Foxconn
Foxconn, or Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., is one of the largest factories in China which is responsible for making a large amount of the world electronics, including products for Apple, Nintendo, Intel and more. Foxconn was founded in 1974 by Terry Gou “...to set a grand tolerance by providing the world's most competitive, ‘full-cost advantage,’ so that all mankind [can] enjoy Jieneng computer, communications, consumer electronics...” According to their website Foxconn hopes to provide “the world’s most competitive, ‘full-cost advantage,’ so that all mankind have encountered 3C products have enjoyed the convenience of green living” Foxconn portrays themselves as a positive company, whose work environments are the same “through a simple stick in love, confidence, determination of the philosophy of continuous dedication to this vision forward...” Lastly Foxconn relies on their business model of a five product strategy consisting of “speed, quality, engineering services, efficiency, and added value” to create the best products.
Foxconn, or Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., is one of the largest factories in China which is responsible for making a large amount of the world electronics, including products for Apple, Nintendo, Intel and more. Foxconn was founded in 1974 by Terry Gou “...to set a grand tolerance by providing the world's most competitive, ‘full-cost advantage,’ so that all mankind [can] enjoy Jieneng computer, communications, consumer electronics...” According to their website Foxconn hopes to provide “the world’s most competitive, ‘full-cost advantage,’ so that all mankind have encountered 3C products have enjoyed the convenience of green living” Foxconn portrays themselves as a positive company, whose work environments are the same “through a simple stick in love, confidence, determination of the philosophy of continuous dedication to this vision forward...” Lastly Foxconn relies on their business model of a five product strategy consisting of “speed, quality, engineering services, efficiency, and added value” to create the best products.
The Beginning
Foxconn started when founder and CEO, Terry Gou, got a $7,500 loan from his mother and rented a shed "...in a gritty Taipei suburb called Tucheng, which means Dirt City in Mandarin," at the age of 23. With the rest of the money he bought some plastic molding machines to make knobs for old TVs. Gou "...had done three years of vocational training and served in the military. He then worked for two years as a shipping clerk, where he got a firsthand view of Taiwan’s booming export economy...[where he] figured [out] he ought to stop pushing paper and get into the game."
Transforming the Industry
The company’s first big break came in 1980 when they started supplying for Atari. "At the height of the Atari craze, Hon Hai was producing connectors for the 15,000 video-game consoles that Atari’s Taiwanese plant made daily." Gou didn't just supply the part but patent his idea and continue to advance into new areas of technology such as cable manufacturing. "Soon, Foxconn was shipping bare-bones computers to IBM, HP and Apple as well, transforming the industry." In the 1980s the Taiwanese labor market tightened and wages rose causing manufacturers to start moving to Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand, but not China, because they were to scare of the communist ways. This was not the case for Gou who moved to Shenzhen. In the mid 90s he also moved Hon Hai Precision from the Taiwanese stock exchange to the Chinese, as well as adding more factories there.
First Western Media Experience
In 1998, when Gou won his first order from Dell to make the chassis for its desktops, Dell insisted he do it in the U.S., close to the final market. Gou obliged." He built a factory in Kansas City for Dell but it was losing money. Through all of this the Western Media didn't seem to notice the massive company until 2006 when London Daily Mail published a story on the bad working conditions in their factories. When China Business News did a similar story, Gou’s first reaction was to sue, but Apple and HP has convinced him to back off, but these stories did cause Apple to send an audit team. The team found many Apple code of conduct violations "including excessive overtime, an overly complicated wage structure and unacceptable living conditions such as triple-decker bunk beds." Steve Jobs wasn't cutting the ties with Foxconn though, because he knew they planned to release the iPhone next year (2007), and didn’t want to risk pushing it back.
Foxconn started when founder and CEO, Terry Gou, got a $7,500 loan from his mother and rented a shed "...in a gritty Taipei suburb called Tucheng, which means Dirt City in Mandarin," at the age of 23. With the rest of the money he bought some plastic molding machines to make knobs for old TVs. Gou "...had done three years of vocational training and served in the military. He then worked for two years as a shipping clerk, where he got a firsthand view of Taiwan’s booming export economy...[where he] figured [out] he ought to stop pushing paper and get into the game."
