Master Style and Simple Life

Huang Qunhui (hereinafter referred to as Huang): Hello, Mr. Chen. As the academic commissioner of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, director of Economic Division, Deputy Director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, researcher and doctoral supervisor, as well as the member of the Standing Committee of the 10^th National People's Congress and member of the Finance and Economics Committee of the 10^th National People's Congress, in addition to the President of the Chinese Institute of Business Administration and the Vice President of the China Federation of Industrial Economics, among others, you, as it were, have a very adorable and successful life. However, one life motto you often tell others is that “suffering is a big fortune in one’s life”. Why?

Chen Jiagui (hereinafter referred to as Chen): It has something to do with my life experience. My hometown is Fulong Village, Yuechi County, Sichuan Province. It has picturesque scenery and the people there are simple, honest and unspoiled. However, they are very poor. If I tell you this place name, maybe you will not have any impression. But you must know the story of Hong Yan, don’t you?

Huang: Do you mean the revolutionary story of Ms. Jiang and the old woman with two guns?

Chen: Yes. The story took place in my hometown, Huaying Mountainous Area in Sichuan Province. My family is an ordinary peasant family and the life here is tough. When I was young, I had to help my family with mowing and herding sheep. I was born in 1994. If it were not for the liberation in 1949 and the establishment of new China, it would be difficult for me to go to school. Nearly all of my time in the primary school was spent on books and among the flock of sheep.

Huang: It seems to sound very poetical now.

Chen: However, at that time life was indeed difficult for me. After graduating from the junior primary, I was admitted to a senior primary school (which is the same as the Grade Five and Grad Six in primary school now). The school was more than 10 kilometers away from my home. Every day, I got up early at dawn and herded the four or five sheep at my home to the mountain valley at first before I went to school. After the school was over at 4:00 pm, I must hurry home. I often only had one meal for lunch and supper. After I had the meal, I had to take the sheep back home. After I graduated from the primary school, I was admitted to Huaying Junior High School. It was a great pleasure for the people who live in the city. However, our family could not be happy at all, since the school was more than 30 miles away from my home. I had to live at school, which meant that I had to paid board wage of 3 yuan every month in addition to the tuition fee and the cost of books. The board wage was only 3 yuan but we could not afford it. It was 3 yuan! We were not able to afford! We asked relatives and friends for help and borrowed money from many people. But the money we had collected was still not enough. Though it was difficult, my father made up his mind to sell the timbers that were prepared for building a new house in the market. Finally, the sum of money was enough after managing so many difficulties. After I was admitted to the junior high school, I often carried the coal in the mountain to earn some money on Sunday as well as festivals and holidays with the purpose of reducing the heavy burdens of my family. Since I was very young, I was only able to carry thirty to forty kilograms at most every time. If I carried a shoulder pole of coal from the coal mine to the Huaying Street where my school was located at, I could earn only twenty fen or so. During the summer vacation, I often carried coal from the Luodu Coal Station by the Qujiang River and transferred the coal on the boat for being transported to the other place with the purpose of raising money for the next semester. I had to walk two kilometers for a round trip, climbing up and going down the slope, stumbling all the way. However, I could only earn 3 fen each time. After doing the tough work all day long, it would be very good for me to earn fifty fen. As for a fourteen to fifteen year old child, such kind of labor is certainly heavy work. On the first few days, after I carried the coal and went back home, my shoulders were always red and swollen just like having carbuncles. If they were touched slightly, I would have a terribly hot feeling and feel painful. My feet were also always rubbed by the straw sandals and had the big bleeding blisters. I was so tired that my body seemed to fall to pieces. However, I still soldiered on and toughed it out.

Huang: It is indeed difficult for the students now to imagine the hardship at that time. Perhaps, it is the difficulties and hardships in life that steel you will and simulate your fight spirit to study hard.

Chen: Yes. It is the reason why I said “suffering is a big fortune in one’s life”. Though life is difficult for me, I always did well in my study. When I graduated from my junior high school, I was reward with the title of Outstanding Graduate and I was admitted the key senior high school in the county. After I graduated from the senior high school, I was admitted to Renmin University of China and became one of the first generation of undergraduates in my mountainous village.

