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For technology enterprises, partners are the core driving force for innovation and development. The equity structure is the foundation, control rights are the core, and equity incentives are the extension – these four elements together constitute the most crucial basic guarantee for technology enterprises from 0 to 1, and from 1 to 100.
However, many entrepreneurs still have misunderstandings about the partner system: How should equity be distributed reasonably? How can control rights be maintained? How should incentives be implemented effectively? …… Only by reorganizing the partnership system, breaking out of the conventional mindset, establishing a scientific equity concept, can we fundamentally avoid the risks associated with equity disputes, master the full-cycle equity structure design methods, learn the practical tools for control rights protection, and connect the entire process from incentive design to implementation, thereby enhancing the financing attractiveness of the enterprise and creating a “fate共同体”.
On March 14th, the sixth session of the “Nanjing New District Technology Entrepreneurs Growth Training Camp” kicked off at Xianxing Pharmaceutical. This session focused on the topic of “Design of the Partner System”, and invited expert Zheng Zhi Liang, an expert in Top-level Design and practical partner system implementation， to deliver the lecture. The lecture covered aspects such as the top-level equity structure design of the enterprise， key points of control rights， the implementation system of the partner system， and the incentive and restraint mechanism. The Nanjing New District entrepreneurs were systematically explained how to achieve long-term control over the core management team. The entire day was filled with high-energy output， with case studies and practical operations running concurrently. The attending entrepreneurs exclaimed， “It’s all solid knowledge， and it was so engaging to listen!”
From “Employment” to “Partnership”: A Mindset Upgrade That Affects the Vitality of an Enterprise
“In the past, we retained employees through salaries. Now, we need to retain talents through mechanisms.” At the beginning of the course, Zheng pointed out sharply to Liang: In the era of human capital, one of the core capabilities of entrepreneurs is to learn to use the partnership system to transform ‘my business’ into ‘our business’.”
Teacher Zheng started from the overall planning and systematically dissected the equity structure models for the four stages of an enterprise – from start-up, growth, maturity to pre-listing. He directly addressed the most sensitive pain point for entrepreneurs – how to maintain control without holding a majority stake? Through the underlying logic of a certain科创板 enterprise holding only 34% of the shares yet achieving over 60% control， and the long-term control design of a certain state-owned-led technology enterprise under a mixed ownership system， he allowed the entrepreneurs present to see the hidden design secrets behind the equity structure.
At the level of partner system design, Teacher Zheng even explained the complex mechanisms in a clear and simple way. He systematically sorted out four sets of combinations – employee virtual partnership， career partnership， internal split partnership and external ecosystem partnership – covering almost all talent binding scenarios for technology enterprises. At the same time， by combining current hot enterprises， he dissected them one by one：
-Why did the “no-payment-for-increase” virtual partnership model of Meituan significantly reduce the turnover rate of senior executives?
-How did the business partnership mechanism and employee stock ownership platform of Ningde Times and Zhongwei Company be established?
-How did Hikvision achieve internal fission-style entrepreneurship through spin-off listing and activate the innovation business team?
-How did Alibaba Cloud, relying on the green computing power ecosystem, deeply bind the upstream and downstream industrial chain through the partnership mechanism? ……
The entrepreneurs either concentratedly took notes or used their cameras to take pictures, fearing to miss any single detail.
During the one-on-one consultation session, entrepreneurs rushed to present their long-standing “difficult and complex issues”: How should the equity of new and old partners be distributed? How should the value of technology investment be determined? How should the exit mechanism be designed to avoid damaging the harmony? Teacher Zheng, combining tax, legal and capital planning, provided “diagnosis reports” one by one, and the atmosphere in the room was very lively.
Beyond the Classroom: Explore Xiansheng Pharmaceutical and Experience the Innovative Ecosystem
At noon, the trainees entered the exhibition hall and research site of Xian Sheng Pharmaceutical Company, getting a close look at the innovative culture and industrial layout of this leading pharmaceutical enterprise. From the laboratory to the production line, from the research pipeline to the corporate culture wall, each interaction sparked new thoughts.
The day’s lessons came to an end as night fell, but the discussion about the “partnership system” had just begun.
In the future, the Technology Entrepreneurs Growth Training Camp of Jiangbei New District will continue to closely follow the development needs of enterprises, focusing on core topics such as equity design and talent incentives. It will launch more practical courses and visits to benchmark enterprises, striving to enable every technology enterprise to fly higher, farther and more steadily under the dual drive of talent and capital.
