“A strong cadre team makes a strong enterprise. Once strategies are set, cadres become the decisive factor,” said Chen Hongliang. The official kickoff of the 3rd Iron Army Program marks not only a major milestone for the 174 reserve cadre trainees on their career growth path, but also a crucial initiative for the company to underpin long-term development and build an elite talent iron army. Amid profound restructuring of the global economic landscape, the new energy industry has entered a brand-new era defined by high-quality competition, integrated industrial rivalry and technological life-or-death contests. To evolve into a world-leading technology enterprise in energy materials and fulfill its long-term globalized and full-industry-chain layout, the company relies on a large cohort of high-caliber management cadres to tackle successive challenges. There is an urgent need to forge an iron army that can be mobilized at short notice, deliver outstanding performance on missions and secure victory in every battle.

When elaborating on what constitutes Huayou’s Iron Army, Chen Hongliang outlined three core troop archetypes: first, an Iron Army that stays true to its original aspiration and holds firm convictions; second, an Iron Army that blazes trails and surmounts all obstacles; third, an open, confident Iron Army ready to march onto the global stage. As the new energy industry shifts from scale expansion to comprehensive strength competition, launching the Iron Army Program to independently cultivate internal talent pipelines is an indispensable path to mitigate talent risks and seize development initiative. The outcomes of the first two program phases have fully proven that “investment in talent yields the highest strategic returns.” The company will continuously ramp up resources for talent development. Through the Iron Army Program, it will establish a dynamic mechanism covering selection, training & combat practice, job rotation, performance appraisal, appointment and elimination. This system ensures cadres grow from within, temper their capabilities through real-world operations and earn promotions based on tangible achievements, ultimately fostering a thriving ecosystem brimming with outstanding leaders and abundant talent.

“Talent is the primary strategic resource, and the Iron Army constitutes Huayou’s core competitiveness.” Addressing the outstanding reserve cadre trainees, Chen Hongliang urged them to break free from ingrained mindsets and complete the career leap from “specialist backbones” to “management professionals.” The three-tier talent pipeline operates in a coherent, progressive manner, forming a complete talent reserve pool. He emphasized the integration of training and on-the-job practice, encouraging trainees to boost performance through learning and mature into capable professionals via real assignments. All trainees must uphold the core ethos of the Iron Army, strictly comply with the Eight Standards for Cadre Work Style, and stay committed to pragmatic, responsible work.

He stressed that talent pipeline development stands as a core strategic task of the company, requiring coordinated efforts and accountability at all levels. Every tier must shoulder responsibility for nurturing talent: senior executives take the lead to guide, mentor and pass on experience; middle managers proactively cultivate subordinates and assign challenging real-world tasks; the special program team delivers refined operation and closed-loop management to elevate training quality. All departments across the company will jointly refine training measures to ensure the Iron Army development program achieves tangible results, cultivating competent talent and robust workforce capacity.

Meanwhile, he extended his expectations to all Iron Army trainees: cherish the development platform provided by the company, maintain an open-minded attitude to learn, reflect, take practical responsibility and hone professional capabilities. Strive to grow into outstanding management cadres capable of undertaking major responsibilities, and build a Huayou Iron Army loyal to the enterprise, bold enough to tackle tough missions and dedicated to sustained hard work, marching together toward the long-term vision of the company’s high-quality development.

During the launch meeting, Chairman Chen Hongliang presented flags to trainee representatives of the Wolf Warrior Team and Young Eagle Team respectively. The event also featured sharing sessions from outstanding alumni of previous Iron Army cohorts and keynote pledges by trainee representatives of the current phase.