Huang: When did you go to Beijing for attending the university?

Chen: In 1964.

Huang: It was the time when the Great Cultural Revolution took place when you were in the university, wasn’t it?

Chen: Yes! In that crazy age, my leaders and teachers of my school was impacted and destroyed. Even I, a young student was not able to land on my feet. Shortly after the Revolution started, a rebel criticized the speech that I addressed at the study seminar of Party’s history and political economy class as a black material. He listed more than ten facts about crime of me such as be opposed to the “general line”, be opposed to “the great leap forward”, be opposed to “the people's commune”, among others. He put forward these at a meeting of struggling against “capitalist roaders” and “reactionary gangs”. I was judged as “a reactionary student” and “a black seedling of revisionism”. After the “16 Articles” was put forward, I was regard as a person who “should be dealt with on the later stage of the Revolution” and was recorded in the “other register”. My right of joining “the Red Guards” and taking part in “the Great Get-together” was deprived. I say with my own eyes that some schoolmates in my surroundings were not able to survive such great pressure and went mad; some teachers were not reconciled to be humiliated and destroyed so they committed suicide. When I thought about my future, I would tremble with fear. You can imagine the pressure on my mind and body. What’s worse, it never rains but it pours, misfortunes never come singly. When I was depressed in such adverse situation, my sister wrote to me and told me my father was criticized and denounced at a public meeting in the “Four Clean-ups” Movement. Someone disclosed that my father had served as a butler of a landlord family before the liberation and he did business after the libration. It was a kind of capitalism. In the age when the extremely “leftism” overflowed, people often swore black is white. Before the liberation, my father was undoubtedly served as a long term hired hand in the landlord’s family and used to keep the yard for the landlord’s family. However, he was raised to a higher plane of principle and two-line struggle to be a “butler”; and there is no doubt that he just did some retail business in his spare time, however, he was regarded as conducting capitalism. My sisters thought that I was studying in Beijing and was highly cultured and steeped in propriety. I must know the policy so they asked me to report this situation to the department concerned. They did not know that like a clay Buddha fording the river-hardly, I was not able to save myself. Under such circumstance, I could not tell my family about my tough situation and made them worried about me, I could only bore such sufferings silently by myself. However, I did not lose my heart, or become dejected. I never surrendered. At that time, I have a belief that the reason why I went to Beijing to study in a university from a great distance was that I wanted to study and learn knowledge. I could not give up my objective of learning due to the hostile environment. At that time I was of “peripateticism” but I was not free and unfettered. Instead, I searched for books to read by all manner of means. At that time, I read not only a great number of classic works of Marxism but also lots of famous works in the field of economics. I read the Wealth of Nations and the Enterprise Theory for the first time during that period of time, which laid a sound foundation for me when I was engaged in the economic researches afterwards.

Huang: After you graduated from the university, you were allocated to Gansu, where the condition is relatively tough.

Chen: The enterprise I worked in at that time was a textile mill that had more than 3000 employees. It was located in Tianshui, Gansu. I have worked for nearly 10 years in the primary-level organization in this remote area. I worked from the post of ordinary worker. I used to be a planner, the section chief of production scheduling and production, the section chief of planning. During this period of time, the salary of over 60 yuan per month might be sufficient for a family without child. However, with the birth and growing up of child, the family responsibilities became heavier and heavier. In addition that due to the natural and man-made disasters that took place at the years, Sichuan, the Land of Abundance could only have all its goods in the window. As a province with large grain-producing amount, the grain was not enough however. My father often asked us to send money back for buying grain. My parents-in-law were also living in the countryside, so we needed to send money to them as well. Therefore, we were living in straitened circumstances and were short of money at that time. According to the current standard, the job was not good for me indeed. However, as far as I am concerned, this experience was very precious for me with respect to my researches on economic theory and enterprise managementin which I was occupied in the future and for the management works as well. It has not only enriched my knowledge of business management, but also tempered my actual capability of business management. In addition, it is conducive to that I can avoid the showy and not substantial researches of theory. Therefore, the hard works are not always bad things for the young people.

Huang: How did you make up your mind to take part in the entrance exams for postgraduate schools?

