Alibaba: The House That Jack Ma Built by Duncan Clark Book Review — Stella Inabo
Most stories about companies like Alibaba would have a tech-inclined individual that dropped out of school or finished from an Ivy League university as the case may be. The variations are not wide apart. However, in Jack Ma’s story, we are presented with a man who had little to no experience with computers or the internet take a step in a revolutionary direction and change how business is done in China and the world as a whole.
The author Duncan Clark is an expert on all things technology and entrepreneurship in China. His position gives him unique access to personalities and information no one else would have. Because of this, while you hold the book in your hand, you are holding a lot more. It holds enough information for at least three books. This is not to say that the book should not contain a lot of information but it felt like it was a lot in one place.
To an individual looking for a story about Jack Ma and how he built his business, this would not be your best book. It has many other stories in it and it felt like Jack Ma’s story became secondary. The author also keeps switching in a disorienting way. In a bid to share stories about other companies or individuals that played some role in the success of Alibaba.
The House that Jack Ma Built is spilt into twelve chapters. In these twelve chapters, we follow every step Jack Ma took to create Alibaba. From a young age, he learned English from tourists, and in exchange, he gave them tours around important parts of his city. He grew his network with his sincere interest in bringing the internet to China and changing how companies reached the outside world.
Lessons I learned from Alibaba: The House that Jack Ma Built
1. Prioritize the customer, the employees, and then the profit. Jack Ma puts the employees second to the shareholders (profit). This is not a very common practice. But by doing so he has created a system of loyal employees that see the benefit in their jobs and value their customers.
2. Create a unique structure based on set values. The second chapter of the book focused on the values that guide the Alibaba Empire. While there is no rule set in stone, establishing a system like that would is sure to make any company more efficient.
3. Focus on providing a solution. Jack Ma did not build Alibaba to make money. He built it to solve problems. He worked hard at taking Chinese companies out into the global market.
4. Consistency and perseverance. It is easy to focus on the glamour that success has brought Alibaba but the beginning was hard. Learning lessons from mistakes and never giving up set his company apart.
5. Alibaba displaced eBay in China because eBay thought it was secure in its premier position and beyond threat from a local company. By listening to the needs of people, Alibaba took the lead and have maintained it by adapting.
By writing this book, Duncan Clark has placed a treasure in the hands of readers especially entrepreneurs looking for the secret to creating a business that will span generations. It is a long journey so I advise that you take notes as you read. There are many lessons to be learned and you do not want to miss a single one.
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