Tech startup: I really do make mobile phones!

Chapter 127 Left and Right Arms
Chen Mo pushed open the office door. The aftereffects of the "real" extreme hiking in the mountain city were still on his body. He casually draped his suit jacket over the back of his boss's chair.

He piled the local specialties he brought from the mountain town in the corner, and then there was a knock on the door.

Chen Mo's right-hand man in the company has arrived.

"Enter!"

Zhao Tiezhu's buzz cut peeked in, his face plastered with a carefree smile. With his new hairstyle, he actually looked more sophisticated.

Of course, it's that kind of mature-beyond-his-years quality.
No matter how much he tries to improve himself, he can't possibly squeeze into the "looks" category among the executives of Orange Group. He has his own way of getting ahead.

However, Zhao Tiezhu had been in the "boss" position in the marketing department for almost two months. He had developed an air of authority in his every move, and his previous nonchalant attitude had been suppressed by the aura of a workplace leader. His buzz cut revealed a sharp and neat edge.

"My dear Chen! You're finally back from that sweltering mountain city! I've missed you so much!"

He strolled in casually, and within two seconds his true colors were revealed.

Behind Zhao Tiezhu followed Gong Yun, who was wearing an elegant suit.

Although her wounds have healed, she still prefers to dress in such a "conservative" manner.

This top-down influence has resulted in most of the female employees in Orange Technology's logistics department having a more "serious and professional" style, unlike those in similar tech companies who tend to be more lively.

Gong Yun watched the two reunite and reminisce, smiled gently, closed the door softly, lowered her eyes, held the folder, and stood aside, offering a fitting greeting.

"Mr. Chen, you must be tired from your journey!"

Chen Mo loosened his tie, relaxed and sank into his office chair, took out a frayed leather notebook from the drawer, and held the pen tip on the paper.

"Zhao Tiezhu! Stop with the nonsense. I've been gone for half a month, and the company hasn't run into any problems, has it?"

"A mistake?" Zhao Tiezhu plopped down in the chair opposite him, the chair legs groaning under the weight. He deliberately dragged out his words: "That's absolutely impossible!"

Seeing Chen Mo raise an eyebrow, he cleared his throat and straightened his back.

"As you instructed before you left, Brother Chen, the marketing department is responding flexibly to development needs. We've expanded our marketing channel and supply chain teams to 25 people, so we're quite well-equipped now!"

Then, he reported on the sales of his main business, mobile phones, and his secondary business, OEM manufacturing. He proudly raised his thumb and forefinger to make the number "eight".

"In the first half of August, we shipped a total of 80 Orange 1 units and 60 'X' models manufactured by our OEM, which is very stable!"

Riding the wave of public opinion surrounding "gaseous lithium batteries," Orange Mobile's shipments surpassed those of its OEM partner, Nietzsche, for the first time, marking a small milestone for the company.

"In terms of channel share, strong distribution in North China accounts for the largest share at 48.2%, followed by Nietzsche direct sales at 35.2%, and TV shopping at 16.1%."

"As for online channels," Zhao Tiezhu said dismissively when the topic of e-commerce came up: "It's only 0.5%, less than 5000 units!"

Chen Mo didn't even lift his eyelids, and tapped the pen tip on the notebook.

"From now on, if e-commerce doesn't reach 10% or more, don't even bother submitting reports. Let the e-commerce team save their energy and focus on real work."

With only three people, there are already too few of us. If we keep counting the sales figures after the decimal point every day, what meaningful business can we possibly get done?

This decision caught Chen Mo completely off guard. After October, when the Orange Phone was used as a power bank for the Apple 4 and its e-commerce sales skyrocketed, it was caught off guard.

"Alright! Got it!" Zhao Tiezhu slapped his thigh: "I'll let those three e-commerce guys do it by themselves from now on!"

He then leaned forward, as if to claim credit: "By the way, Brother Chen, I haven't been slacking off on the 'Orange Technology Corporate Culture Training Manual' that you summarized after your business trip. I've been thoroughly 'cramming' it into the heads of the marketing department guys after get off work!"

"Everyone's enthusiasm for learning is amazing, it's incredibly lively!"

Chen Mo finally glanced at him, raised an eyebrow and smiled. This kid's methods were too crude.

"Attitude is very important in this matter. You took up people's time after get off work to hold meetings and training sessions. Remember to pay them every penny of overtime pay. Whether they learn anything or not is another matter, but the money has to be paid properly."

