Jack Ma made his first trip to Africa on Thursday, July 20, 2017. The founder of Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba was visiting Kenya as part of a two-state trip that will also take him to Rwanda. But what exactly do we know about Jack Ma and his path to success?
Jack Ma Biography
Jack Ma was born Ma Yun on September 10, 1964 in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. He learned English at a young age and often practiced it with tourists at the Hangzhou International Hotel. His passion for business was also evident at the time he was working and running a tour business for tourists wanting to see the city. During this time he was nicknamed Jack by a tourist who later became pen pals with him but could not pronounce his name.
Jack Ma then tried to go to college, failing the entrance exam three times. He later attended Hangzhou Teacher’s Institute, currently known as Hangzhou Normal University, on his fourth attempt. He graduated in 1988 with a BA in English. After graduating, Ma taught English and International Trade at Hangzhou Dianzi University.
In the mid 90’s, Jack learned about the existence of the internet and began to see this new technology trend as a great business opportunity.
Sometime in the mid-1990s, Ma heard about the internet and began to see it as a great business opportunity. He regularly traveled to the US to learn more about it before starting his first internet-based business. The company focused on building websites for clients and was very successful. His success did not go unnoticed when he was appointed head of a Chinese government-run IT company in 1998.
family, woman
Ma is married to Zhang Ying. The couple first met at Hangzhou Normal University. They married shortly after graduating in the late 1980s.
Both Ma and his wife worked as teachers after graduating. She even played an important role in initiating his first company. They have a son and a daughter together.
Jack Ma’s visit to Kenya
The businessman’s visit was eagerly awaited and celebrated. He gave a public lecture at the University of Nairobi discussing the value of constant learning and the power of the internet and all the many things that can be accomplished with a combination of the two.
He shared his insights with African entrepreneurs who seem more able to relate to his success as Ma, like many African entrepreneurs, went through almost the same challenges.
It’s an achievement filled with incredible struggle; He applied for 30 jobs, including at KFC when it opened in his hometown of Hangzhou, and was turned down by everyone.
While we may not be privy to the plans, while Jack Ma held talks with Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta to discuss ways to empower youth through entrepreneurship, we can certainly learn from his words at the University of Nairobi.
Business tips from Jack Ma’s public speaking
- Problems in your society are actually a source of inspiration for business. Jack Ma noted that Africa’s poor infrastructure, social, economic and political situation should be a source of innovation for most entrepreneurs. The lack of e-commerce in his home country inspired him to open one of the largest online marketplaces.
- He addressed the usefulness of failure and how it should be a catalyst for innovation and progress. According to him; “You have to get used to failure. If you can’t, how can you win? “
- He insisted that success isn’t just about education and what you know, it’s more about the opportunities you take
- Jack Ma explained that the future belongs to “netpreneurs”; People who use the web to do business. According to him, 80-90% of businesses will be online in the future.
- One thing the net helps us to do is go, Jack Ma stresses that this will be important in the future. According to him, if you don’t sell worldwide, you won’t be in business in a few years.
- African entrepreneurs need to adapt to technology because technology opens up opportunities for us that we normally wouldn’t have.
- He tried to take away from us the notion of striving to be number 1 and instead say that we must strive to help people get better. Your focus should not be on money, but on respecting the people you have helped.
- Jack Ma stressed that in e-commerce, computers are only a front or platform. It’s a person to person thing and communication should be human.
- The opportunities for Africa in the internet age are enormous; The population is young and the market is still very large.
- The e-commerce infrastructure in Africa is not very well developed, giving people an opportunity to work on providing a new and convenient shopping space.
- Africa is unique and in many ways better than other parts of the world and African entrepreneurs need to protect and capitalize on this.
- According to Jack Ma, the rules of business are: customer first, employee second, shareholder last.
- He also touched on the importance of hiring women because they are structured to take care of everyone else.
- Entrepreneurs should not fear mistakes, but learn from them.
- The past and where you are from doesn’t matter, you can do whatever you want.
Quick facts, house
Birth name: Ma Yun
Place of Birth: Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Birthday: September 10, 1964
Nationality: Chinese
Sun Sign: Virgo
Occupation: businessman; Founder and Executive Chairman of the Alibaba Group
Net worth (income and earnings): $40.3 billion
Residence: Jack Ma lives in a 9,890-square-foot luxury home in Hong Kong that he bought for a whopping $193 million. It is said to be the second most expensive house in the world.