JD.com billionaire founder Richard Liu blasts underperforming employees, as e-commerce giant faces mounting competition
- Underperformers who slack off will be weeded out, but average performers who work hard will be spared, said Richard Liu in a widely circulated video
- The Chinese firm has also shortened the lunch break from two hours to one hour, and enhanced efforts to eliminate ‘buddy punching’
“[For people who] underperform and don’t work hard, the company will not tolerate them and will weed them out,” the 51-year-old entrepreneur said in a video that is circulating on social media and was widely reported by local media.
Those who perform well should not have to work overtime, but average performers who work hard can also be assured that they will not be fired, Liu added.
They also stand in contrast with past comments by Liu, who has repeatedly highlighted comradeship in the company culture by calling staff “my brothers”.
The strong words come after the Beijing-based firm made a series of adjustments to its work schedule and timekeeping policies, including shortening the lunch break from two hours to one hour, as well as additional efforts to prevent “buddy punching” – a term describing workers clocking in for colleagues who are late or absent, according to people familiar with the matter.
One executive at JD.com, who declined to be named as he is not authorised to speak to the media, said the company is hopeful that the changes could help correct sloppy management in the past few years.
