I. Yuan Zheng's Early Years
Yuan Zheng was born in 1970 in Tai'an City, Shandong Province, China. This boy who grew up in an ordinary family, Yuan Zheng showed a strong interest and talent in technology during his student days. In class, he was always the student who actively asked questions and thought deeply. His thirst for knowledge seemed endless, constantly challenging his own limits.
According to his teacher's recollection, Yuan Zheng had a strong interest in computers in primary school. He often used his spare time to self-study programming and even won many awards in the school's computer competitions.
During his middle school years, Yuan Zheng was even more unstoppable. He not only achieved excellent academic results but also actively participated in various technology clubs and activities. He once said, "I think technology is the power to change the world." This sentence also became the driving force for him to keep moving forward in the future.
In the high school stage, Yuan Zheng and several classmates formed a team to participate in the National Youth Science and Technology Innovation Contest. Their project involved the field of artificial intelligence and achieved excellent results with innovative ideas and solid techniques.
Yuan Zheng's student days were not all smooth sailing. He also encountered setbacks and difficulties, but he always adhered to his dream. Just as he said, "Difficulties are the steps of growth."
In 1987, Yuan Zheng was admitted to the Department of Applied Mathematics of Shandong Mining Institute (now Shandong University of Science and Technology). During his college years, Yuan Zheng was like a passionate bird freely soaring in the sky of knowledge. His love for technology was like a burning flame, passionate and firm.
The campus library became his regular haunt, and he eagerly absorbed the nutrients of knowledge. According to statistics, he read hundreds of books related to technology during his college years, laying a solid foundation for his future.
Yuan Zheng not only indulged in the ocean of knowledge but also actively participated in various practical activities. He once participated in the school's science and technology innovation team and worked with like-minded partners to overcome difficulties.
He said, "Innovation is the key to promoting technological progress." This view was vividly reflected in his college life. Once, the team faced a technical problem, and everyone was at a loss. However, Yuan Zheng, with his keen insight and solid knowledge reserve, proposed an innovative solution and finally successfully overcame the problem.
In a competition, their project suffered a failure. However, Yuan Zheng was not discouraged. He said, "Failure is the mother of success. As long as you don't give up, there will definitely be gains." It was this optimistic and positive attitude that allowed him to keep growing in setbacks.
After completing his undergraduate studies, Yuan Zheng came to Stanford University to pursue an MBA. Here, he not only accumulated rich business knowledge but also met many like-minded partners. However, in the early days of arriving in the United States, Yuan Zheng's path was not smooth. Due to language barriers and cultural differences, he encountered repeated setbacks in the job-hunting process. Even so, Yuan Zheng was not discouraged but firmly believed that his future would be better.
II. Climbing to the Peak: The Birth and Rise of Zoom
The original intention of Yuan Zheng to found Zoom originated from his persistent pursuit of high-quality communication experience and his acute insight into the market gap. He firmly believes: "True innovation does not lie in creating new things, but in making old things better." This sentence has become the original driving force for the birth of Zoom.
In 2011, Yuan Zheng left WebEx with a small team of engineers and founded Zoom. At that time, the cloud service market in the United States had matured, and the mobile Internet was in the ascendant. Under such a background, Yuan Zheng keenly perceived the market demand. He led the team to build the technology on the cloud, and users only need to download an APP to directly conduct video conferences. Compared to the previous MCU (Microcontroller Unit) technology, Zoom proposed the next-generation Multimedia Routing (MMR) technology. Based on the global cloud-based distributed processing architecture, the smooth user experience and lower cost were quickly welcomed by small and medium-sized enterprises.
However, the road of entrepreneurship is not all smooth sailing. During the development process of Zoom, Yuan Zheng encountered many technical problems. In order to ensure the stable and smooth quality of video calls, a series of complex problems such as network latency and picture quality clarity need to be solved. It's like looking for light in the dark, and every step is full of uncertainties. But Yuan Zheng was not knocked down by difficulties. He led the team to work day and night, constantly conducting experiments and optimizations. Just like a brave warrior, charging on the technological battlefield.
In addition to technical problems, market competition is also a huge challenge faced by Yuan Zheng. In the field of video conferencing, many competitors have emerged one after another, and the market competition is extremely fierce. However, Yuan Zheng stood out among many similar products with its unique market strategy and excellent user experience.
There is also an anecdote in Yuan Zheng's entrepreneurial story. It is said that in the early days of starting a business, in order to save costs, Yuan Zheng and his team once worked in a small office. They huddled together and worked hard for the future of Zoom. This spirit of arduous struggle has also become an important support for the success of Zoom.
