Rebirth 1977 Great Era

Chapter 1164 The Dean imparts management experience, telegrams from Shanghai and Hong Kong (Bonus chapter for monthly pass winners)

The dean smiled as he answered the question in dialect.

Fang Yan is indeed very skilled in medicine, but he is a complete novice when it comes to leadership. In this situation, he could have turned to quite a few people, but in the end, they chose him, which pleased the hospital director greatly.

He pondered for a moment. His years of management experience were quite complex, and it would take days and nights to talk about it. Some specific people required special methods, and there was a lot to say about managing them.

However, now that Fang Yan has asked, he needs to simplify things and first get Fang Yan to establish the basic framework to avoid making any major mistakes.

After thinking for a moment, he said, "Remember the time!"

He nodded in dialect.

The dean said:

"First, establish rules, clarify rewards and punishments, and ensure absolute fairness."

"As the leader, you must first establish the rules and regulations of the research institute!"

"How should the research schedule be broken down? How should tasks be assigned to groups and individuals? How should results be evaluated? How should contributions be defined in collaboration? Who should be held responsible if something goes wrong? How should rewards be distributed?"

"Everything must be clearly written down! Let them sign it themselves. Once this responsibility agreement is signed, the objective becomes an ironclad rule! Anyone who holds back and affects the overall objective, no matter who they are, will be punished! They will be removed! We're focusing on the issue, not the person, but the rules are paramount! You absolutely cannot let this slide!"

The dean's tone was resolute, and Fang Yan nodded slightly after hearing it.

"Of course, you are very capable. If you can suppress them with your own abilities, that is also a way. I'm talking about most situations. No one can find fault with doing that."

He said in dialect:

"I understand, is there anything else?"

The dean held up two fingers and said:

"Second, set up a solid platform and clarify responsibilities. The framework must be sturdy; don't let a bunch of experts crammed into one large hall and bumping around aimlessly. Divide your research into groups based on your research objectives, such as a pharmacology and toxicology group, a standards development group, a process development group, a compound screening group, and so on... Make sure it's reasonable!"

"Then, each group should select a leader who is respected and has real skills, preferably from the thirty core talents from outside."

"You need to push the responsibility down to him! Tell the people below that the team leader has the final say! You, on top, control the overall direction, coordinate resources, and adjudicate the key and difficult issues that the teams cannot resolve."

"Don't interfere too much in the specific research matters! Let them go their own way!"

Fang Yan nodded thoughtfully. When it came to the second point, he understood: copy the structure of most units.

This theory may not be the most advanced, but it ensures the normal operation of dialect research institutes, and it can help identify the right people to handle any problems that arise.

“Hmm, that makes sense. I’ve written it down,” Fang Yan said to the dean.

Then the dean continued:

"Third, the service must keep up and the resources must be sufficient. Being a leader is not about being a supervisor! You have to be their logistics manager."

"Top talents have big tempers, but they also cherish their time the most and are most afraid of being hampered by outsiders or lacking resources. For laboratory equipment, literature, research consumables, and even difficulties in their personal lives, such as family members finding jobs or children enrolling in school, do your best to help them! Don't let them get distracted or frustrated by these trivial matters! You did a great job recruiting Professor He and Professor Zeng before, that's how it should be done."

"In addition, present the research institute's plans so they can see the future! Tell them that as long as they achieve results, the conditions will only get better!"

"Fourth, be firm when necessary, be gentle when necessary, and use different methods depending on the person."

"When dealing with those truly talented but stubborn and technically obsessed individuals, you have to treat them like treasures, showing them respect and tolerance, explaining the reasons clearly, and patiently waiting for them to understand."

"But those who aren't very capable but have high aspirations, or who always like to tattle and form cliques... seize every opportunity to teach them a lesson! If necessary, make an example of them! Let them know that here, flattery and factionalism won't work! Those who want to coast along should get out of here! The core is to look at performance, collaboration, and contributions! Remember, you are a leader! Not a student begging the teacher to do research! When it's time to bang your fist on the table, don't back down!"

The dean became more and more serious as he spoke:
"This job is different from saving lives with traditional Chinese medicine; it requires a completely different set of skills! You'll definitely find it challenging and difficult at first, but you have to persevere. Whether the project succeeds and the research institute's framework can be established depends on how deeply you've invested in management!"

He listened intently to the dialect, nodding repeatedly.
"Been taught a lesson!"

Every word the dean said was golden advice, a summary of key points.

"Establish ironclad rules, clarify responsibilities, ensure logistics, divide and conquer, and be firm when necessary!" Fang Yan summarized the dean's key points.

Seeing Fang Yan's sincere and receptive attitude, the dean smiled with satisfaction.

"Well, it's not hard to learn, you'll get the hang of it soon. You're a smart person, and you'll naturally learn a lot as you manage more. But just listening to me isn't enough. Theory is no substitute for practice. When you're on the front lines, you'll have to hone your skills yourself."

