The helmsman of the hundred-billion-yuan automotive enterprise turned the huge ship around in 300 days.

In the industry context where news of layoffs and salary cuts keep emerging, the rumored huge bonus package of Great Wall Motors instantly caused a stir online, being labeled as the "ceiling of automotive company bonuses". It is understood that Wei Jianjun also stated at the Great Wall Motors Spring Festival Annual Meeting on January 22 that the company "has no limits on talent incentives" and is recruiting talents globally.

The confidence in investing heavily in talents lies in the fact that in 2024, the company really made money. According to the financial data disclosed by Great Wall Motors, in the first three quarters of 2024, the company's revenue reached 142.254 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 19.04%, hitting a historical high. The net profit was 10.429 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 108.70%. The non-net profit attributable to the parent company was 8.374 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 119.93%, setting a new historical record. The comprehensive income per vehicle was 166,600 yuan, an increase of 28,300 yuan compared to the same period last year.

Great Wall Motors predicts that its net profit in 2024 will be between 12.4 billion and 13 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of 76.6% to 85.14%.

Not only did it make money, but Great Wall Motors has also invested over 10 billion yuan in research and development for several consecutive years. In the first three quarters of 2024 alone, the research and development expenses invested have already reached 8.544 billion yuan.

From revenue to profit and even investment, Great Wall Motors shows a strong upward trend. In the fiercely competitive and bleeding automotive market, it is undoubtedly a rare and refreshing presence.

Burning money to seize the market seems to have become an iron rule in the industry, and making money and generating revenue seem to have become synonyms for "conservative and not seeking change". However, many people have overlooked that making money and achieving sustainable operation are the core missions of an enterprise.

In the public opinion field in the past one or two years, Great Wall Motors seems to have been trapped in an ineffective new energy transformation, struggling and teetering. In Wei Jianjun's words, "Looking at some online comments, it seems that Great Wall Motors has gone bankrupt 100 times". However, the solid financial data clearly reveals the stable foundation of this company.

How to become a "contrarian" in the loss quagmire of the new energy vehicle war? The product, industry, and technology foundation of Great Wall Motors are all indispensable. But the more crucial determining factor is the strategic insight of the helmsman who directly hits the essence of business and industry. With a helmsman at the helm, the giant ship can navigate through the strong winds and huge waves without any problems.

In 2024, Wei Jianjun, who has been low-key for more than 30 years, began to realize the importance of close contact with users and frequently appeared on social media and live-streaming platforms. We can also catch a glimpse of the straightforward, candid, and truth-facing side of this veteran in the automotive industry.

Straightforward Wei Jianjun, Contrarian Great Wall Motors

"In April last year, when I did my first live-streaming, my palms were sweating; even the big boss's palms sweat during live-streaming. I'm the same as everyone else, not having three heads and six arms." Wei Jianjun recalled his first live-streaming at the annual meeting.

As the number of live-streamings increased, his sense of the camera got better. By 2025, for the live-streaming of the New Year's Day launch of "Tank 500 Hi4-Z Must Be Popular" and the Changbai Mountain Ice and Snow Fun Week, "I walked through the route once and then started the live-streaming."

Internally, he is down-to-earth and sincere. Externally, Wei Jianjun shows a straightforward character who dares to speak the truth.

When the industry is obsessed with price and market share, leading to wailing from the upstream and downstream, Wei Jianjun shouted, "Don't engage in low-quality internal competition, but insist on high-quality development."

"If defining high-quality development as killing one to succeed, and calling that bloody situation high-quality, then let's not talk about it today." Wei Jianjun said that the high-quality development of the automotive industry requires a bottom-line thinking and a long-term thinking, returning to the pure love of making cars, abiding by laws and regulations, and competing fairly to promote the sustainable development of the industry and enterprises.

Facing the hidden quality problems under the prevalence of low prices, Wei Jianjun straightforwardly said that automotive safety is no small matter, and safety is always the top priority. "We need to have a more serious attitude, be more fully prepared, dare to challenge complex scenarios, not treat users as guinea pigs, and make users feel more at ease when using the products."

In the face of internal competition, Wei Jianjun chooses to go against the trend. Amidst the flying public opinions and criticism, Wei Jianjun's choice is to "dare to speak the truth, and only speak the truth", using a sense of responsibility to correct the chaos in the industry.

In fact, what Wei Jianjun said is not a sensational statement to attract attention. What he said are common sense in business and industry development. But the preciousness of common sense lies in the fact that there are not many people who can see and dare to speak out the common sense, and Wei Jianjun's straightforwardness therefore appears to be particularly scarce.

Wei Jianjun won the "Busiest Automaker" award at the Great Wall Motors Spring Festival Annual Meeting. In his acceptance speech, he recalled his live-streaming appearances last year and said, "Every time I do a live-streaming, I still want to remain sincere. I always feel that sincerity is the best attitude, and I also hope that everyone can remain sincere."

Straightforwardness is Wei Jianjun's character trait. Behind the straightforwardness is being practical rather than superficial, honest rather than deceptive, and long-term rather than short-sighted. These seem simple, but in the current noisy automotive industry, they are extremely valuable.

The capital market is becoming more rational, and users are starting to vote with their feet. Outstanding product strength and the stability of the enterprise's operation have become the biggest chips to break through. All these require the courage to clarify the chaos and insist on the right choices.