Chen Mo always only cared about the results when it came to Zhao Tiezhu's work. He was just helping to patch things up to avoid dissatisfaction among the marketing department employees.

"That's absolutely right! Brother Chen, you can rest assured!" Zhao Tiezhu patted his chest and assured him.

Chen Mo turned his gaze to Gong Yun: "Sister Gong, how are things on your end?"

Gong Yun responded gently, then opened the folder, her voice as soft as a feather.

"In order to keep up with the company's pace, the logistics department has added staff in administration, finance, logistics and security. There are now a total of 19 colleagues."

She looked down at the documents, her long eyelashes casting faint shadows beneath her eyes.

"We've added a new receptionist, who will work full-time with Xiao Zhou. We've also added a recruitment specialist and a colleague who specializes in budget analysis."

Considering that our first flagship store needs to serve the needs of users in Chongqing, we specially hired a customer service girl who understands the local dialect.

We've added a full-time manager to the warehouse, and as per your request, we've also hired two new security guards!

She gently turned a page and continued, "The technical department..."

"As per your request, the hardware R&D team has four engineers in place and has started work. However, the position of deputy supervisor is still vacant. The preliminary design of the Orange 2 phone motherboard has been launched, and the new battery solution from Far Orange is also being evaluated."

"Three colleagues from the design team have also arrived at their posts, including two UI designers and one exterior designer. The first version of the Orange 2's exterior concept sketches is already complete."

Gong Yun paused, her Adam's apple bobbing slightly.

"They are currently working on a new design for the boot animation logo of Orange OS 2.0."

Chen Mo quickly took notes in his notebook, but stopped writing when he heard the name of the hardware group.

“There’s no rush for the deputy head of R&D. We’d rather have fewer but better candidates. We need someone who can really handle things.” He looked at Gong Yun: “Bring me the design sketches of the Orange 2 from the design team later.”

Gong Yun nodded gently: "Okay, Mr. Chen, I'll have them send it over shortly!"

She raised her eyes, a hint of embarrassment subtly showing between her gentle brows, and her voice became even softer.

"However, Mr. Chen, the position of head of the technical department has been vacant. I am currently in charge of two groups in the logistics department and the technical department. I don't know much about technology and I feel that I am not up to the task. I am afraid that I will delay your important business."

Gong Yun was subtly complaining about how complicated her work was, and Chen Mo immediately understood the implied meaning.

Chen Mo put down his pen, rubbed his temples, and smiled with a hint of helplessness.

"Sister Gong, thank you for your hard work these past few days. I was originally thinking of finding a hardware R&D manager to also manage the technology department, but I haven't been able to find a suitable candidate!"

"I can only ask you to hold on for a while longer. If it really doesn't work out," he tapped his finger on the edge of the table, "we'll use headhunters! We'll throw money at it! We'll find a top talent who can handle anything!"

Upon hearing this, Gong Yun's gentle smile returned, and she lowered her eyes to reply, "I'm relieved to hear that. I'll contact the headhunting company right away."

She turned to the most crucial page in the folder, the one about financial matters, her tone still gentle, but every word carried immense weight.

"Mr. Chen, there's very good news regarding the company's finances!"

"Starting from the 5th of this month, our cash flow has achieved a large-scale and continuous net inflow of cash for the first time."

Currently, the company's daily average inflow is approximately 8.615 million yuan, and daily average outflow is approximately 8.235 million yuan. After deducting the 800 million yuan temporary expenditure for the Shancheng flagship store, the company's total cash flow in its cash pool has reached 4.832 million yuan.

"4.83 billion?"

Chen Mo leaned forward slightly, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. His fingers unconsciously tapped on the smooth tabletop, and a decisive smile curved his lips.

"That puts my mind at ease. Good! Then don't hesitate, immediately! Right now! Redeem the 10% of Yuancheng shares that were pledged to Shunwei Capital!"

If you do the math, he'd have to pay 15 in interest to Shunwei Capital every day. It's like being slowly cut with a dull knife. Chen Mo would have to sell 156 Orange 1 phones to make that back. It's such a loss!

Gong Yun clearly had a plan in mind, calculating with lightning speed, while her voice remained soft and calm.

"Understood! The total principal and interest redeemed is approximately 5625 million. After payment, the balance in the fund pool will be 4.269 million."

Based on the current company operational trends, unless you, Mr. Chen, undertake any major investment projects, the cash pool is expected to continue to increase at a daily turnover of approximately 4000 million.

"Great!" Chen Mo leaned back in his chair, his tone relaxed. "Don't worry, Sister Gong, I don't have any new projects for the remaining ten days of August. I'll just let the money sit in the account!"