Chen: In 1978, the system of entrance exam for postgraduate school was restored. Though I had been at work for nearly 10 years, to take a more advanced course of study further was always my one of my dreams. When I got the news that the system of entrance exam for postgraduate school was restored, I felt a rise with force and spirit. I started to work hard at reviewing lessons. Since I was at work, I had to steal the time to go over lessons. I usually arrived at the unit at about 5 in the morning. Before started work at 8:00, I would read books for several hours at first. In the evening, I had to go back home late. I spent the time after work in doing more reading for a while.

Huang: Everything comes to him who waits. Finally, you achieve what you wish.

Chen: Yes. 10 years later I came back to Beijing again and entered the Graduate School of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. I learned with Mr. Jiang (Mr. Jiang Yiwei, the famous economist) when I was attending the graduate school.

Huang: So many years later, you became a student again. How did you feel?

Chen: At that time, life was still very difficult. My wife, along with my two children, was living in Gansu and I was attending school in Beijing. I and my wife had lived apart for six years. At that time, the conditions in school were not so good as well. Eight students shared one dormitory. However, my classmates and I were highly enthusiastic with learning. As far as we were concerned, Opportunities are few and far between, so we should cherish every second, every minute more and study hard sedulously. In addition, we often rode bike to Beijing University and other universities to attend lectures in the capacity of an associate student.

Huang: From then on, you have never left the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, have you?

Chen: After graduated as with master degree, I stayed in the Institute of Economics of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences for work. In 1984, I learned with Mr. Jiang again and proceeded to the doctor’s degree of enterprise management major while being on job. In 1998, I got the doctor’s degree. I have worked at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences for 27 years, of which I have worked in the Institute of Industrial Economy for 17 years and worked in this Institute for 10 years. During this period of time, I used to take advanced study and training in College of Business Administration of Chinese University of Hong Kong and the Institute of Economics of University of Colorado in the USA for one year respectively as a visiting scholar. In addition to this, I have been working in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences all the time.

Huang: After you started you work in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, is your living condition a little better?

Chen: As soon as I started my work in the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, we had not gotten a house for a long time due to the limited conditions in the Academy so I had to rent a simply equipped house to live. In addition, we often made a move. We had nearly lived every of the east, the south, the west and the north areas of Beijing. The scholars are not Puritans. We are not unwilling to change our living conditions. However, since we chose to pursue studies and learn knowledge, it is impossible for us to become fat cats or rich men. Since we chose to work at a research institute, it is impossible for us to have the extravagant hope of superior living conditions. In addition, it is the spirit of enduring hardships and being capable of hard work that I have cultivated since I was young that makes me face the poverty fully at ease and concentrate on pursuing studies.

Huang: If the sentence that “suffering is a big fortune in one’s life” is a great inspiration in your life, what is your experience of having a successful life?

Chen: We cannot say it as the experience of having a successful life. If we regard it as my principle of behavior and acting, I can sum them up into four pieces. The first one is being severe with oneself and lenient towards others. We shall have high standard to request ourselves and be tolerate and self-effacing to others. The second one is taking the bull by the horns and being not afraid of hard works. We shall not give up what we pursue after due to the difficulties and hardship. The third one is to take everything seriously; we shall take study, works, and researches seriously. Nothing in the world is difficult if you take it seriously. If one wants to succeed, he shall take everything seriously; the forth is to have devotion to one's work and be eager to make progress. We shall not be content with things as they are and take no pressure on ourselves. Instead, we are supposed to constantly bring forth new ideas and do pioneering works.

Huang: Mr. Chen, why did you choose the economics major when you attended the university?

Chen: When I registered for examination at that time, nearly all majors I have chosen were economics major. At that time my classmates asked me whether I wanted to make a fortune. I answered no. The reason was that when I was at my high school, the fixing of farm output quotas for individual households with each on its own had been criticized for a period of time. However, when the public canteens were founded in the Great Leap Forward, everyone had no food. After that in the period of economic readjustment, the farmers were allowed to have a few lands set aside for them to cultivate for private use. Their living conditions were soon changed for better. During the overall period when I was at high school, I was pondering over this phenomenon all the time. Why did it happen? What on earth was the reason behind such phenomenon? As far as I was concerned, only if I attended the university and studied the economics, could I find the answer to the questions. After that, I achieved what one wished, being admitted by the Department of National Economic Plan and Statistics of Renmin University of China. From then on, I have been tightly bound to the economic problems.

