From Cainiao’s Founding Team to Leading Organizational Change to Spearhead Business Transformation

To Liu Hong, this isn’t just a job. It is her career and passion all rolled into one.

Overseeing every human resource aspect of a 10,000-strong organization is no small feat but Liu Hong, the Chief People Officer at Cainiao, rose up to the challenge and humbly remarks, “It has been an honor to witness Cainiao’s growth journey over the past 7 years. I have seen firsthand how the company has evolved from a traditional logistics company to a globalized platform business.”

Liu Hong was one of the founding team back in 2013 when Cainiao was first established. Back then, the founding team’s experience is akin to startup founders who had to spend months racking their brains to define the business model and direction before they can ‘hit the ground running’ — so to say.

After two years at Cainiao, Liu Hong decided to focus on her family and to spend more time with her kid in 2015.

A True Alibaba Veteran with Logistics Flowing in Her Veins

But it wasn’t long before her passion came calling out to her. In 2017, she joined Fliggy, Alibaba’s online travel platform, to reunite with her passion for HR and also rejoin the Alibaba family. Since then, she has also move to Alibaba’s department store chain business — InTime, before rejoining Cainiao in late 2020 as the Chief People Officer.

“After all these years, I still feel a sense of affinity towards Cainiao,” commented Liu Hong, as she shared the key reason for her rejoining Cainiao the moment the opportunity arose.

This was a timely return as Cainiao was evolving from a technology-focus platform to adopt a more logistics-lens in order to serve as a more effective and strategic platform to our industry partners.

“Over the years, with the advent of digital technology, we are seeing a significant lowering of entry barrier to becoming an internet platform. It has become apparent to us that in order to achieve our mission to deliver within China in 24 hours and globally within 72 hours, there needs to be a more in-depth and hand-on approach to supporting and transforming the logistics industry, and in turn establish our unique value proposition within the global markets. We need to roll up our sleeves and become more actively involved in the operational aspects of logistics, not just from the technology perspective.”

Leading Organizational Change to Drive Industry Transformation

But change doesn’t happen overnight. After years of shaping Cainiao into a technology company, the pivot to a true logistics platform will require a multi-pronged approach to audit current internal assessment process, hiring requirements, employee training programs and even the re-modelling of frameworks across different business units.

In parallel, happening externally, there is also a push for globalization to strength the global logistics network, which presented another layer of HR work that comprises overseas recruitment while managing the balance between localization and inclusivity in all the overseas offices.

“As Cainiao continues its globalization efforts, there is also a need to foster greater cultural inclusivity to strike a balance between Chinese and international employees. In parallel, I am conscious of the need to ensure that our current employees are ready to support our globalization needs in the near term.”

Commenting on the fundamental need for an organizational shift, Liu Hong said, “Logistics is a sector where accuracy plays an especially critical role. This can make or break your operations, with a direct impact on the timeliness and accuracy of delivery, as well as the logistics cost incurred by the business, merchants and end consumers.”

Explaining further about what the organizational change would entail, Liu Hong goes on to talk about intricacies such as a more detailed approach to KPI setting for current employees to ensure alignment with business direction, and the new skills expectations to achieve business goals. Training programs are also introduced internally to plug the skills gap and facilitate continual learning for existing employees.

What were formerly defined as more strategic roles such as product managers, would also be required to enrich their logistics knowledge and get more grounded to solve actual logistics problems especially those that typically surface during global shopping festivals like the Double 11.

The Road Ahead Is Long But Fruitful

As a leader in a male-dominated industry, Liu Hong offers a unique perspective on being a female at Cainiao.

“Being immersed in this environment has helped me to gain a deeper appreciation of what it means to be a woman and the unique value that we bring to the table. This perspective has given me additional confidence and strength to take on the challenges ahead. At work, we face adversities and tasks with grit and tenacity to deliver results; within the team, we nurture and support our teammates to help them achieve their personal best, with a talent-centric and caring approach to people management.”

We also asked Liu Hong to share some valuable advice for aspiring Aliren (a term referring to all Alibaba employees) and those who wish to embark on their journey with Cainiao. She said, “You must first be equipped with faith and passion! Logistics is an industry that has been around for a very long time. In order to bring about real change, one needs to have a great level of perseverance in the face of challenges. This can be demanding mentally, physically and emotionally. Thus, without faith and passion, it will be tough to overcome these hurdles and succeed.”

“At the same time, we welcome those who are inspired by our vision and mission to join the Cainiao family! One day, in the very near future, when our hard work has culminated in an industry-wide transformation and improvements in the overall quality of life for the world, we will be able to look back and feel proud of the contributions that we have made.”

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