PDLP Chapter 343 Preparing to Depart
Chapter 343 Preparing to Depart
He took out his phone and called the career guidance center of the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China.
"Hello, Teacher Zhang, I am Lu Ran from Tutu Technology."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone, then a middle-aged man's voice came through, thick with a Sichuan accent: "Mr. Lu? Oh, I know you. Lots of students at our school are playing your game. What's up with your call?"
"I'd like to recruit a group of recent graduates from your university. Would that be convenient?"
"That's so convenient!" Teacher Zhang's voice suddenly rose. "Mr. Lu, how many people do you need? Students from our school's Computer Science, Software Engineering, and Communications Engineering departments are all eager to work for your company. Last time, a student told me that Tutu Technology is the future of China's game industry, and he said he wanted to go no matter what."
Lu Ran felt a little embarrassed by those words: "Teacher Zhang, you flatter me. Our company is still in the startup phase and isn't that impressive yet."
"Oh, Mr. Lu, why are you being so modest? TUTU has 100 million daily active users, and League of Legends has tens of millions of downloads. Isn't that amazing? Let me tell you, if you come to our school to give a presentation, the lecture hall won't be enough, so we'll use the gymnasium for you."
Lu Ran couldn't help but laugh: "That won't be necessary, the lecture hall is enough. Professor Zhang, I'm going to Chengdu next Thursday, is that okay with the schedule?"
"Sure! Why not? Just tell me when you've decided on a time, and I'll make the arrangements."
After hanging up the phone, Lu Ran called the career guidance centers of Sichuan University, Southwest Jiaotong University, and Southwestern University of Finance and Economics.
The school officials answered his calls instantly, replied instantly, and made arrangements instantly. Their enthusiasm made him feel like he wasn't there to recruit people, but to hand out money.
The four schools will be visited in four or five days next week. The time is tight, but Lu Ran thinks it's worth it.
If we can recruit these people, Rabbit Technology's talent pool will be significantly enhanced.
He leaned back in his chair, his right leg resting on a footstool, and stared at the ceiling for a while.
If thirty-eight people aren't enough, then hire another thirty-eight. If eighty people aren't enough, then hire another eighty.
If one city isn't enough, go to another. If one school isn't enough, go to another.
There are thousands of universities and colleges across the country, with tens of millions of graduates every year.
Tutu Technology doesn't need everyone, just the best few.
But that small group is hidden among thousands of universities. They won't just pop up on their own unless you look for them.
Lu Ran picked up a pen and wrote a line in his notebook: Chengdu, four schools, target of fifty people.
Then he added: The more the better.
After writing it, he looked at the four characters, felt something was wrong, crossed them out, and changed it to: "Recruit as many as you can."
Still not right, he crossed it out and changed it to: Accept all comers.
After thinking for a moment, I added a parenthesis at the end, with a few small words inside: Except for those that are not up to standard.
Shen Yuege walked in carrying two cups of tea. Seeing him scribbling in his notebook, she leaned over to take a look and asked, "What are you writing?"
"Recruitment plan." Lu Ran handed her the notebook. "Take a look. Any problems?"
Shen Yuege took it and looked at it for a while, then looked up at him: "This isn't a recruitment plan, it's a sweeping plan. Four schools recruiting fifty people, that's an average of 12.5 people per school. Do you even have that many positions to offer them?"
"Yes." Lu Ran counted on his fingers, "The technical department is short of twenty, the operations department is short of fifteen, the marketing department is short of ten, and the design department is short of eight, totaling fifty-three. Fifty people coming in will fill the positions perfectly."
"What about the Chengdu branch? Didn't you say you were going to open a branch? Doesn't the branch need people?"
"The branch office staff will be drawn from these fifty people," Lu Ran said. "We'll recruit them first, train them for three months at the Shanghai headquarters, and then send them to Chengdu. This way, we can meet the branch office's staffing needs while also ensuring the quality of employee training."
Shen Yuege handed the notebook back to him and sat down opposite him: "You've thought of everything. But have you considered whether these recent graduates are even willing to go to Chengdu? They come to Shanghai for interviews, and you're telling them to work in Chengdu? Isn't that just lying?"
"So I need to make this clear in advance," Lu Ran said. "The job posting clearly states that you will receive three months of training at the Shanghai headquarters before being assigned to a branch office in various locations, depending on the company's needs and your personal preferences. Priority will be given to those who want to go to Chengdu, but those who want to go to Shanghai are also welcome. However, there are limited spots available, so it's first-come, first-served."
Shen Yuege thought for a moment and nodded: "That's fair. But have you considered that some people just want to stay in Shanghai and don't want to go anywhere else? You recruit them, train them for three months, and then tell them there are no more spots in Shanghai and they can only go to Chengdu. They won't be happy and will leave. Wouldn't all your training have been for nothing?"
"So I need to control the proportions," Lu Ran said. "Half will be kept in Shanghai, and half in Chengdu. If that's not enough, we'll add a few other cities. We just can't let the employees feel cheated."
Shen Yuege looked at him, hesitant to speak.
She knew that Lu Ran was a person who acted on his thoughts and wouldn't care much about the difficulties and obstacles in the process.
But every step of this large-scale expansion is fraught with pitfalls.
If you go the wrong way and fall in, it will take several times the effort to climb out.
But she didn't want to dampen the enthusiasm.
What Lu Ran needs is not someone to tell her to stop, but someone to walk with her.
"Okay," she said. "I'll go with you when you go to Chengdu."
"You don't need to stay with me. You can just stay at home."