Yuan Zheng knows well that users are the source of life for enterprises. Therefore, he always puts the user demand first and continuously optimizes the product functions to improve the user experience. At the same time, he also pays attention to team building. He believes that "one person can walk fast, but a group of people can walk farther." He recruits talents through employee referrals, saving a lot of energy for the company. In addition, he also pays attention to the cultivation of culture. The company reimburses all the expenses for employees to buy books for themselves and everyone in their families. This kind of care and investment in employees makes employees become better people and also becomes the wealth of the company.
Under Yuan Zheng's leadership, Zoom has continued to grow and develop. In 2019, Zoom was listed on the NASDAQ in the United States, and after listing, it brought returns to investors. Data shows that based on the valuation of the last round of investment and the offering price of Zoom on the day of listing, Zoom brought nearly 10 times the return to the last round of investors.
Zoom's success is not accidental, but the result of Yuan Zheng's accurate capture of market opportunities. He insighted that with the development of cloud computing and mobile Internet, people's demand for high-quality video communication anytime and anywhere is increasingly strong. And the market products at that time failed to meet this demand, and there was an obvious user experience gap. Yuan Zheng seized this opportunity to create a video conferencing software that is easy to use, highly stable, and adaptable to various network environments, successfully filling the market gap.
In early 2020, the COVID-19 outbreak occurred, and the demand for remote office work worldwide surged. Yuan Zheng keenly captured this historical opportunity and took decisive actions: freely opening the basic services of Zoom to help global users cope with the challenges brought by the epidemic. This decision is like a catalyst, accelerating the explosive growth of Zoom.
According to the data of Apptopia, in March 2020, the daily active users of Zoom on the mobile side reached 14 million, an increase of nearly 30 times compared to December 2019. In April of the same year, the market value of Zoom exceeded the $100 billion mark, becoming a shining new star in the technology industry. In the enterprise market, Zoom is even more irresistible. According to Gartner statistics, in the second quarter of 2020, Zoom accounted for as high as 44.5% in the video conference market share, surpassing old rivals such as Microsoft Teams and Cisco Webex, firmly ranking first in the industry.
Yuan Zheng deeply understands the importance of the user experience. He led the team to create a simple, easy-to-use, stable and reliable video conference software. In order to achieve this goal, Yuan Zheng and his team continuously optimized the performance and functions of the product to ensure that users can enjoy a smooth and clear video conference experience when using Zoom. At the same time, Yuan Zheng also pays attention to the security and privacy protection of the product. He deeply understands the importance users attach to data security, so advanced encryption technology is adopted in Zoom to ensure that the meeting content and data of users are fully protected.
In addition to the advantages of the product itself, Yuan Zheng also pays attention to marketing and brand building. He deeply understands that a good product needs a strong brand to support. Therefore, he led the team to actively carry out marketing promotion activities to improve the popularity and reputation of Zoom. At the same time, Yuan Zheng also pays attention to communication and interaction with users. He collects user feedback and suggestions through various channels and promptly improves and optimizes the product. This user-centered concept has made Zoom receive extremely high evaluations and word-of-mouth in the market.
Under Yuan Zheng's leadership, Zoom has rapidly risen to become one of the leading video conference software companies in the world. Today, the users of Zoom are all over the world, including various fields such as enterprises, government agencies, educational institutions, etc. Its success is not only because of its excellent product and service, but also because of the perseverance and struggle spirit demonstrated by Yuan Zheng himself. His story tells us that as long as we have a dream and keep working hard for it, we will definitely be able to realize our own life value.
Zoom's rise is not accidental, but conforms to the tide of global digital transformation. Against the background of cloud technology, high-speed networks, and the popularity of mobile devices, people's demand for efficient and convenient remote communication is increasing day by day. However, the video conference solutions on the market are often complex and difficult to use, unable to meet the needs of the masses. Yuan Zheng keenly captured this pain point and was determined to create a "video conference tool that everyone can use."
Zoom's influence has rapidly exceeded the technology circle and penetrated into all aspects of social life. According to statistics, as of 2024, the monthly active users of Zoom have exceeded 300 million, and the services cover more than 180 countries and regions, covering 90% of the Fortune 500 companies. In the field of education, Zoom has provided a remote learning platform for millions of students; in the medical industry, doctors conduct remote diagnosis and treatment through Zoom to save lives; in the government sector, leaders of various countries hold online summits through Zoom to promote international cooperation. The existence of Zoom makes "face-to-face" communication no longer limited by geographical location, truly realizing "a close neighbor though far away."
Yuan Zheng once said: "We are not making a product, but shaping the future way of working." This sentence reveals the strategic vision of Zoom beyond the tool attribute. Under Yuan Zheng's leadership, Zoom not only solves the problem of instant communication, but also plays an important role in reconstructing the work process, breaking the office boundary, and promoting digital collaboration. Especially during the epidemic period, Zoom has become a synonym for "working from home", which strongly proves Yuan Zheng's accurate prediction of the future trend of the way of working.