Huang: You do research in an extensive field. You do desultory researches in the fields ranging from the microcosmic issues of enterprise to the issue of macro economy.

Chen: It is connected with my experience. When I was at the university, I studied the major of National Economic Plan and Statistics, which is classified into macro economy. However, I have been working in enterprise for many years and when I attended the graduate school I chose the major of enterprise management. After I entered the Institute of Industrial Economy, I was mainly engaged in the researches on enterprise management. During the period when I held the pose of the Director of the Institute of Industrial Economy, I paid close attention to the issues of industrial economy and industrial development. After that, I came to this institute for work and took charge of the works of economics division. In addition, I held the post of the member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and the member of the Finance and Economics Committee of the National People's Congress, so I pay more attention to the researches on the macro economic issues.

Huang: As far as I am concerned, you have published more than 10 monographs and issued more than 200 papers so far. The total word number has reached more than 4 million. If you sum them up, what kind of system do these achievements constitute?

Chen: In my opinion, the system of my achievements in scientific research can be summed up by “three levels and three key words”. The “three levels” are “the level of micro enterprise, the level of medium industry and the level of macro economy” while the “three key words” refer to “reform, management and development”. My research process is the same. On the earlier stage, I paid attention to the issues of enterprise reform, enterprise management and enterprise development. The representative works include the Entrepreneurship, the Business Operation and Market, the Operation and Development of Modern Large and Medium-Size Enterprises, the New Development of Theories and Practices for Modern Enterprise Management, the Theories and Practices of Modern Enterprise System, and the Research on the Reform and Development of Chinese State-Owned Enterprise, among others.

Huang: the Operation and Development of Modern Large and Medium-Size Enterprises won the “Five ‘One’ Project Reward” of the 6^th cultural and ideological progress promotion issued by the Propaganda Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.

Chen: after that, I paid attention to the issues of reform, management and development in the level of industry. The representative works include the Research on the Issue of Chinese Modernization and the Structural Reform of Industrial Organizations, etc.

Huang: During the period when you held the post of Director of the Institute of Industrial Economy, you took charge of composing the China Industry Development Report and it should also be the achievement in this filed. As the most authoritative report that reflects the state of Chinese industry development, the China Industry Development Report has been published since 1996. Every year, it is themed by a subject. So far, a total of 11 reports have been published.

Chen: I took charge of composing this report during the period when I held the post of the Director of the Institute of Industrial Economy. It is a collective achievement of the Institute of Industrial Economy. I made the beginning and the colleagues in the Institute of Industrial Economy continued to complete the work. In recent years, I am mainly engaged in the researches in the field of macro economy. The representative works include the Researches on Several Major Issues in the Economic Reform and Development. In addition I served as the chief editor of the China social Security System Development Report, the 2007: Analysis and Forecast of Chinese Economic Situation and the China Economic Research Report, among others.

Huang: As far as I am concerned, your achievements have won a great number of rewards. Among your numerous high-quality research achievements and innovative academic opinions, what are the most representative opinions in your mind?

Chen: In terms of enterprise reform, the On Enterprise’s Adaptability for Market that I published in 1982, I put forward that the mandatory planning made by the state and transmitted to the enterprise should be cancelled. I emphasized that the routine activities of enterprises should be adjusted by full taking advantage of market mechanism while the enterprises must establish ideas about business operation and conduct production and operation based on the market. The enterprises are supposed to have an overall strategic concept as well as the specific user concept, quality concept, service concept, values concept, competition concept, innovation concept and time concept. This article won the 1^st Outstanding Achievements Prize of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

Huang: You can put forward such opinions in 1982, it is really advancing. In addition, in my opinion, many opinions you put forward in terms of enterprise reform after that were original, such as the opinion of promoting the transformation of the management system of state-owned property from the “level-to-level administration” to “level-to-level ownership”, among others.