Fang Yan nodded.

The dean thought for a moment and said:
"Here's what we'll do. I'll have Vice President Chen from Peking Union Medical College Hospital, who's in charge of administration, borrow one of his capable assistants who's good at managing research projects. He'll go over there for a while to help you set up the institute's daily operations, handle some miscellaneous tasks, and also familiarize your people with this management system."

"After all, Professor He, who works under you, hasn't returned yet, and you're already struggling on your own."

"That's wonderful!" This is like a godsend! Fang Yan's eyes lit up, and he immediately expressed his gratitude: "Dean, thank you so much! You've solved my urgent problem!"

The dean waved his hand: "Don't thank me in time! This person is just lending you a hand and paving the way. Core decision-making and control will have to be developed by yourself!"

"If we really encounter a difficult person we can't handle, or if someone from the ministry or local government comes to obstruct us..."

He paused and said:
"Come talk to me anytime! In Beijing, an old man like me has some influence. I can't just watch you get ripped off."

His last sentence seemed to have a hidden meaning.

"With your words of comfort, I feel much more at ease!" Fang Yan breathed a genuine sigh of relief, feeling the heavy burden on his shoulders lessen considerably. Seeking advice from this true veteran manager was definitely the right decision!
The dean smiled and said:

"It's easy to set rules, but it's true how effective they are to be upheld. You're a smart person, you'll understand once you think about it."

"Ring ring..." Just then, the dean's phone rang. Fang Yan and the dean were startled. Then Fang Yan stood up and said to him:
"Then I won't bother you any longer. I'll think about what you said when I get back."

"Okay! Go ahead!" The dean nodded and answered the phone.

Fang Yan walked out, and just as he reached the stairwell, he bumped into the dean's secretary carrying a stack of documents. Upon seeing him, the secretary quickly stepped aside to let him pass: "Director Fang, are you leaving already?"

"Okay, that won't delay the dean's official duties." Fang Yan smiled, then paused and asked his secretary:

"By the way, who's in charge of research project management under Vice Dean Chen?"

The other party immediately said:

"Huang Li".

The dialect suddenly became clear:

"Oh, he..."

Fang Yan recognized this person; he was in his forties and frequently appeared at various Peking Union Medical College conferences, but Fang Yan hadn't paid attention to what he actually did.

"What's wrong? Does Director Fang want to see him?" the secretary asked Fang Yan.

Fang Yan shook his head and said:
"No, I was just asking."

Fang Yan then returned home and, following the instructions of the dean, began to formulate some rules for the research institute.

He spent the entire morning in his study brainstorming, mainly recalling the rules from his previous life. After all, these were things he had studied for so long, so they must have some merit. Every seemingly incomprehensible rule must have an intriguing story behind it.

I didn't care about the dialects anymore; I just wrote them all down first, and then gradually revised them as needed.

When it was time for lunch, someone came to deliver telegrams. This time, in addition to telegrams from Hong Kong's Le Miao and Mr. Huo, there was also a telegram from Second Sister in Shanghai.

My second sister boarded the train this morning.

She took the Beijing-Shanghai express train, which takes 23 hours to complete and stops at 28 stations along the way.

This is considered fast for this era; she'll be at the train station around lunchtime tomorrow.

"I thought she wouldn't send a telegram!" the old lady said to everyone with a laugh after seeing the telegram.

The old man said:

"My personality has improved a lot since I went to university."

The eldest sister said:

"I'll pick her up tomorrow at noon."

"I'm going too!" the younger brother said.

Dad agreed and told them to go. His own children were very united. As for Fang Yan, he was too busy during his vacation to pick him up, so it was normal.

My mother is already thinking about what dishes to cook tomorrow.

"By the way, what did the other two telegrams say?" Old Hu asked Fang Yan from the side.

He said in dialect:

"Le Miao telegraphed that he made money from his last stock market investment and asked me to report back."

"Mr. Huo urged us to restock, and also listed several products that are in demand in the market."

"What kind of needs do you have?" Old Hu asked curiously.

The main reason is that he had already asked Chu Bin to conduct several market surveys, and Mr. Huo was still able to name several product needs.

Fang Yan handed him the telegram:
"The high-end market has low demand, but can be sold at high prices."

Old Hu took the telegram, glanced at it, and then burst out laughing:

"Haha... He was also talking about the ancient handmade medicine-making methods of traditional Chinese medicine masters." (See Chapter 1134)
That's right. Last time when we made medicine by hand, we also sent some to Hong Kong.

Upon receiving the information, Mr. Huo was immediately inspired and offered his suggestion: to have Fang Yan directly customize a batch of medicines targeting the high-end market of wealthy businessmen in Hong Kong.

Using dialects as a gimmick, he and Mr. Tang can help promote the products.

It's similar to the plan Lao Hu mentioned, except that they must have done market research, and the requirements are quite detailed.

P.S.: That's all for today. Please come early tomorrow.

(End of this chapter)