Zhao Tiezhu laughed out loud: "That's right! Now that our oranges have moved from a small workshop to here, we finally have some cash in the account, and I feel much more at ease!"

Gong Yun covered her mouth and chuckled softly, her eyes sparkling: "That's good!"

Since moving from a workshop to the North China Power Electronics Building, Chen Mo has relied on reducing his cash pool (expenditure exceeding revenue) to achieve compound interest expansion, keeping his cash flow constantly tight.

If distributors are even slightly slow to pay, Orange Technology's cash flow will be in serious trouble.

Gong Yun could see that although the company's revenue was growing rapidly, its financial situation was precarious. This was why, after having five finance positions, the small company of 70 people still needed to add a budget analysis position.

Therefore, whenever a distributor or Nietzsche delayed payment, Gong Yun would send people to keep an eye on it, or even personally step in to urge payment.

Orange Technology has grown from a small workshop in North China with a monthly revenue of only 6000 million yuan to a new emerging smartphone manufacturer with a revenue of over 20 billion yuan, all thanks to Gong Yun, its "strongest assistant," who meticulously maintained its cash flow.

Otherwise, a boss like Chen Mo, who has no financial sense and leads the company on a reckless, impulsive basis based solely on his feelings, would have already ruined the company's cash flow.

If the company's cash flow collapses and its cash pool dries up, even with a large revenue scale, Orange's fate will be no different from Hengda's.

In early July, Chen Mo agreed to extend the payment period for the Nietzsche "X" machine OEM by 30 days, which directly led to a severe cash flow deficit for Orange.

The finance team warned Gong Yun that at the time, the company's average daily inflow was 6.255 million yuan, but the outflow reached 6.325 million yuan, with a net outflow of about 700 million yuan from the capital pool every day.

If Chen Mo hadn't had the foresight to pledge 10% of Yuancheng shares to obtain 50 million yuan in emergency funds, the company would have only been able to survive until July 25, given the 180 million yuan fund pool at the time.

At that time, the cash flow will collapse, and the problem of overdue payments to suppliers will escalate in a chain reaction.

Thanks to this injection of funds, Orange Technology survived for another 8 days. In early August, Orange Technology even suspended payments to suppliers for 2 days, totaling 14 million yuan, which was originally due for payment.

It wasn't until August 5th that Orange's daily inflows exceeded outflows for the first time, and its net cash flow turned positive, thus completely transforming its financial situation from high-risk to healthy.

When Gong Yun warned Chen Mo, he had no idea of ​​the huge financial risks. After all, how could an ordinary person who doesn't understand finances think so far ahead? With daily expenses of 700 million and 2.3 million in the account, everything seemed very stable. He even jokingly told Gong Yun that she was worrying unnecessarily.

In the end, Gong Yun silently shouldered all the burdens.

Fortunately, thanks to Gong Yun's well-organized arrangements, the company weathered a major financial crisis safely, and Orange's development entered a new stage.

In early July, Orange Technology's revenue was less than 1 billion yuan, but by mid-August it had already surpassed the 2 billion yuan mark.

The revenue growth mainly came from the further expansion of sales of Orange 1 and Nietzsche 1 mobile phones in rural markets across China.

While Chen Mo's aggressive compound interest expansion model will certainly bring huge financial risks to the company, every coin has two sides. Once they get through it, Orange Technology will reach a new level of scale.

New startups rise quickly but also fall quickly, mainly because most bosses are "daring and aggressive" despite knowing nothing about finance.

You have to understand, they don't have a "Gong Yun" (a term of endearment for a woman) behind the scenes meticulously managing things to help the company overcome its financial crisis. Whether the company survives or not is entirely up to fate.

After finishing discussing the financial matters, Gong Yun continued her report.

"And regarding the 'technology equality' concept that you emphasized, Mr. Chen, I've already taken the time to give a preliminary briefing to the colleagues in the logistics and technology departments. As for the Orange Treasure team..."

"Let's put the Orange Treasure Group on hold for now!" Chen Mo waved his hand. "Let's sort things out internally first!"

Implementing corporate culture is a long-term task, and Chen Mo hopes to take it slowly and gradually, from the inside out.

"Sister Gong, you should first sort out and stabilize the logistics department and the technical department you are in charge of."

Chen Mo's gaze snapped back to Zhao Tiezhu, his earlier ease instantly replaced by sharpness.

"Zhao Tiezhu!"

