This company has always stood out. It has an unusual name for a Chinese company. Alibaba, an Arab name apparently chosen for it's popularity (everybody knows the story of the forty thieves). It's main founder is even more unusual. A widely shared picture of him, features a nose ring, makeup, a mohawk and jet-black lipstick to top it off (he was singing for his employees on Alibaba's tenth anniversary). This most famous guy is Jack Ma. Not only is he another famous rags to riches story, his life is one that has taken many turns. Most of these roller coaster swirls involved his true "devotion" Alibaba.com. The charismatic founder, recently said that he would be stepping down from his company in 2019. Which calls into question about Alibaba's future.
Jack Ma history-
Jack Ma, was an everyday guy from China, except that's not true. He wasn't really ordinary from the very start. When he was young he wanted to learn the language of the world, English. So he used to go down to the hotel in his hometown Hangzhou, where tourists used to stay. He used to give them tours of the place, in return for them teaching him English. His passion for learning was evident from the beginning. So, no shock that he grew up to first become a teacher. He wasn't good at studies and couldn't get the grades to make the top universities in China (no shock there most tech geniuses, usually pick a slight "off-academic" path). So, he made it to the university that taught teachers-to-be. He, became a teacher and ended up loving it. He was voted one of the best teachers where he taught but, he thought it was best to get something to teach from real life experiences. Which is why he wanted to have a business and promised to come back to teaching after a little while. That was the beginning. Not of Alibaba, that part came later. Jack had two businesses before he hit the jackpot with Alibaba. The first was a translation agency that went by the name of "Hope Translation". He came to know of the internet on his first trip to America (with a very interesting story involving an alleged holding of hostage). So, after Hope Translation didn't work out, he looked for a better idea. Realizing that there was nothing on the newly born internet about China, he saw potential. Then the birth of China Pages. A company that would create an online presence for Chinese businesses. This went pretty good actually, eventually leading to a merger with a state sponsored company. However, Jack Ma lost control then and also realized the internet was too young right now. So he sold his shares and moved to Beijing to work a government job. He stayed there until... Alibaba
Alibaba was born-
Alibaba was created at a time when the dot com bubble was at an all time high. Everybody thought it was about to burst but, Jack Ma had other plans. He thought the timing was perfect and good thing he did. The timing, the motivation of Jack, everything that made Alibaba. China has many factories (no new news) that make many of the things you find in your stores. These factories had not much ways of getting their products and goods outside of China, other than the government. So, Alibaba wanted to give the millions of businesses and factories in China, an outlet to get their goods abroad. We are so used to seeing "Made in China" on everything we buy and Alibaba may have played a huge role in that. Alibaba had many ups and downs. The ups were significant. Alibaba was not the only company with such an idea. MeetChina.com was one of the competitors. However, Alibaba's customer centric policies made it rise above all else. The down were also very significant, especially after the dot com bubble burst and all companies were just trying to survive. As you all already have figured out, Alibaba was one of the survivors. One of it's driving forces throughout that time was Jack Ma. So how will Alibaba look after him? Why is his stepping down so surprising?
Without him-
Jack Ma's name has most usually been in the same sentence as Alibaba's. He recently announced his plan to retire next year. He said that he would be handing over the reins to Daniel Zhang, currently chief executive. The reason he gave was something not common amongst most CEOs we see these days, especially in China. He spoke like a true teacher "Teachers always want their students to exceed them, so the responsible thing to do for me and the company to do is to let younger, more talented people take over in leadership roles". He is one of the few leaders that saw when it was right to step down. When a company is starting to get too attached to one person then it always leads to an imminent dysfunctionality. Jack Ma said it himself, "The one thing I can promise everyone is this: Alibaba was never about Jack Ma, but Jack Ma will forever belong to Alibaba." But, there does lie a doubt over there. Alibaba's name has always been correlated to or attached to Jack Ma. Wouldn't there be a doubt about its future? How would it manage? Which is why he is not leaving cold-cut. He has given a year for a so called "smooth transition" to his successor. The good thing is that the successor also happens to be the current chief executive, which means he does know how things work around the place. That insider knowledge is something that many failed takeovers didn't have (looking at Apple). In a way, Jack Ma from day one had created a culture that would be able to prosper even without him. Also he did say that he had been planning this for 10 years...
What's next for him?
Jack Ma has said that he would love to go and explore more things. He has given hints regarding philanthropy, which seems to be a trend for all retiring billionaires. In his own words he made it clear that he still has lots of dreams to pursue. He said "Those who know me know that I do not like to sit idle." Jack Ma also said he would be continuing his role as the founding partner in the Alibaba Partnership. He mentioned in his letter that he wanted to go back to education. Perhaps staying true to his promise to return to teaching earlier? We don't really know what's going to be next in Jack Ma's life. If he goes back to teaching then he surely would have a lot of experiences to share. But, him being Jack Ma- It's probably something unpredictable.