- Local East economies have relied on these competencies to create a new generation of private sector institutions.These technicians contributed to building the dynamic capabilities of Asian companies in the early eighties.
- The decisive role that these people played in developing high -precision technology industries in East Asian economies during the nineties does not reflect the importance of government incentives and industrial policy adopted by these countries as much as they reflect the technical and administrative skills of professionals and entrepreneurs that they acquired through their contact with innovation and globalization production networks.
- Since the late 1990s, the emergence of these returning technicians to their homelands as leaders of the Eastern Greater Eastern companies led to a gradual shift in the global production network, through the emergence of senior players in the technology industry from outside the United States and Europe.