Transforming the Industry
The company’s first big break came in 1980 when they started supplying for Atari. "At the height of the Atari craze, Hon Hai was producing connectors for the 15,000 video-game consoles that Atari’s Taiwanese plant made daily." Gou didn't just supply the part but patent his idea and continue to advance into new areas of technology such as cable manufacturing. "Soon, Foxconn was shipping bare-bones computers to IBM, HP and Apple as well, transforming the industry." In the 1980s the Taiwanese labor market tightened and wages rose causing manufacturers to start moving to Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand, but not China, because they were to scare of the communist ways. This was not the case for Gou who moved to Shenzhen. In the mid 90s he also moved Hon Hai Precision from the Taiwanese stock exchange to the Chinese, as well as adding more factories there.
First Western Media Experience
In 1998, when Gou won his first order from Dell to make the chassis for its desktops, Dell insisted he do it in the U.S., close to the final market. Gou obliged." He built a factory in Kansas City for Dell but it was losing money. Through all of this the Western Media didn't seem to notice the massive company until 2006 when London Daily Mail published a story on the bad working conditions in their factories. When China Business News did a similar story, Gou’s first reaction was to sue, but Apple and HP has convinced him to back off, but these stories did cause Apple to send an audit team. The team found many Apple code of conduct violations "including excessive overtime, an overly complicated wage structure and unacceptable living conditions such as triple-decker bunk beds." Steve Jobs wasn't cutting the ties with Foxconn though, because he knew they planned to release the iPhone next year (2007), and didn’t want to risk pushing it back.
Personal Life
Gou’s “...father fought with the Kuomintang army in the civil war and fled along with Chiang Kai-shek after his defeat in 1949 by the Communists led by Mao Zedong." His father eventually became a police officer in Taipei, but Gou is from Shanxi, in the North Central area of China, and is the oldest of three boys. "Gou’s personal life is the object of much fascination in the Taiwanese press..." The press was all over him when his wife of nearly 30 years, a mother to his two children died of cancer in 2005, causing him to be pictured many times with beautiful young women. After Gou’s brother also passes away from cancer in 2007 he decided he needed to focus more on life outside of the factory. "He explored his mainland Chinese heritage and bankrolled 'Empire of Silver,' a lavish film set in feudal times in Shanxi.” He also made time for his mother, they would do yoga and go out to lunch every week. He became more involved with his charity "the Yong Lin Foundation." Gou eventually settled down with Delia Tseng, who is 24 years younger than him. She’s a dance instructor, who was hired to teach him the tango. They got married July 26, 2008, and nine months and 4 days later their first child was born, "a daughter, Hsiao-ru" their second child was due in the Fall of 2010.
Gou, who is now the richest man in Taiwan, and according to Forbes he is the 240 richest man in the world, and founder of the "biggest exporter out of China,” started the company on four motos, “‘work itself is a type of joy,’ ‘a harsh environment is a good thing,’ ‘hungry people have especially clear minds’ and ‘an army of one thousand is easy to get, one general is tough to find.’”
Gou’s “...father fought with the Kuomintang army in the civil war and fled along with Chiang Kai-shek after his defeat in 1949 by the Communists led by Mao Zedong." His father eventually became a police officer in Taipei, but Gou is from Shanxi, in the North Central area of China, and is the oldest of three boys. "Gou’s personal life is the object of much fascination in the Taiwanese press..." The press was all over him when his wife of nearly 30 years, a mother to his two children died of cancer in 2005, causing him to be pictured many times with beautiful young women. After Gou’s brother also passes away from cancer in 2007 he decided he needed to focus more on life outside of the factory. "He explored his mainland Chinese heritage and bankrolled 'Empire of Silver,' a lavish film set in feudal times in Shanxi.” He also made time for his mother, they would do yoga and go out to lunch every week. He became more involved with his charity "the Yong Lin Foundation." Gou eventually settled down with Delia Tseng, who is 24 years younger than him. She’s a dance instructor, who was hired to teach him the tango. They got married July 26, 2008, and nine months and 4 days later their first child was born, "a daughter, Hsiao-ru" their second child was due in the Fall of 2010.
Gou, who is now the richest man in Taiwan, and according to Forbes he is the 240 richest man in the world, and founder of the "biggest exporter out of China,” started the company on four motos, “‘work itself is a type of joy,’ ‘a harsh environment is a good thing,’ ‘hungry people have especially clear minds’ and ‘an army of one thousand is easy to get, one general is tough to find.’”