Chen: In terms of enterprise management and development, the theory of enterprise’s life cycle that I put forward in 1998 was very representative. As far as I am concerned, the enterprises are the same as many organisms. They have a course from the birth to the death. This is the life cycle of enterprise. The so-called theory of enterprise’s life cycle is a theory designated to reveal the law of theory of enterprise’s life cycle. Strictly speaking, it is the theoretical analysis as well as the conclusion and summary of the substantive characteristics of each stage in the life cycle of business organizations. At the very beginning, I divided the enterprise’s life cycle into six stages including the induction stage, the stage of struggling for existence, the rapid development stage, the mature stage, the degenerating stage and the transformation stage, of which the induction stage is the period when the enterprise is established. The stage of struggling for existence is the period from the enterprise starting its operation and to the rapid development. The rapid development stage means that by developing for several years, the enterprise has solved the basic problems of survival and entered into a stable stage of rapid development. The degenerating stage means that the enterprise begins to have the “large enterprise diseases”, the bloated organization, the ageing problem, shrunk production, the decrease of benefit and the deteriorated financial position. The enterprise only has two options. One is to enter into the transformation stage and gets rebirth by means of overall innovation for the purpose of thorough change. The other is to go bankrupt and die. This theory consists of one of the core elements of enterprise management for growth.

Huang: With respect to the time of publishing, you put forward the theory of enterprise’s life cycle one year before Ichak Adizes, Ph.D., the American managerialist put forward his theory of enterprise’s life cycle. The first English version of his famous Research on Enterprise Life Cycle was published in 1989.

Chen: In macro terms, the basic opinion on the change of Chinese national conditions that I put forward in 2005 was of great originality. For a long time, our country is regarded as a large agricultural economy country. The fundamental reality of China that China is a large agricultural country has been the common sense of people. However, after the rapid process of industrialization for more than 20 years in the reform and opening open, the fundamental reality of China that China has been changed from a large agricultural country to a large industry country. That is to say, the fundamental reality of China can be summarized as that “China is a large country of farmers rather than a large agricultural country; China is a large industrial country but not a strong industry country.”

Huang: Yes. The judgment of the fundamental reality of a country is the premise for its modernization strategy. The soul in the “Chinese experience” is to choose the way of development that is suitable for us according to the fundamental reality our country. The modernization process and practices of China so far has shown that the scientific realization and understanding are the foundation and premise for China to succeed. There is no doubt that your opinion in terms of the change of fundamental reality of China has a very important significance for China to formulate its modernization strategy in the future. As far as I am concerned, in terms of macroeconomic regulation and control, the suggestion of avoiding the administrative cycle took place constantly in the macro economy and standardizing the capital source of government investment and investment behaviors etc. that you put forward are all of great value.

Chen: It should be mentioned that during the more than 20 years when I am engaged in the economic researches, it is the age when the great change and development take place in our country. It is the period when the economic system of our country changes from the planned economy to the market economy and the period when the rapid progress of industrialization takes place. The economists shall go into the significant issue in the economic reform and development of our country. We are supposed to study it in order to apply it and make contribution to the economic reform and development of our country.

Huang: Can we say that connection between theory and practice is the most important experience you have gained from pursuing studies?

