发布时间：2021-12-31作者来源：金航标浏览：1877
Reading Guide:In recent years, many well-known chip manufacturers have pressed the delete button one after another, and a large number of agents have been sacked, losing their agency qualification for many years; For a time, the distribution industry was at a loss. Selling or layoffs, stock prices plummeted, and negative effects poured in. In addition to the illegal exit of some agents, there is also the ultimate strategic consideration of the original channel to actively seek change.
The boundless falling trees are rustling. Where will the agent go?What are the dynamic capabilities and competitive advantages of agents?
At this delicate moment, the vice president of distribution channels and sales and marketing operations of on semiconductor (on for short) in Asia Pacific, who is in charge of distribution channelsMai manquan (M.K.)He stood up and advised the agent many times. He opened his arms and said in a loud voice:Ansenmey semiconductor welcomes new concept agents that can bring unique value. I am willing to be the spokesman of "decent" distribution channels!
Figure:Ansenmey semiconductor Asia Pacific distribution channels and sales and marketing operations
vice presidentMai manquan (M.K.)
At the aspencore 2019 bimodal meeting, I ran into this senior expert in the distribution channel industry full of positive energy. After a pleasant exchange, we agreed on a time to have a special dialogue on channel value and innovation. As everyone knows, we extract only the essence of the content.
Q: Recently, the de distribution strategy of some B, t and other chip manufacturers has caused a huge shock and chain reaction in the industry. What do you think of this phenomenon at this node?
M. K.: in short, it is forced by the general environment, but I can't comment on the practices of relevant companies. This is their own strategy and business with their agents. But I'm going to share some data with you. These interesting materials include my research content when I was a doctor.
Q: in your doctoral dissertation at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, there was a survey on "dynamic capabilities and competitive advantages of agents". What do you think should be the correct role and division of labor of agents in the historical value chain?
M. K.: that's a good question! first,I found that the distribution industry has begun to use the word supply chain less in speeches and seminars in recent years. I hope this has my influence.Secondly, in fact, the supply chain was not very common when I entered the semiconductor industry more than 20 years ago.Supply chain came into being when PCs became popular. Dell is a good example. This enterprise designed computers and established brands, formulated marketing strategies, and outsourced all other production links, so supply chain came into being.
However, is supply chain the only value of the agent? My research found that,The tighter the relationship between supply chain and supplier (original factory), the worse it is.From the perspective of data, it has a negative impact on the performance of agents. Because the agent's dynamic ability is to give full play to its own advantages and make the best scheme development and recommendation to customers with various suitable original resources.If an agent binds to a supplier too deeply, its advantages can not be brought into full play. Generally speaking, it is called binding hands and feet.（X：Or a certain distance?)Yes, distance produces beauty.
Here are two business models. One isSupply chain, the other isDemand chain, also known as demand creation. For agents, the demand creation model is more valuable, which is the conclusion I collected and analyzed from industry data.
Q: I noticed that you recently posted an article about ASP (average selling price), hoping that the agent can sell things of 1 yuan to 1.2 ~ 1.3 yuan. However, the industry is highly competitive and challenging. At present, the overall gross profit of distributors is actually declining. In order to control the cost, the personnel responsible for the design scheme and added value are shrinking. How do you think the agents see their additional value?
M. K.: for example, why can Cat Shit coffee sell so expensive, while most coffee sells very cheaply? I don't think the value of agents is only reflected in helping the original factory sell chips. About ASP,Agents need to help the original factory find better customers and better new projectsAt this time, the price can be sold higher. There are tens of thousands of customers in the market. Some customers need better services for their needs because of their good profits. Therefore, they are willing to pay higher prices, so they will be more flexible in purchase prices.
Looking at the semiconductor industry, no original factory has the ability to take all sizes. For example, the market share of an original factory is 5% - 7%, and it may only need the best customers in 5%. Customers in this group are willing to pay for the service premium, but in fact, these customers also exist all the time. Among the agents of on, I know that several European and American companies have very good gross profits. With the support of the original factory, they can sell at a higher price.On's data is indeed a trade secret. Please understand that I can't share it with you, but we can take one of our common materials as an example. Different agents can sell different average prices. Using our overall average price as the standard, the most capable agents can reach a higher average price (14%), and sell many, the most common agents, With a lower average selling price (- 21%), it doesn't sell much, which is very high.Therefore, for agents, the key is how to dig out high-value customer groups with the original factory.
