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During my training sessions with distributors, I often observe an interesting phenomenon: first, after registering a company, distributors are unsure how to proceed with corporate management; second, even after implementing corporate management, it is often incomplete, merely a formality with a "shell" but no "core." There is little change before and after corporatization, and employees remain the same. Corporatization and standardization become nominal. So why is it difficult for distributors to implement true standardization and corporate management?
In my view, there are at least the following reasons why distributors find it hard to implement genuine corporate management:
Blindly copying others. Many distributor bosses, in pursuit of immediate results from corporate management, often borrow models from large distributor companies or even copy their processes and systems outright. This leads to "indigestion," manifesting in two ways: first, the processes and systems are "grandiose and empty," with poor operability, and many comprehensive norms cannot be implemented, such as cultural norms, professional ethics, and business etiquette; second, when they see that what works in other companies doesn't apply here, they become disheartened with standardized management and give up halfway. In fact, corporate management for distributors is a long-term endeavor that cannot be achieved overnight. It requires persistence and continuous improvement. For example, even when copying, one should, like Huawei, first require compliance, then adjust and correct based on the company's actual situation, rather than abandoning it at the first sign of no effect. Furthermore, standardized management for distributors must be gradual, starting with small aspects such as attendance, meetings, shipping, service, and warehouse management, and slowly standardizing. One cannot expect to become fat in one bite. Changes in human behavior are subtle and require a process of self-change, self-adaptation, and voluntary compliance.
Hero complex. Many distributor bosses have hired professional managers to run the company, but management has not improved significantly. Why? The boss holds onto power, such as financial and personnel authority, leaving professional managers with empty positions but no real power. What causes this situation? A core factor is the boss's "narcissism," or what can be called the boss's "hero complex." Many distributor bosses have grown their businesses single-handedly, treating their small companies as "children," "afraid of melting in the mouth" or "dropping from the hand." They always want to "show off" in front of employees to make them aware of their "glory and greatness." They fear employees will "forget" them, so they always try to "show off" at any time, in any place, and in any matter, to display their extraordinary and outstanding nature. As a result, professional managers or department heads are left feeling "crestfallen," with positions but no authority, and bypassing levels for reporting and approval becomes commonplace, leaving everyone embarrassed. In fact, for distributor bosses to manage well, they must timely "retreat" to the "second line," boldly delegate authority to subordinate managers, establish the authority of managers in front of everyone, praise and commend subordinates more, and when market problems arise, they must follow the process rather than taking shortcuts and taking over everything, leaving subordinate managers at a loss. Only by abandoning "heroism" can distributor bosses truly step onto the track of standardization and institutionalization.
Boss is "too soft-hearted." Some distributor bosses have a set of rules and regulations, many of which are posted on walls, but many employees still turn a blind eye to company rules, sometimes even deliberately challenging management regulations to see if they apply to them. Why does this happen? Through communication with many distributor friends, I have found a common issue: they are too soft-hearted when it comes to rules. For example, if an employee is late or fails to meet sales targets, according to the relevant assessment system, they should be fined or have wages deducted by 100 or 200 yuan, but because the boss considers them relatives or friends, the fine is discounted, such as 30 or 50 yuan. Under such rule-by-man, everyone treats the rules as a "joke." Even if they "violate rules," the cost or price they pay is not high, so they despise the company's "laws." Especially when "privileged" individuals override rules, it breeds resentment, leading to defiance, offense, and "testing the law." In fact, the key to management lies in assessment, and the key to assessment lies in implementation. Only when distributor bosses firmly enforce management, adhere to equality before the rules, and provide more human care outside of work under rigid rules, combining principle with flexibility and institutionalization with humanization, can they truly win over employees' hearts and minds and achieve genuine standardized management.
Lack of a true execution team. Some distributors find it difficult to implement corporate management, possibly due to the lack of a genuine execution team. After some distributors have implemented corporate management, they still have the same old team. These employees, whether supervisors or staff, are "close buddies" of the boss, having grown up together, playing with mud as children. Some employees even say that the boss used to follow them around as kids. As the company scale expands, once the boss starts to "tighten the reins," these employees often oppose it, and even those who have become supervisors or managers mostly resist or engage in "soft resistance." When everyone is harmonious and opposes standardized management from top to bottom, the boss's will to manage collapses. The lack of a true execution management team often makes the distributor's standardized management counterproductive. In fact, once distributor bosses reach a certain scale, they must gradually reduce the number of relatives and friends, at least in key positions, and not let undisciplined, free-spirited, and lawless "playmates" fill them. Distributor bosses should hire more professional managers to take on management roles, continuously create an atmosphere and platform for standardized management, gradually improve the small environment and microclimate, and steadily move toward standardized management. At the same time, for standardized management to be thorough, it is essential to build a management team with firm will, not just one person fighting alone. Only as a team can they break through the limitations of small groups and small interest circles, and implement management better and more sustainably.
Low overall employee quality. Another obstacle distributors face in implementing standardized management is the low overall quality of employees, leading to poor understanding of company rules and regulations, which in turn causes misalignment or deviation in execution, making management systems difficult to "land." Additionally, distributor bosses are accustomed to commanding and ordering, and everyone is used to following the boss's arrangements, never thinking about "the book," let alone processes. They do whatever is convenient and easy. The best way is to go to the boss, because the boss is the final arbiter and the one who "pays." To solve this problem, distributor bosses should note the following: first, continuously improve the overall cultural level of employees by recruiting employees with relatively higher education levels and optimizing the educational structure of internal staff; second, provide training for existing old employees, including internal training, inviting external lecturers, and rewarding some employees to pursue further studies or attend public courses; third, the boss should take the lead in creating a learning organization, encourage self-study, and even set aside funds annually for employees to purchase books useful for their department's business, with the company reimbursing them. After employees read them, the books are collected by the company to establish a corporate library, continuously enhancing employees' cultural literacy and strengthening core competitiveness. As employees' horizons broaden, knowledge expands, and receptivity increases, management will naturally rise to a new level.
In summary, there are many reasons why distributors cannot truly implement standardized corporate management, but overall, distributor bosses must first find ways to change themselves and do what they should do. Second, they must get to the root of the problem and identify the deep-seated reasons why corporate management cannot be truly implemented. Once the problem is found, the solution will follow naturally. Of course, this also requires distributor bosses to have perseverance, patience, and unyielding willpower.