Jiameng Yu, who featured in the Association of Corporate Treasurers’ Ones to Watch in 2015, has embraced corporate and advisory experience in her treasury career. In the UK, she has worked at Deloitte, Tate & Lyle, Vodafone and most recently her current employer, Greensill Capital, a working capital provider. Last year saw her take up a new post in Shenzhen, in the Guangdong province of China.
Having joined Greensill Capital as a director in 2019, you moved from the UK to China and became finance director of Greensill China. Tell us about the background. Had you joined the company with the intention of moving to China at some future point, or was that one of 2020’s rapid pivots?
I joined Greensill as a director in the innovation and incubation team in 2019. At that point, I was not actively planning a move back to China. After joining, by pure coincidence, my first deal closely related to the Chinese market. From that experience, I came to realise that I am really good at working bilingually, which I had not had the opportunity to practice in my career prior to that point.
At the end of 2019, I was asked whether I would be interested in being one of the first employees of Greensill China. It was not a complete surprise, but I had not seriously considered a move at that point. However, it did not take long for me and my family to agree that it was simply too good an opportunity to miss.
Moreover, we knew that our two-year-old son would benefit from exposure to a bilingual environment. To make the decision even easier, Greensill was very supportive in terms of making the move happen both in terms of encouragement and actual relocation assistance. It certainly has been one of 2020’s rapid but pleasant pivots.
In mid-2020, lockdowns were easing in Europe and Asia. Nevertheless, the practicalities of the move must have been considerable. What were some of the impacts for you when it came to making the move happen? How long did you have to prepare? And how different was it to other careers moves and transitions you have made?
The original plan was for me to start spending time in China from late February 2020, just after the Chinese New Year, before relocating the whole family around June/July 2020. This was so that we could have some time to sort out accommodation, childcare and such.
In reality of course, COVID-19 changed everything. We grabbed the chance to move on 2 April. It meant that we had to prepare for everything in rush mode to move as a family, because we knew that travel would be difficult for some time to come if we missed this opportunity.
The practicalities included researching Shenzhen kindergartens (I had to sit a written test for that) and arranging for shipping services and so on – and all this had to be done at pace. After all that, China closed its borders from 28 March, so it turned out to be a ‘false start’.
Thanks to Greensill’s excellent HR team, who provided impeccable support, we did manage to get to a point where we would have been comfortable moving with that kind of short notice. After that we were in waiting mode, looking for a window of opportunity and always ready to move at the drop of a hat – all of this while working Chinese hours (very early mornings) in order to continue establishing Greensill China.
Again, Greensill as a company was tremendously helpful and all the effort paid off. As soon as China reopened for visa applications in May, we had our applications lodged that same day. We were also lucky enough to be booked on one of the first reasonably direct flights into China in July.
The company took care of almost everything – shipping, accommodation and childcare. So, our belongings landed before us, we had temporary accommodation arranged for when we finished quarantine and we travelled with the knowledge that there would be a kindergarten place for our son. That took a lot of weight off our shoulders.
Once in Shenzhen, what was your experience of settling into a new locality and a new role?
I spent most of my life pre-UK in Foshan, which is about a two-hour drive from Shenzhen, so it is not entirely a new locality for me. Speaking fluent Mandarin and Cantonese also helps. On the other hand, quarantine was tough with a two-year-old, but we were well looked after by both the relevant authorities as well as colleagues in China.
Once we stopped being in transit, I found myself having a case of reverse culture shock. I don’t feel quite foreign, nor quite Chinese, because my childhood home town and I both changed in our own ways over the past two decades. I also need to get used to my family not speaking Chinese. I needed to make the effort to ensure that they are informed of what is going on around us, rather than just assuming they know.
While getting on with life’s necessities isn’t much of a challenge, getting used to these cultural changes was. Luckily, my husband is a fast learner when it comes to languages. As his Mandarin proficiency grows, we feel more and more at home.
But the role is the most amazing part of the move. It is challenging and interesting. I have a lot of autonomy while being supported by an amazing team. Being in China means I can work more closely with the team on the ground, and it’s very exciting being part of that team as we know we are uniquely positioned to bring our international expertise in the trade finance industry to the Chinese market at a key time.
As China accelerates the development of the Greater Bay Area, Shenzhen is building a pilot zone for supply chain finance (SCF) and aims to become the centre of the global supply chain finance industry. Our Shenzhen office is a demonstration of our confidence in China’s SCF industry and commitment to the market; it’s great to have a key role in making that happen.
What support and onboarding took place? How was it different to other transitions in your career?
Greensill supported every aspect of the move, especially those personal aspects that could have made international relocation stressful. Firstly, application for visas is always unpleasant because of the volume of paperwork. HR appointed an excellent agency to help me through the process. COVID-19 complicated the matter because we had to apply for an additional support letter. Then, our lovely team assistant was watching flights like a hawk for me. Thanks to her, we were able to book one of the first (reasonably) direct flights into China.
The company also arranged for cultural training for us as a family. This helped me greatly on managing my reverse culture shock. The facilitator also put us in touch with families in similar situations to us, which provides us with a very good support network.
While the international relocation part is not comparable to previous career transitions that I have experienced, the cultural induction would have been relevant for each transition. In retrospect, I think I would have appreciated cultural induction each time I moved to a new role.
Thinking about your role, what are your main responsibilities and how do you work with your team locally and internationally?
My role is to help drive Greensill’s expansion into the Chinese market, which involves everything from establishing the required internal infrastructure with a focus on finance to deal implementation.
All aspects of finance and treasury management are very different in China. Some of that is due to rules that are similar in principle to international equivalents (such as accounting standards) but far more granular, whereas other areas are completely different. Therefore, setting up a finance function in China with efficiency and effectiveness is no small undertaking.
Greensill has international collaboration in its DNA. We already work closely with large Chinese clients to support their international businesses. We also provide for a range of multinational corporation customers who would like us to provide their Chinese suppliers with financing in China. The way I collaborate with colleagues did not need to change very much simply because the location is different. From a practical perspective, it has simply meant that the busy time during a workday shifted from early morning to late afternoon.
What’s coming in 2021 for you and the team? What are your priorities and plans?
The year 2020 was a time of carrying on against obstacles and challenges. Now that we are nearly there in setting up the infrastructure, 2021 will be a year full of opportunities for Greensill Team China. We estimate that there is $9.2 trillion of working capital locked up in accounts receivables and inventory in this amazing country. Our priority will be to take those opportunities and promote the company values, making finance fairer, no matter where we are in the world.