Chen: The researches on economic theory must be tightly connected to the economic practices of our country. The fundamental foothold of theory is the practice. The theory not only derives from the practice but also roots in the practice. The Chinese economists shall combine the economic theories with and make them act on the lifeblood of Chinese economy directly and thus the theories can come into play to a great extent. As a matter of fact, I have been engaged in a great number of researches on the economic reform issues in these years. In 1982, we took part in the investigation and research of the significant enterprise reform, i.e. the responsibility plan of progressive profit increase of Capital Iron and Steel Company. I participated in the design of the responsibility plan of progressive profit increase and the preparation of report submitted to the Central Committee. After that, the State Council approved this plan and thus Capital Iron and Steel Company became the first mega corporation that implemented the responsibility system of progressive profit increase all over the country, which played a part in promoting the economic reform all over the country. From 1982 to 1983, we took part in the investigation of restructuring the economic system in Chongqing, researching on the issue that Chongqing implementing the independent planning status etc. We wrote the Plan for Chongqing as Selected Unit for Experiments in Comprehensive Reform. After that, this plan was submitted to the State Council and was approved to be implemented officially. Chongqing became the first city all over our country that is a municipality with independent planning status and the selected city for comprehensive experiments in urban reform of the economic system. In 1989, I leaded a research group to take part in the shareholding reform project of Hangzhou Universal Joint Factory. The shareholding reform plan that we prepared jointly played an important part in guiding this township enterprise to become a large-sized modern group company successfully. In 2005, I took part in the activity of “Experts’ Trip to the West Regions” organized by the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. The development strategy of the northern economic zone in the Beibu Gulf Ring I put forward for Guangxi was approved by Guangxi. In 2006, I took charge of completing the two key issues assigned by the central committee, the “research on theoretical issues of scientific outlook on development” and the “research on major achievements since the reform and opening up and the historical experience”. After the issues were completed, the General Secretary Hu Jintao listened to the issues’ achievement report in person.

Huang: Would you please give us, the young scholars, some suggestions in terms of pursing studies?

Chen: Now, the economics is respected as a significant study. The society has a great demand of economic knowledge, which makes some economists have blundering style of study. The young scholars must do their best to guard against arrogance and be engaged in the researches in a down-to-earth way. When doing researches, they should be rigorous and their opinions shall withstand to be weighed. This is the first one. Secondly, when pursuing studies, one shall be able to endure hardships and not be afraid of hard work. Now, the society has been developed and the living conditions have been improved. In general, the researchers will have sufficient food. What I mentioned enduring hardships is no longer the difficult living conditions in the days we suffered from, but to sacrifice the time for rest and recreation and being not afraid of the hardship of engaging in doing researches for a long time. The third one is that the teamwork spirit shall be promoted. It is insufficient for only one person to do the modern scientific research, especially the research on many significant economic issues of our country. The collective researches are needed. The young scholars shall take part in more collective projects and lay emphasis on the teamwork. You should learn from the collective researches – “learning from working” so as to improve you research ability constantly.

Huang: Mr. Chen, during the period when you held the post of the Institute of Industrial Economy, you not only had great and rich achievements in scientific researches but also leaded the Institute of Industrial Economy to make a great development. At that time, you put forward the “integration strategy” of scientific researches, consultation, publishing and training of the Institute of Industrial Economy, which greatly improved the development of the Institute of Industrial Economy. With the joint efforts of all comrades in the Institute, now the Institute of Industrial Economy has developed into a large scientific research publishing entity contains the Economy& Management Publishing House, the China Industrial Economics periodical office, the Economic Management periodical office, the China Business newspaper office, the Fine Shopping Guides newspaper office as well as the Business College and the Staffers which are magazines subordinate to the China Business etc. In these years, you hold the administrative posts of the Deputy Director of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Though you are busy with the administrative affairs, you still published a great number of research results in addition to promoting the establishment of China Economist, an English publication. Would you please talk about how you deal with the relation between scientific researches and administrative affairs?

Chen: The researchers can be included in the freelance workers. However as is known to all people who are engaged in doing researches, this profession is not free at all. What the researchers face are new problems one after another. If we want to have new idea and new point of view in our research results, we have to make arduous efforts. Therefore, every time when we receive a new issue, our brain must be pondering ceaselessly in addition to looking up literatures, searching for, making investigations and surveys and holding workshops. There is no dividing line between working time and leisure time. There is no difference between working days and holidays. We are always mentally and physically exhausted. As for the people who have to shoulder the responsibilities of doing the scientific researches and administrative affairs at the same time, we should squeeze time to do researches since we need to spend more time in dealing with the administrative affairs. We have to make use of every bit of time. If he wants to have any achievement, it will be more difficult for him. He shall spend more energy than others and be more tired and laborious than others. If you say that I can adapt to such manner and pace of working in a better way and am able to deal with the relation between the two, it is unable to be parted from the spirit of enduring hardships and being capable of hard work that I cultivated since I was young. However, as far as I am concerned, as the director of a research institute, the researches and administrative works of affairs have one thing in common, namely the aspect of innovation and exploration. The new ideas and new points of view are necessary in the scientific researches. We should constantly innovate. It is the same that as for a institute. If we want to promote the rapid and sound development of the institute, we should explore constantly. If we say that when doing researches we need to constantly make researches of new issues as well as explore new fields of research, we should constantly search for new directions of development and explore new undertakings when doing the administrative works of an institute. We cannot be content with things as they are when doing the administrative works of an institute. During the period when I serve as the director of the institute, the plan and objective I set for myself is to try my best to explore one new undertaking every year. From this point of view, the innovative concepts that I cultivate from the long-term scientific researches contributes a lot to my good administrative works.

