Li Shufu Steps Down Now, Geely's Real Grand Drama Is Just Beginning

In the past, when evaluating the success of a Chinese private enterprise, we especially liked to tell the founder's story.

Ren Zhengfei, Jack Ma, Ma Huateng, Cao Dewang, Li Shufu… In the critical years of growth for many enterprises, the founder was almost synonymous with the company. Where the company should go next, what is worth betting on, and when to take risks often depended on this person's judgment.

Even for the outside world, the founder themselves was the company's biggest certainty.

But if a company really wants to last for decades, sooner or later it must face a harder question: If one day this person is no longer in that position, will the company continue to move forward?

Now, the batch of Chinese private enterprises that grew up earliest has successively reached the time when they must handle this matter.

On August 17, Geely Automobile announced an important personnel adjustment.

Starting from August 18, Li Shufu resigned as Chairman and Executive Director of Geely Automobile Holdings Limited, and was appointed Lifetime Honorary Chairman; An Conghui succeeded as Chairman, and Gan Jiayue took over as CEO. Li Shufu of course has not left Geely, he is still Geely Automobile's major and controlling shareholder, and also continues to serve as Chairman of Geely Holding Group.

But the changes are now very clear. The person who has been tied to the word "Geely" for the past few decades is starting to hand over the governance and operation of this listed company, Geely Automobile, more completely to a professional management team.

This baton pass did not happen during Geely's most difficult times. Quite the opposite.

In the first half of 2026, Geely Automobile's revenue was 173.6 billion yuan, up 15% year-on-year; core net profit attributable to parents was 9.684 billion yuan, up 46% year-on-year, and gross margin rose to 17.9%.

The boss was not forced into a corner by performance, and the company was not waiting for someone to put out fires; instead, behind a rather good semi-annual report, Li Shufu himself moved his chair back.

This is worth discussing. Because changing people when the company is in trouble is actually easy to understand. When sales are not good, profits drop, or strategy goes astray, someone has to come out to change the approach.

The difficulty lies in whether the company can actively do less when it is clearly still moving up, and the founder themselves is still capable of making decisions.

In Geely's story over the past more than 30 years, Li Shufu's personal color was too strong.

Early car manufacturing, then acquiring Volvo later, followed by Lynk & Co, Zeekr, and today Geely's net spread globally, many decisions that looked quite bold or even a bit risky back then,were behind with a strong Li Shufu style.

When a company is small, this style is very useful.

When everyone hesitates, the boss dares to make the decision; when everyone thinks the risk is too big, the boss dares to bet; when the industry hasn't figured it out yet, the boss has already led the company forward. Many of the first generation of Chinese private enterprises were rushed out this way.

But once the company becomes large, this set of games will also encounter its own ceiling.

How complex is Geely today?

Just in the listed company system, there are multiple brands including Geely, Lynk & Co, Zeekr, etc.; if you further expand the vision to the entire Geely Holding system, outside there are also global resources like Volvo, Proton, etc. Behind it, it also triggers R&D, procurement, supply chain, and manufacturing, business spread all the way to Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and South America.

Different markets have different regulations, different users, different industrial partners, and even energy routes are not entirely the same.

So large a pile of things, if in the end it still has to wait for one person to make the decision,then even if this person has 48 hours a day it won't be enough.

So at this performance meeting, I think Gui Shengyue's sentence is more important than many sales targets: "In the future, Geely will rely less on personal charm and authority, and instead rely on organizational systems and talent echelons".

It sounds like a bit of an enterprise management class, but put it in Geely, it's really not an empty word.

Because what Geely needs to prove now is not whether Li Shufu still has the ability to lead the company forward, but after Li Shufu gradually retreats from the daily governance and operation of the listed company, can this system still run as usual, and is there someone to push it forward.

So An Conghui sitting in this position is very key.He has no halo of being an external hire, nor is he a sudden star manager brought in from outside for a high price, but someone who grew up in the Geely system.

Li Shufu evaluated him at the performance meeting like this: "An Conghui is a very excellent professional talent cultivated within the Geely system. Professional talents are rare."

Thinking about this sentence carefully, it is actually more interesting than praising his resume as beautiful.

Because if a company talks about talent echelons every day, but when the top management team is handed over, they find no one inside can take over, and in the end still have to seek a 'master' with 'heavy money' from the whole country or even the world, then this talent echelon is somewhat remained in the PPT.

This point, An Conghui at least has caught.

Of course, once people are in place, the matter has just begun.The trouble in front of Geely, he also has not hidden.

Making his public appearance for the first time as Chairman of Geely Automobile's Board of Directors, An Conghui spoke quite directly: "We still lack blockbuster products, the core problem lies here." Then he added a sentence:"We lack mid-range strength."

I think this sentence is quite rare.

After all, semi-annual revenue over 170 billion yuan, core profit up 46%, first appearance of the new chairman, changed for many companies, the press conference would likely start playing "Historic Best", "Comprehensive Leadership", "Enter New Stage" in a loop.