Although these are incompatible with the current chaotic and noisy automotive market environment, they closely follow the pulse of the long-term development of the industry.

Stability and Endurance, the Secrets of Great Wall Motors' Long-Term Development

In 2024, the penetration rate of new energy vehicles in China exceeded the 50% mark. This is a year of great hope. Players in the core battlefield are sharpening their knives and have set significantly growth targets for 2025. But for those car companies that have fallen or are on the verge, it is a gloomy and desperate year.

Capital is no longer chasing after the stories of car manufacturing, and the huge funds corresponding to the large-scale manufacturing bloodline are becoming increasingly difficult to find. Even technology suppliers are complaining that in today's environment, even with the order letters from car companies to go for financing, it doesn't work. "The other party wants to see your actual shipments."

The financing story of passing the parcel is no longer applicable to the car manufacturing industry. "It's better to rely on oneself than to ask for help from others" has gradually become the industry consensus. Companies that want to break through the siege are all reducing costs and increasing efficiency, building a popular product system upwards, and reshaping the supply chain and industrial system downwards, in order to achieve a positive cash flow and get the ticket to compete in the future.

This has long been the bottom-line thinking within Great Wall Motors. In the past decades of the development of independent brands, Great Wall Motors may not be the one that values sales the most, but it is obviously one of the car companies that is quite good at making money. Even in the fiercely competitive 2024, it managed to earn a whopping 13 billion yuan. It has also reserved abundant resources for technological investments such as intelligence.

Behind the return of the industry to common sense is also the return of technology and products to common sense.

As a long-distance transportation tool that undergoes strict winter and summer tests, the core value attributes of a car are still stability, reliability, and safety.

After the capital wave recedes, all car companies return to the cash flow thinking and have to pay attention to basic financial indicators such as profits and sales.

According to statistics, in 2024, there were more than 100 new energy vehicle models listed in China. The supply increased rapidly, and consumers have sufficient rights to vote with their feet.

And all car companies have realized that the lifeblood of enterprise operation is sales, and the core chip to capture sales is to use solid product strength to meet the needs of consumers.

The tech giant Xiaomi Motors made a stunning entry into the car manufacturing industry in its first year, and the core foundation is to build a car that is good-looking and easy to drive.

In 2024, Great Wall Motors was not trapped by intelligence and recorded high profits. Through years of technological precipitation, it provided consumers with a series of high-value products.

For example, the sales of models priced above 200,000 yuan reached 310,000 units, an increase of 83,800 units, with a year-on-year growth of 37.1%, mainly due to the increase in sales of models such as Tank and Wey.

Among them, Tank sold 231,000 units in 2024, with a year-on-year growth of 42.1%. In terms of high-end brands, Wey wholesaled 55,000 units in 2024, with a year-on-year growth of 31.6%.

Therefore, we can see that starting from 2024, adding a fuel tank to make hybrids has become the choice of many pure electric car companies. This is an indispensable step to expand the sales leverage.

In fact, Wei Jianjun once pointed out early, "We should view new energy rationally and look at the operation realistically. The capital market looks at the proportion, and how much the proportion of new energy is, which is related to the valuation. The higher the proportion of new energy, the higher the valuation."

At the 2024 Great Wall Motors Spring Festival Annual Meeting, Wei Jianjun further predicted: The new energy vehicle market in China has reached an inflection point, and it will enter a pan-internal combustion engine stage in the future. "Mainly internal combustion engine + electricity, which is also the globally recognized direction."

We often say that when the tide goes out, we can see who is swimming naked. And when the tide goes out, we can also see who has earlier seen through the truth of the problem and the laws of the industry.

Wei Jianjun summarized at the Great Wall Motors Spring Festival Annual Meeting, "The automotive industry in 2024 is very competitive, but our Great Wall Motors maintained strategic stability, withstood the pressure, stood firm, and was not led by sales. Under the premise of long-termism and a quality market share, Great Wall Motors has achieved development."

Wei Jianjun's straightforwardness obviously injects the blood of directly looking at the industry laws and long-term development into Great Wall Motors.

With a straightforward and sincere Wei Jianjun, there will definitely be Great Wall Motors employees who face problems directly and solve them smoothly. This may be the biggest weapon for Great Wall Motors to win the market competition.

In 2024, in order to get closer to users, Wei Jianjun is also seeking self-breakthrough. He admitted that after being low-key for 34 years, he started to do live-streaming, shoot short videos, and also went to CCTV News to give a New Year speech. "I think being brave enough to break through oneself, whether in life or work, is a positive state."

This mentality of filling the gaps, facing problems directly, and actively breaking through is particularly crucial in the era of the continuous emergence of new technologies such as automotive intelligence.

Technology as the Soul, Great Wall Motors' Persistence in Intelligence

Straightforwardness also means the ability to see the truth through the fog, corresponding to a keen sense of industrial value.

In 2024, led by Wei Jianjun, the intelligent technology layout of Great Wall Motors almost staged a perfect pursuit.

Take the most typical intelligent driving as an example. This technology has gradually become a deeply rooted technology and product since 2016. Great Wall Motors is one of the car companies that started to develop intelligent driving earlier. It has early incubated the intelligent driving forward-looking project, Haomo Zhixing, and in 2019, promoted the independence of Haomo Zhixing, the intelligent driving forward-looking division of the Great Wall Motors Technology Center.