Witty Critiques of IT: Comic Strip Management Stories

Author: Xiao Fan (Written and Illustrated by Xiao Fan)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-01-01
Features: This book is a contribution from a market observer! Author Xiao Fan, with his sharp insights and cunning comedic style, vividly explores a harsh yet sincere theme. If a survey were conducted on "the living conditions of Chinese people," the answers would undoubtedly make domestic farmers, merchants, and civil servants blush. In reality, many are already walking on eggshells, treading carefully as if on thin ice. Even those considered the most successful figures in the best fields—business—and the top industries—IT—are not immune. Liu Chuanzhi, for instance, compares the competition between Chinese and foreign companies to a tortoise and hare race: "In a tortoise and hare race, if the hare refuses to sleep, the tortoise must do two things. One is to learn from the hare and cultivate its genes. The other is to leverage the race environment, such as racing in a swamp, to win. Our strategic planning starts from this point." In other words, when the tortoise cannot outpace the hare, the goal is to change the playing field to a swamp, where the hare loses its advantage, and the tortoise gains the upper hand. Liu Chuanzhi's analogy inadvertently reveals his cards—originally, Lenovo triumphed by exploiting the natural barriers of the swamp. The brilliance of Liu Chuanzhi's metaphor lies not in the tortoise's petty schemes in the tortoise and hare race, but in a seasoned business leader daring to point out the domestic business ecosystem: it's a swamp! The subtext of the "tortoise and hare race" is to portray the ecological environment of Chinese businesspeople! No emerging voice has yet been so sharp in raising this issue. If even large corporations are in this state, what about small companies and grassroots employees? How can they fare? Xiao Fan's Wry Critiques of IT Comics and Management Stories vividly depicts the survival state of the IT industry and its people, showcasing the various elites who step onto the stage to maintain this state (though they dream of escaping it). They bare their chests in competition, some scheming, others effortlessly winning. The process is full of intrigue, ugliness, and darkness, but when viewed in the context of real-world business, none of it seems repulsive—it even has a few endearing qualities. How so? Xiao Fan portrays a "" of the IT industry and a "river map of the market." From a religious perspective, it remains amusing; if it were boring, life would lack vitality. We can despise evil, but not the world itself. Though the environment is a swamp, it is not the normal state of business. The outside world is not a swamp either. We are not satisfied with survival in the swamp, but the prerequisite for mastering the skills to leap out of the swamp and survive beyond it is often to first pass this test. The IT elites, so "charming" in this "land of beauty," and the market operators, so "prosperous" in this "unique landscape," use their small cleverness, even their small wisdom, to make their final efforts. They engage in a deadly battle, both offensive and defensive, with back-and-forth exchanges, full of flavor. The reason they are called "small" is that their tricks—following trends, exaggeration, narrow-mindedness, and fraud—are harmless and do not violate social norms. Because I prefer to believe: these are merely small episodes in the growth of a company (or individual), like tiny ripples stirred up under the weight of history. The book combines comics and text to narrate more than 20 humorous and thought-provoking stories within the IT industry, featuring many "characters." In addition to the leading antagonists "Niu IT" and "Yangjingbang," characters like "Mading," "Mai Kneetie," and CFO also deliver outstanding performances. In fact, these characters must face different survival environments and shoulder different responsibilities, striving to achieve their goals while preserving their own strength in the face of real-world difficulties and challenges.