An Conghui first picked out a fault for himself, and this fault picked was quite accurate.

Today's Geely, one head has Zeekr to support high-end.First half of year Zeekr sales volume increased 97% year-on-year to 178,000 units, revenue increased 103% to 55 billion yuan. The other end still has Star Wish, this car everyone is more familiar with, entry market now basically monthly charging ahead in sales ranking.

Trouble lies exactly in the middle.

150,000, 200,000, 250,000, 300,000 yuan this big section, is also the region with the most intensive competition in China's auto market now. BYD, Chery, Changan, Li Auto, AITO, Xpeng, all piled up here products, piled up technology, fighting for users.

You have platform, I have; you have smart driving, I have; you have big battery, I can even stuff a few more degrees than you.

So when An Conghui says "mid-range strength is not enough", actually he has explained the problem very practically, Geely now does not lack technology and resources, lacks is the efficiency of continuously transforming these abilities into more blockbusters.

This is also where "One Geely" needs to reflect value most in the next.

In the past few years Geely has been doing integration, cross products reduced, overall product quantity down over 20%; first half management expense rate down from 1.9% to 1.7%, R&D expense rate down from 5.5% to 5.2%, past R&D, procurement, supply chain resources scattered in different brands, different business systems, also constantly twisting together.

These numbers look quite good in the financial report.

But when consumers buy cars, obviously they won't sit in the dealership asking sales: "May I ask your company management expense rate how much did it drop this year?"

For consumers, "One Geely" at the end should behave very concretely.

After R&D stops burning money repeatedly, can product development be faster; same underlying ability can be reused by more models, same budget can exchange for stronger product power; brand boundaries more clear, don't trample each other's feet again, one car from project start more clearly knows who it sells to.

In the end, these internal efficiencies all have to fall on products.

Develop faster, cost lower, brand boundaries clearer, finally can continuously produce a batch of sellable cars, "One Geely" can count as from internal integration, walked to the consumer front.

As for why exactly now push this organization forward, I think there is another very realistic reason.

Geely's next stage, already impossible to only stare at China market.

First half of this year, Geely overseas sales 474,000 units, up 158% year-on-year, already exceeded 2025 full year export volume. Full year overseas target also adjusted up from 640,000 units to 920,000 units, and began to challenge 1 million units.

However, beyond numbers, Geely's round of global game strategy is actually more worth watching.

Li Shufu said clearly this time, in future globalization process, Geely does not plan every go one place to oneself build large construction re-create a factory,but more share existing capacity with global peers.

Europe has cooperation with Ford around Valencia Spain factory, Volvo itself has mature Europe manufacturing system; Malaysia has Proton, South America also has cooperation with Renault.

Put these things together to look, will discover Geely past 10+ years those at the time looked mutually scattered investments, acquisitions and cooperation,now slowly pieced together into a net that can be used for global business.

Back then many people looked at Geely buying Volvo, first reaction still felt, Chinese company bought this big one Europe brand, digest can manage?

Now looking again,Volvo brought to Geely, obviously not just a luxury brand.

It also has Europe industrial experience, supply chain relations, R&D capability, and hardest thing for money to directly buy, is dealing with global auto industry credit.

So Geely's next stage obviously also not just "export more China cars".That is more like Chinese auto globalization early stage thoughts.

A truly global auto company, has to be able to produce in Europe, produce in Southeast Asia, produce in South America, do business with local enterprises, use local supply chain, at the same time bring out China these years in new energy, intelligence and product development efficiency advantages.

At this time, a company if still wants to rely on founder's one will cover so many markets, basically already not realistic.

Arrived at this step,organizational capability also not just inside company how to manage people question, it will directly affect Geely next stage can put this global network spread how big, run how fast.

Also because of this, I think Li Shufu this time retreat one step, to challenge things actually bigger than "Geely future can still make money" a lot.

Look out to global, whether enterprise can transcend founder, from beginning always very hard.

Founder can leave company, brand, technology, money and system, but hard to pack leave next generation their judgment, ambition even that sometimes looks not too rational creativity.

Even strong like Apple, also cannot bypass this question.

After Jobs, professional manager born Cook can run Apple continue to make money, market value higher and higher, this of course is a remarkable ability. But like iPhone that redefines one industry product, later indeed less and less seen.

Enterprise can hand out operation right, founder creativity also cannot handle "job handover".

This might also be Geely next stage needs to face.

Li Shufu already does not need to prove again whether can do success auto company. From back then one private auto company all the way to today half year revenue 170 billion yuan, this matter already does not need prove.

Next stage to look, is An Conghui and Gan Jiayue led a set more professionalized system forward, Geely can still retain back then dare to bet, dare to experiment, dare to go other people didn't go place take a look head.

If can, then this time baton pass significance, just far more than changed one chairman.

After all, create one great company, was originally rare thing.

More hard, is always great down.