Q: it is understood that the top three sales agents of on in China should be WPG, WT and serial. You will award the best partner for outstanding contributions every year. Who do you want to award this year?
M. K.: again, I can't share the real data of on with you. In addition to commercial contribution, on has several criteria to consider whether agents can win awards:First, is business decent (not just legitimate)，Two years ago, I also said "decent", and the media misunderstood it as "legitimate".Justice is only the bottom line, that is, it cannot violate the contract and the law; Decency is the way for enterprises to do things. We will appreciate this quality.I observed that your front desk has a code of integrity, which stipulates that employees cannot receive gifts from customers. This Convention is very good! On is to adhere to this code of conduct, soOur company has won the "world's most ethical Enterprise Award" for four consecutive years.
Second, whether the cooperation between the two sides can be win-win, that is, win-win.Some distributors joked with me, "M.K., give me an agency." But what I want to think about is whether his proposal is mutually beneficial to on and enterprises.If there are some markets and customers that existing agents can't do, we will consider introducing new partners.
Q: that is to say, on will not do large subtraction like companies B and T. If you have a suitable partner, will you consider adding?
M. K.: Yes, but it must have the effect of 1 > 2.
Q: at the bimodal meeting, you mentioned the relationship with President Hua Qing and president Yu. They used to act as agents for on products, and now he is also making chips, and recently acquired ov. What do you think of partners like weir if you re authorize them?
M. K.: first of all, I just corrected the data of another speaker. Hua Qing was once the authorized agent of on, but later he didn't represent on. My understanding is that some shareholders and management of Huaqing have opened another company and made similar products. If we want to re authorize them, when Huaqing's sales go to promote products, do we first push on or push our own association? This problem will always exist. If the existing agents of the original factory follow suit and become competitors of the original factory, even if we will continue to respect each other, I think it will be a big problem, right?
Q: in the face of development constraints and restrictions, some agents think, why don't I go to the original factory path, or make plans and products below? Especially in such a special environment as China, some agents want to make such an attempt, and then do you think this is a normal phenomenon or needs to be considered?
M. K.: agents should not only help the original factory sell products, but also make their own products, so there is a problem of competition with the original factory. From two dimensions, the agent should make it clear to the original factory before getting the agency right. I think it is OK. But after getting the agency, I still have to make similar products. I don't think this way is appropriate.
How can I get to the agent? first,Semiconductor has been born for 60 or 70 years, and it is time for agents to make innovative changes。 The only constant in the world is change. If you still use the thinking of selling chips and supply chain, it will only become more and more difficult. You can only swallow your own bitter wine in the end!
Q: for example, Amazon and JD only sell the products of other manufacturers in the initial stage, and they also start to develop and sell their own brand products after development. How do you think of this business model?
M. K.: This is a good case. I have contacted some customers who will sell their products through Amazon. However, I found that Amazon also has two modes. One is the pending sales, and Amazon is responsible for collecting commissions; One is that Amazon will buy out the best-selling products to sell itself, so as to earn more price difference. In the whole semiconductor field, I think it's ok as long as the model is finalized.
When on was separated from Motorola semiconductor, a common sales entry method in the U.S. high-tech industry was to usePOS（Point of Sales）From the perspective of sales channels, only those sold by agents to end customers are counted, not those sold by the original factory to agents. Now this accounting model is no longer used in the United States, but our core standard in managing agents is to pay more attention to the sales sold by agents to end customers rather than the number of orders and orders placed by agentsPOP（Point of Purchase）, stock up.Agents must face end customers.
Figure: development route of some global semiconductor enterprises from 1950 to 2020
(source: Dr. Mai manquan)
Q: just now you mentioned that on was separated from Motorola. Later, the boss Freescale was acquired by NXP, but on is living better and better. Moreover, the product line has expanded from power and power supply to analog and digital chips. At the same time, the core team of on I know is very stable. What do you think supports the development and growth of Anson Meineng to today?
M. K.: friends who have studied MBA must have heard of itMichael E. Porter, the first case study of his famous management work cases in competitive strategy happens to be the business model of component agents.
From the past 70 years of historical experience in the semiconductor industry, I think there is no right or wrong business behavior. You will have what kind of end point you choose. For example, an original company ranked first in the field of calculators in the early stage, but their current simulation products are also doing well. However, if everyone had Michael Porter's strategic vision and made a victory or defeat theory based on the current ranking of semiconductor enterprises, decades ago, everyone would only do memory.This ranking also tells us that in the 1980s, almost all semiconductor companies' strategies were "wrong".
