14 DAY TRIAL // It’s been less than a week since Daniel Zhang, former chief operating officer, has taken over the e-commerce giant, but it seems that the newly-appointed CEO is already looking into expanding the company beyond borders as he announced that their main priority is to globalize.
During his first speech as Alibaba Group’s CEO, Zhang insisted on making it clear for all his employees that they need to put all their efforts together in order to help the company on its way to international integration.
The transcription of the speech published on the group’s official site unveils the new CEO’s intention to diversify the Alibaba’s workforce and to bring in "global talent." These declarations are enforced by the launch of the corporation’s talent-recruitment program which targets MBA students from all over the world who are interested in getting a position within the giant company.
The decision follows better than expected quarterly results which managed to surpass analysts’ expectations and led to an increase in its stock market value, proving that e-commerce is still going strong in China despite the country’s economic downfall.
Alibaba already has an English portal used by sellers and buyers from around 240 countries as well as an online retail service where smaller Chinese enterprises offer their products and services to international customers, but they seem to want to expand beyond these as they take on more and more countries.
The company has some pending issues to solve
However, if Alibaba wants to succeed on a global scale it is advisable to first try to sort things out regarding one of its largest marketplaces, Taobao, which is currently known worldwide as a website where counterfeit goods are highly prevalent. The group’s founder even blamed consumers for the preponderance of the products on the online market, saying that it was their greed that led retailers to such illicit practices.
However, following pressure from U.S. brands, Alibaba committed itself to make sure that fake goods are completely removed from its sites, but the process is still a long way from reaching an end.
The company does not plan to go global overnight. The CEO announced that this a long-term project which could take years, but they are intent on becoming an international company and fulfilling one of the founder’s primary goals, which is for the company to last more than 100 years.