June 12th evening, "Xianshen Talks Cars" released a report on Great Wall Motor's overseas architecture adjustment, claiming to have learned from insiders that Shi Qingke, President of Great Wall Motor International, has submitted his resignation, and his successor is Zhang Gengshen, President Assistant of Great Wall International and President of the Brazil-Mexico Region. At the same time, Great Wall Motor's overseas business is undergoing a deep structural adjustment—shifting from a past "centralized" overseas primary organization to decision-making power being centralized at the Group President level, with overseas R&D, production, and sales split into vertical single-line management.
This change was interpreted by the outside world as a "correction" by Great Wall Motor to the 2024 "Great Wall International" strategy. Regarding the true intent behind the resignation rumors and architecture adjustment, many industry insiders asked Duzi, Duzi contacted Great Wall Motor's PR department, but received no response. Later, Duzi contacted a Great Wall Motor overseas personnel (who did not wish to disclose their name). This insider told Duzi that he had noticed the relevant news, but "many things reported were untrue, and specific details were inconvenient for him to disclose."
On one hand, there is the media's "solid evidence" report; on the other, "inconvenient to disclose" from Great Wall Motor personnel. What is Great Wall's overseas business actually brewing?
Architecture Shifts from "Centralization" to "Decentralization", Overseas President's Authority Shrinks Significantly
According to information obtained from "Xianshen Talks Cars", the core direction of Great Wall Motor's overseas architecture adjustment this time is: Weaken the authority of overseas primary organizations, centralize decision-making power to the Group President Mu Feng level. Previously, "Great Wall International" as an independent combat unit had the power to unify and allocate resources for R&D, production, supply, sales, and service; after adjustment, overseas functions are disassembled and separately assigned to the Group's corresponding middle platforms.
Taking Russia business as an example, local R&D, manufacturing, and sales will be managed respectively by the domestic technology center, "Hebei Vehicle", and Great Wall International Sales Presidents. There will no longer be a Russia President managing the whole chain. Former Russia President Zhang Junxue was recently transferred back to China.
Analysts point out that the authority of the Great Wall International President has changed from "fully coordinating all overseas businesses" to "only coordinating the vertical business of sales", which might be an important reason for Shi Qingke's resignation.
Shi Qingke is a veteran of Great Wall Motor, joined in 2002, and served as Deputy General Manager of International Sales Department, President of Great Wall International, Vice President of Great Wall Motor, leading the landing and channel construction of overseas factories in Russia, Thailand, Brazil, Europe, etc. His resignation is not driven by performance — In 2025, Great Wall's overseas sales exceeded 500,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 12%; In Jan-May 2026, overseas sales were 231,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 46.2%.
Wei Jianjun's "Centralization and Decentralization" Dilemma: Building Systematic Governance for Retirement
From "decentralizing" to establish Great Wall International in 2024 to "centralizing" to dismantle overseas architecture in 2026, the back and forth over two years reflects Great Wall Motor's deep exploration in professional manager management.
Sources say this adjustment is related to Chairman Wei Jianjun's awareness of the "disadvantages of decentralization". Great Wall has accumulated mature experience in headquarters middle platform controlling regional businesses in the domestic market, and now this idea is transplanted overseas. Wei Jianjun and other private car company bosses born in the 1960s are paving the way for future retirement handover through the construction of systematic governance architecture.
From Duzi's observation, Great Wall's overseas architecture adjustment this time is essentially a rebalancing of organizational efficiency: Bringing overseas back to the Group's unified control from an "independent kingdom", avoiding the risk of loss of control caused by excessive power sinking.
Duzi Comment: Adjustment is True, Details Pending Verification
Insiders explicitly told Duzi that "the report was untrue", but did not point out exactly where it was untrue. Combining information from multiple sources, the following judgments can be made through speculation:
The architecture adjustment is indeed true. The DingTalk architecture was changed in early April, employee labor contracts were re-signed with the joint-stock company, and these hard changes cannot be concealed.
Shi Qingke's resignation status has not been officially announced. There is a time difference between "resignation submitted" and "officially resigned", and the PR representative only stated "there is indeed internal news".
The insider's "inconvenient to disclose" is intriguing. As a Great Wall Motor overseas personnel, this insider did not directly deny a specific matter, but generally stated "the report is untrue", which likely means the final plan is still under dynamic adjustment.
For Great Wall Motor, the overseas annual sales of 500,000 units is a pot that cannot be lost. Any architecture adjustment must be premised on not impacting business continuity. Shi Qingke's departure, Zhang Gengshen's succession, and the final form of the overseas new architecture, still need to wait for Great Wall Motor's official formal announcement.
Duzi will continue to follow.
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