Semiconductor enterprises should always give full play to their technical characteristics, constantly improve their products and technologies through innovation and acquisition, and continue to create maximum value for customers.
For example, when on was just separated from Motorola in August 1999, there were only standard products, discrete devices and power management products; Since then, on has engaged in 18 relevant external acquisitions according to its own corporate strategy, realizing its competitive advantage in key growth markets such as automobile, industry, cloud power supply and the Internet of things, and expanding its internal manufacturing capacity and scale. The initial two acquisitions, including the CPU voltage and PC thermal monitoring businesses of cherry semiconductor and Adi, laid the foundation for us to develop towards the markets of simulation, automobile and computing.
For example, the original well-known Fairchild camera evolved into Fairchild Semiconductor. After on acquired Fairchild and several other well-known sensor companies, our sensor is now very leading in the industry. I think that 20 years ago, on did not expect to have this layout, which contributed to the good growth of the company.
Q: on is excellent in the automotive semiconductor field and has served many automotive customers around the world. With the development of the automotive field towards new energy and automatic driving, what is the secret of on in the automotive electronics field?
M. K.: Yes, we have always been leading in the field of automotive semiconductors,For example, the CMOS image sensor for vision and advanced driving assistance system (ADAS) and the integrated circuit of advanced headlamp system (AFLS) are the first in the world.The lighting system of on realizes the following steering and other functions. In addition to the image sensor, on also has radar, lidar, high-energy power management and other technologies, which can provide a more comprehensive auxiliary driving scheme and promote the development of automatic driving.In addition, functional security and network security are the key requirements for moving from ADAS to automatic driving.On is the core supplier without dispute in the application field of vehicle regulation and safety.
The world's leading auto and autopilot vendors, such as Audi, Subaru, Baidu Apollo, Intel Mobile Eye and Nvidia, are using ON chips. In the mainland new energy vehicle market, BYD, BAIC, Chang'an and GAC are all our customers.
Figure:On providedIndustrial and cloud powerprogramme
In addition, in the 5g era, the power consumption of base stations is relatively high, so the problem of operators is the opportunity of on. 5g base station coverage will be greatly improved, and the requirements for energy consumption are very high. Therefore, on can provide a comprehensive cloud power solution in this regard.
Q: if you could summarize the semiconductor market in 2019 in one word, what do you think is the key word? What might this keyword be in the coming 2020? Can you predict on's performance in fy2019?
M.K.：2019, fun, wonderful, wonderful. Previously, some agents may have different considerations. As far as I know, they have no concerns now and will go all out to support on, so this is a good thing.As for the key word of 2020 - push all out.As I mentioned at the previous bimodal meeting, customers and distributors who want to replace some products of the original factory are welcome to come to me or my agent!
As I said, I am the spokesman of the distribution channel. I believe in the power of unity.
Q: what do you think of China's component e-commerce? If you can choose, which type of enterprise do you think has the opportunity to become your partner?
M. K.: just now, isn't it decent? Can it bring the effect of 1 > 2? For example, if the source of goods is wrong, we can not guarantee that on customers use our best products. In fact, on has been distributed to several value added resellers, but one of our very important requirements is,The source of goods must be purchased from authorized agents。 If the source of goods affects the enterprise's reputation and image, we can't allow such mistakes. Therefore, on will stick to this issue. For example, Liyuan company has a cooperative relationship with on for almost 20 years. Director Zhao always insists on selling only authorized products until now. So I always believe that you can take a shortcut, but not necessarily in the long run.
A few years ago, everyone was talking about e-commerce. Now some have been out. You can't say you are an e-commerce by building a website. Therefore, I think it's time to start to understand e-commerce. For e-commerce enterprises, you need to clarify your direction. In terms of dynamic capability, what are the strengths of e-commerce companies? What are the differences with other enterprises? After all, digi key started doing this more than 20 years ago.
Throughout the semiconductor industry chain, distribution is an indispensable link.I have never seen any original chip manufacturer win the past and present completely by itself. As for the future, distributors can still give full play to their unique value. Therefore, M.K.'s identity as a spokesman for distribution channels has to continue to play. It may become more and more wonderful. Everything is possible!
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