Zhao Tiezhu, who was lounging in his chair pondering something, suddenly sat up straight.

"Brother Chen! What's up?"

"There are still two weeks left!" Chen Mo stared at him, enunciating each word with undeniable pressure: "I don't care what methods you use, go all out to train him, and find the best opportunities for him!"

"By the end of August, I must select four key sales personnel who are 'willing to spend money and know how to spend money.' I need ruthless individuals who can stand alone and dare to make a huge difference!"

"In September, Orange Phones will launch a counterattack on the city market, and I need them to be put to great use!"

Zhao Tiezhu's arrogant expression vanished instantly, his back teeth clenched, and his eyes revealed a wolfish, reckless glint.

"Brother Chen! Leave this to me. If I can't get it done, I, Zhao Tiezhu, will quit being the market manager!"

"Alright, that's the spirit I need." Chen Mo nodded and turned to Gong Yun: "Sister Gong, approve four million in funding for him. Let him scour the market. With such a generous reward, there will surely be brave men. I don't believe we can't find some real talent!"

Upon hearing this, Gong Yun once again lowered her eyes and chuckled softly, her eyelashes trembling slightly, her voice gentle yet knowing.

"Okay, Mr. Chen! I'll arrange the four million yuan budget for the marketing department right away."

After the report ended, only the low hum of the air conditioner remained in the office.

Chen Mo leaned back in his large chair, his gaze fixed on the sky outside the window, which was bathed in the glow of the evening sun.

The company is in a healthy financial position, Yuancheng Shares is about to be redeemed, the technology department is steadily advancing R&D, the logistics department is providing orderly support, and the marketing department continues to expand its reach.
Under Chen Mo's coordination, Orange Technology was like a tightly wound precision machine, with every gear turning perfectly, speeding forward in the direction he had set.

The office was quiet, except for the faint tapping of his fingertips on the desk, like the silent brewing of war drums.

He picked up the slightly cool tea on the table, took a sip, and his eyes were deep.

Next, we simply wait for September, when the long-planned storm will arrive.

Gong Yun didn't stop after reporting on the finances. Now she was shouldering the heavy responsibility, and the affairs she managed were so complex that she was irreplaceable.

The company can still function without Chen Mo, but it really can't function without Gong Yun. As for the miscellaneous affairs of the logistics department, Chen Mo doesn't want to touch them at all; he gets a headache just listening to the reports.

Zhao Tiezhu finished in three minutes, but Gong Yun has been reporting for almost half an hour and still hasn't finished.

Another thing is that Gong Yun is too good at interpersonal relationships. Chen Mo didn't even tell anyone that the manager of the Shancheng flagship store was his second sister, but Gong Yun had already prepared customer service in the Shancheng dialect within her own logistics department.

Therefore, it's understandable that Chen Mo was somewhat "indulgent" towards Gong Yun.

He didn't question the mysterious disappearance of the golden tang in the aquarium; later, when he realized that Xiaomi had received a Class A executive stock incentive (held on behalf of the company) and had become the de facto "Manager Xiaomi," he simply pretended not to see it and tacitly approved of it.

Gong Yun lightly turned the next page of the folder with her fingertips, her voice still as warm and gentle as ever.

"There's one more thing, Mr. Chen!"

“In the days you’ve been away, investment promotion personnel from various districts and even neighboring cities have been flocking to our area like cats smelling fish, after seeing the official news.”

She lowered her eyes and smiled faintly, with a hint of helplessness in her expression.

"I've had the administrative team organize all the investment promotion materials. I've roughly sifted through them here and think Futian and Longhua are the two most reliable companies."

Gong Yun raised her eyes, looked at Chen Mo with gentle eyes, and spoke with lowered gaze.

"The advantage of Futian is that it's right under our noses, so we don't have to move it, which is worry-free."
Although Takika is a bit far away, the conditions they offered were very sincere, and it's clear they genuinely want to cooperate.

Chen Mo took the neatly bound stack of documents, casually weighed them in his hand, and quickly scanned a few key numbers on them.

"Okay, got it!" He said casually, but his eyes were focused. "I'll take a closer look at the information when I have time. I'll decide which one to choose later!"

Afterwards, the two finished reporting on the company's situation during Chen Mo's business trip.

Chen Mo tapped his fingertips lightly twice on the table and pointed to the corner of the wall with a smile.

"I brought back some cured meat and non-spicy hot pot base from the mountain city. You two can share it and take it!"