Huang: Mr. Chen, you have guided one master student and nearly 30 doctoral candidates. These students have good development in enterprises, or research and development institution, university, or government body. Some of them have been business owners, some has been doctoral supervisors and some have been leaders at certain level. At last, would you please the way of being a teacher and a model for others?

Chen: The important part of postgraduate education is the degree paper while one of the important directive functions of a supervisor is the selection of a subject of their students’ thesis. When I am guiding the selection of a subject of thesis, I pay great attention to the leading edge part of theory and the importance of reality. During the selection of a subject, we should not only lay emphasis on the theoretical basis, which belongs to the theory front of a subject, but also combine it with tightly with the practices of economic reform and development of our country. In this way, it will be conducive to solving the practical problems and has important significance of reality applications. In addition, the postgraduate education must attach importance to teaching students in accordance of their aptitude. The structures of knowledge, the professional backgrounds and the life experiences of every student are different, so we should guide students on the basis of their different characteristics. With respect to the selection of a subject of the doctoral dissertation, we should also confirm the subject in accordance with the characteristics of students. It is the same that the selection of a subject shall the leading edge theory and the value of reality. A subject may be suitable for some students but it may not be suitable for some other students as well.

Huang: At this aspect, I have deep feelings. The selection of a subject of thesis “Research on the Incentive and Restraint of Entrepreneurs” which you helped me to decide on is a selection of a subject that has leading edge theory and value of reality. In addition, it is very suitable for me with respect to my academic background, since I used to write the thesis at this aspect. At that time, I had thought about many subjects. In my opinion, all of them were not so bad. However, I did not know which one would be better for me to choose. When you put forward this subject, I was suddenly enlightened. I thought it was the most suitable one. At that time I was considering why I had not come up with this idea.

Chen: My guiding direction of doctoral candidates is mainly the aspect of enterprise. Since the selection of subject of doctoral dissertation belonging to every student has pioneering and interdisciplinary nature. Over the years, if those theses are collected together, a special topic of researches on modern enterprise leading edge problems will come into being.

Huang: Yes. We should edit and publish such a research collection in the future. Mr. Chen, in addition to the way of being a teacher and a model at the aspects concerning the selection of thesis subject and teaching students in accordance of their aptitude that you have mentioned just now, there are three aspects that we students have the deepest feelings. The first one is that every time when we students come up against problems, no matter with respect to the academy or with respect to the career development, you always give us timely and patient guidance and assistance, and enable us to make a correct choice. The second is that with respect to the life, you often give us much care and consideration to us students. The third one is that you are tolerant with us and allow us to make mistakes. In addition, you point out our mistakes in time so as to help us to correct to the mistakes. In a word, our progress and development cannot do without your assistance and guidance.

Chen: It is mainly the result of your efforts.

Huang: Thank you, Mr. Chen! You have lost a lot of precious time today. By means of the communication with you, I do learn a lot of things. You realization from life, your feeing of pursuing studies and your work experience are very precious fortune for us young scholars in our development.

Huang Qunhui male, was born in Shijiazhuang, Hebei Province in August 1966. In 1986, 1991 and 1999, he graduated from Hebei University of Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology and the Graduate School of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences successively. He got the bachelor degree of engineering, the master degree of engineering and the doctor degree of management respectively. Now, he is the academic secretary at the deputy director general level and a researcher in Scientific Research Council of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He is mainly engaged in the researches on enterprise management and industrial economy.

(Translated by Xu Jin)