"No. Your leg isn't fully healed yet, and I'm worried about you going on a business trip alone."
"My leg will be out of the cast next week."
"Removing the cast won't help. The doctor said that even after the cast is removed, you'll need to do rehabilitation training, and it will take a month before you can walk normally. How will you take care of yourself in Chengdu by yourself, using crutches?"
Lu Ran opened her mouth, wanting to refute, but found that she really didn't have anything to refute.
Given his current situation, it's indeed inconvenient for him to travel alone on business.
Eating, bathing, going to the toilet—everything requires help.
Without Shen Yuege by his side, he couldn't even lift his suitcase.
"Alright," he said. "Then you'll come with me. But what about your studio?"
"Just take a leave of absence. It's my own studio anyway," Shen Yuege said. "It's not like I can't keep going without you."
Lu Ran looked at her and smiled: "You're quite open-minded."
"I learned it from you." Shen Yuege stood up and took the teacup away. "You should think about what you're going to say in Chengdu next week. Don't end up standing on the stage in front of hundreds of students, not knowing what to say."
"How could that be?" Lu Ran leaned back in his chair. "Last time I spoke for an hour at Jiaotong University, and my voice was hoarse. This time at the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, I'm going to speak for two hours."
"Why are you talking for two hours?"
"We'll talk about the future of the gaming industry, the opportunities in China's gaming market, the dreams of Tutu Technology, and the choices and perseverance of young people. Two hours wouldn't be enough."
Shen Yuege walked to the door, glanced back at him, and said, "Don't talk for too long, your throat can't take it. Last time it took three days to recover from being hoarse."
"understood."
Shen Yuege pushed open the door and went out, her footsteps gradually fading into the distance.
Lu Ran sat alone in his office, staring out the window for a while in a daze.
It was already dark outside. Winters in Shanghai get dark early; it gets dark around 5 p.m.
The office buildings in the distance lit up, one by one, like stars.
He stood up, leaning on his cane, walked to the window, and looked at the night view outside.
Next week I'm going to Chengdu for four schools and four recruitment presentations, with a target of fifty people.
With the addition of the 38 people this week, the total number of employees at Tutu Technology will exceed 150.
One hundred and fifty people is nothing in the internet industry.
But for him, this is the result of more than a year of entrepreneurship.
He personally interviewed and selected each person, and he could call out each person's name and remember their appearance.
He turned and walked back behind his desk, sat down, picked up a pen, and wrote a few words in his notebook:
A company with 1,000 employees is just around the corner.
After finishing writing, he looked at the line, smiled, and added another line below it:
A company with 10,000 employees is not far off.
Then he closed his laptop, picked up his phone, and sent a message to Zhou Mingzhe: "Brother Zhou, I've contacted all the universities in Chengdu. Four schools, four recruitment presentations, starting next Thursday. Can you book two plane tickets for me and Yuege?"
Zhou Mingzhe replied, "You two are going? Are your legs okay?"
"Okay. It'll be fine once the cast is removed."
"I'll book a flight for Thursday morning. Where should I book a hotel?"
"A hotel close to the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China is fine. It doesn't need to be too expensive, a budget hotel is fine."
"You're a boss now, it's not appropriate for you to stay in a budget hotel, is it?"
"What's inappropriate about it? I used to be so poor I couldn't even afford a budget hotel; I stayed in hostels, the kind where eight people share a room. Now I'm already very fortunate to be able to stay in a budget hotel."
Zhou Mingzhe sent an "I give up" emoji and said, "Okay, I'll book you a budget hotel. But don't tell anyone, or other bosses will laugh at you."
"It's just a joke," Lu Ran replied. "As long as I'm comfortable living here, I don't care what others think."
He put down his phone, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes.
My mind started racing with the speech I'd prepared for next week's presentation.
It wasn't a verbatim transcript written on paper, but an outline. What he wanted to say, how he wanted to say it, where he would begin, and where he would end. These things didn't need to be written down; the images had already formed in his mind.
He faced the darkness and mentally went through the image frame by frame.
Keep the opening relaxed and avoid being too serious. If you start by giving dry, technical information, students will feel pressured.
Start with a few casual chats and jokes to put the students at ease before gradually getting down to business.
The middle part needs to clearly explain three things: what TuTu Technology does, what kind of people TuTu Technology needs, and what TuTu Technology can offer its employees.
The final part should be a bit emotional, but not too fake.
The goal is to make students feel that this isn't just empty promises, but a genuine invitation to do something interesting together.
He mentally rehearsed the entire presentation, and only opened his eyes when he felt it was almost ready.
The night outside the window grew darker, and the office lights shone brighter.
He stood up, leaning on his crutches, and limped out of the office.
The corridor was quiet; most of the employees had already left work.
Only the lights in the technical department were still on, with Lao Wang and a few new employees working overtime.
He peeked through the glass door and saw Zhao Yiming sitting at his workstation with three monitors in front of him, his fingers flying across the keyboard.
Zhang Hao, who was standing next to Zhao Yiming, was holding a math book, which he had spread out on the table. He was reading it and talking to Zhao Yiming.
Lu Ran didn't go in to disturb them, and turned to walk towards the elevator.
The elevator doors opened, and he stepped inside, leaning on his cane, and pressed the button for the first floor.
As the elevator descended, he looked at his reflection against the brightly lit wall.
He was dressed in a suit and tie, his right leg in a cast and his left hand on a cane, with a serious expression.
He couldn't help but laugh.
A year ago, he was still anxious about whether he could gain a foothold in this world.
A year later, he was already considering opening a branch office.
People really never know what tomorrow will bring.
...