Zhao Tiezhu rubbed his hands together and said with a smile, "Brother Chen! What a coincidence! I called my little sister yesterday, and she was just saying she wanted to eat some Chongqing cuisine!"

Gong Yun lowered her eyes and smiled lightly: "Thank you for your kindness, President Chen!" and let Zhao Tiezhu choose first.

Zhao Tiezhu and Gong Yun walked out of Chen Mo's office one after the other, each carrying a heavy gift box of local specialties that Chen Mo had brought back from the mountain city.

As soon as he gently closed the door, Zhao Tiezhu couldn't hold back any longer.

He leaned closer to Gong Yun and lowered his voice: "Sister Gong! What's wrong with Brother Chen's brain? Did he get carried away by eating hot pot in Chongqing?"

"Didn't they clearly say in the previous meeting that with Nietzsche's direct sales backing us up, there's no rush to implement the asset-heavy model of flagship store direct sales?"

"How come after just one trip there and back, they just decided to open a flagship store in Chongqing?"

He pursed his lips: "Now that's bad. My marketing department has to send someone to manage that new store. This is just adding extra work for me, it's so troublesome!"

Upon hearing this, Gong Yun did not stop walking. She simply turned her head and glanced at him gently, her lips curved in her usual faint smile, her voice soft yet hitting the nail on the head.

"Xiao Zhao, your thinking is wrong!"

"Huh?" Zhao Tiezhu was taken aback, raising an eyebrow: "What's wrong?"

"It's not your place to 'manage' them." Gong Yun lowered her eyes slightly, looking at the exquisite specialty product packaging box in her hand, her tone somewhat persuasive: "It's your marketing department's responsibility to provide good service to them!"

"To serve others?"

Zhao Tiezhu was even more bewildered, his brows furrowed so deeply they could trap a fly; he seemed old for his young age.

"Sister Gong, what you're saying confuses me. If a newly opened store isn't under the jurisdiction of my marketing department's channel team, then who is? Oh! Do I have to treat it like royalty?"

Gong Yun chuckled softly. She stopped and turned to face Zhao Tiezhu, her eyes filled with a knowing yet unspoken teasing.

"Don't rush to think about how to 'manage' it. Go and find out the name of the manager of the flagship store in Shancheng first, and then we can talk about the rest later."

"Look at the name?" Zhao Tiezhu subconsciously repeated the name, his mind flashing back to the timing of Chen Mo's change of route to Shancheng, the dialect-speaking customer service representative that Sister Gong had specially hired, and the subtle expression on Brother Chen's face when he occasionally mentioned Shancheng.
Suddenly, he slapped his forehead!
"Holy crap!" Zhao Tiezhu almost threw the box of local specialties in his hand away. His eyes widened in disbelief, and his face was filled with a look of sudden realization.

"I understand! Sister Gong, I get it now, so that's how it is!"

He chuckled, his earlier complaints vanished, and his steps became much lighter.

"Alright! I'll go 'provide service' right away and make sure the channel team provides excellent service!"

As he muttered to himself, he carried the gift box and strode briskly toward his department, his back view exuding an air of "I have some gossip to tell."

Zhao Tiezhu, that kid, is not one to keep things to himself!

Gong Yun watched his hurried figure disappear into the distance, then lowered her eyes to tidy up her folder before calmly walking away.

She deliberately showed it to Zhao Tiezhu, so that no one would be tactless and cause trouble for President Chen later.

Look, Gong Yun has a perfect grasp of social etiquette, no wonder Chen Mo is willing to turn a blind eye to her harmless "minor mistakes".

Despite the office renovation exceeding the budget, she actually had much better control over cash flow than Chen Mo, and it didn't cause any crisis.

As for favoring Xiaomi, Chen Mo wouldn't bother arguing with Gong Yun, his "well-rounded" right-hand woman.

Meanwhile, Jiang Yu, who was invited by Shen Yiwei to visit Shenzhen, landed at Shenzhen Airport.

He didn't want to change jobs, but his wife kept nagging him when she heard that a boss from Shenzhen was trying to recruit him: "Shancheng isn't as developed as Shenzhen. We need to send our child here to receive a better education."

It's a mountain city, you know. Men make the decisions on big things, and women make the decisions on small things.

The key point is that only matters of life and death are considered important, so minor matters like changing jobs are naturally decided by Jiang Yu's wife.

However, besides inspecting Shen Yiwei's Blue Factory, Jiang Yu also wanted to visit Orange Company, which has recently gained fame for its gaseous lithium batteries, during his trip to Shenzhen.

(End of this chapter)