Preh Group
THE CHINESE MOUNTAINEER FROM MAINFRANKEN
Zhengxin »Charlie« Cai
CEO, Preh Group
Since 2011, the year the automotive supplier Preh was acquired by the Chinese Joyson Group, Zhengxin Cai has been a member of Preh’s management board and lives in Germany. In 2021, he was appointed CEO. Here, he talks about his journey from a Chinese metropolis of millions to a small Bavarian town, about what is important to him, and how he plans to reach the second billion in sales.
I didn’t come to Germany to stick it out here for the usual 2 to 3 years and then finally return to China for the next step in my career. Because it was clear to me from the beginning: If I don’t just want to watch here, but really want to make a difference, then more time is needed. I told the founder and owner of Joyson, Jeff Wang, that it would take at least five years to understand the differences in mindset and approach to challenges that exist in Chinese and German culture. Time is simply a prerequisite for establishing constructive cooperation and building relationships.
The much-cited culture shock then had several levels for me: I was born in the mega-metropolis Shanghai with 26 million inhabitants. My last job in China was at Joyson headquarters in Ningbo, a city of 10 million people. Then, in 2011, I came to the tranquil town of Bad Neustadt an der Saale, which is located about 70 kilometers north of Würzburg in the Rhön Mountains and has a population of 16,000.
Preh is a specialist for driver control systems in vehicle interiors and for e-mobility components, with 10 locations on 3 continents today. Our corporate language is English, but when things get complicated, the »Rhöners« quickly return to German. I took German lessons at the beginning. But my job as Chief Operating Officer at the time left me hardly any time for it during our rapid international growth. And I’ll be honest: Communicating in English simply felt better because it happens at eye level, because English is a second language for everyone here.
My first son was born in Bad Neustadt, but for all my love of the beautiful nature in the Rhön, from a family point of view my later move to the university city of Würzburg was a good decision. This is where my daughter was born. For the family, the environment is simply a bit more international and private life is just more private than in a small town. There are also stores to stock up on typical Asian food. Roast pork with dumplings – to name a Bavarian classic – simply remains unfamiliar. By the way, when the company was founded more than 100 years ago, the Preh family also lived in Würzburg.
Once a year, I go to the Alps with a mountain guide to climb a 4,000-meter peak. This clears my head, gives me strength and new ideas. I also feel a touch of freedom when I’m on the road with my motorcycle (BMW R1250GS). I just love that.
As small as you feel on the face of a 4,000-meter mountain and as great when you stand at the top – as the creator and forger of your own happiness, entirely under your own steam – there are also demanding paths to great goals in business. And if you are wondering whether it is an advantage to come from a different culture, then my answer is clearly »YES«!
In Germany, people plan far and carefully ahead, whereas in China they tend to be more spontaneous and flexible. Both qualities are strengths when applied at the right time and in the right place. And that is precisely where the art lies – looking ahead without freezing in a plan once it has been made, as well as being agile and flexible without simply plunging into an adventure, but always with a certain foresight.
And I always need to look at the bigger picture, in everything that I am allowed to do for the company every day. I am reminded of this by a photo that hangs on my office wall. Whenever I enter the office in the morning, my eyes first fall on this picture. It shows our huge earth as a barely perceptible tiny bluish dot. Taken as the Voyager probe’s »last look« at Earth before it left our universe.
The advantage of experience in another culture is simply that one has been allowed to experience for oneself that literally many paths lead to the goal. This opens up your overall perception, including opportunities and risks. And I always need to look at the bigger picture, in everything that I am allowed to do for the company every day. I am reminded of this by a photo that hangs on my office wall. Whenever I enter the office in the morning, my eyes first fall on this picture. It shows our huge earth as a barely perceptible tiny bluish dot. Taken as the Voyager probe’s »last look« at Earth before it left our universe.
My next goal is to break the 2 billion mark in sales in the medium term and turn Preh into a six-sigma company. To achieve this, we will continue to drive forward the promising e-mobility business. At the same time, we will further consolidate our strong position in vehicle interior control systems, which today accounts for three quarters of our sales. Our chances for this are very good overall.
Time and again, we at Preh have been able to demonstrate that we are the first to bring world firsts into large-scale production. The most recent examples of this are the 800V technology booster for fast charging of the Porsche Taycan and our rotary knob, which can be attached cut-free to touchscreens. In this way, we ensure better operability and less distraction in the vehicle cockpit – with a world first that went into series production in the Ford Mustang Mach-E.