Yuan Zheng's leadership style is also unique. He advocates the "happy culture" and believes that only happy employees can innovate. The employee satisfaction of Zoom is as high as 99%, and it has been rated as the "Best Employer" for many consecutive years, which is not only an affirmation of Yuan Zheng's leadership, but also reveals the organizational motivation behind Zoom's continuous innovation and rapid response to market demands.
Facing the huge success of Zoom, Yuan Zheng did not stop. He proposed: "We are entering a brand new hybrid work era, and Zoom's task is to eliminate the obstacles brought by physical distance and allow people to collaborate efficiently no matter where they are." Zoom is constantly expanding its business boundaries and getting involved in fields such as distance education and distance medical treatment, committed to building a globally connected future.
III. The Noble Qualities of the Founder He often said, "Every employee is a part of the company, and their opinions and suggestions are precious wealth." This open and transparent leadership style makes Zoom's team more united and efficient. He deeply understands the difficulty of starting a business, so he always maintains a modest and learning attitude. He continuously learns new knowledge and masters new skills to deal with changes and challenges in the market. At the same time, he also attaches great importance to personal cultivation and moral construction, and always maintains the qualities of integrity and honesty. He knows that the future market competition will be more fierce, so he continues to lead the team to continuously innovate and break through, injecting new impetus into the future development of Zoom. He also put forward the following suggestions to young entrepreneurs: 1. Be brave in innovation: Don't be satisfied with the current situation, but dare to challenge traditions and look for new business opportunities. 2. Focus on user needs: Deeply understand the pain points of users and provide them with practical solutions. 3. Build an excellent team: Gather a group of passionate and talented people to pursue the dream together. 4. Keep learning and growing: Continuously improve one's knowledge and skills to adapt to changes in the market. Looking back at Yuan Zheng's entrepreneurial journey and the development process of Zoom, it is not difficult to find the secret of success among them: that is, continuous innovation, focusing on user experience, building an excellent team, and maintaining a modest and learning attitude. These secrets are not only applicable to the development of Zoom, but also can provide valuable inspiration and reference for other entrepreneurs. Yuan Zheng's early education and work experience have shaped his indomitable spirit, love for technology, and deep understanding of user experience. These traits have become a solid foundation for him to found Zoom and disrupt the field of video communication. His keen market insight enables Zoom to accurately position, fill market gaps, and achieve explosive growth. Yuan Zheng is an outstanding entrepreneur and leader. His success story not only allows us to see the demeanor and strength shown by a Chinese entrepreneur on the global stage, but also allows us to see the image of a person who truly struggles for his dream. Let us look forward to Yuan Zheng and Zoom continuing to create more glories in the future!
III. The Noble Qualities of the Founder He often said, "Every employee is a part of the company, and their opinions and suggestions are precious wealth." This open and transparent leadership style makes Zoom's team more united and efficient. He deeply understands the difficulty of starting a business, so he always maintains a modest and learning attitude. He continuously learns new knowledge and masters new skills to deal with changes and challenges in the market. At the same time, he also attaches great importance to personal cultivation and moral construction, and always maintains the qualities of integrity and honesty. He knows that the future market competition will be more fierce, so he continues to lead the team to continuously innovate and break through, injecting new impetus into the future development of Zoom. He also put forward the following suggestions to young entrepreneurs: 1. Be brave in innovation: Don't be satisfied with the current situation, but dare to challenge traditions and look for new business opportunities. 2. Focus on user needs: Deeply understand the pain points of users and provide them with practical solutions. 3. Build an excellent team: Gather a group of passionate and talented people to pursue the dream together. 4. Keep learning and growing: Continuously improve one's knowledge and skills to adapt to changes in the market. Looking back at Yuan Zheng's entrepreneurial journey and the development process of Zoom, it is not difficult to find the secret of success among them: that is, continuous innovation, focusing on user experience, building an excellent team, and maintaining a modest and learning attitude. These secrets are not only applicable to the development of Zoom, but also can provide valuable inspiration and reference for other entrepreneurs. Yuan Zheng's early education and work experience have shaped his indomitable spirit, love for technology, and deep understanding of user experience. These traits have become a solid foundation for him to found Zoom and disrupt the field of video communication. His keen market insight enables Zoom to accurately position, fill market gaps, and achieve explosive growth. Yuan Zheng is an outstanding entrepreneur and leader. His success story not only allows us to see the demeanor and strength shown by a Chinese entrepreneur on the global stage, but also allows us to see the image of a person who truly struggles for his dream. Let us look forward to Yuan Zheng and Zoom continuing to create more glories in the future!
