CEO Nicholas Tse treats staff just like family

CEO Nicholas Tse treats staff just like family
PHOTO: CEO Nicholas Tse treats staff just like family

For many years, Nicholas Tse was one of Asia's hottest stars, winning awards and mesmirising women all across the region with his charming good looks.

Now at age 33, the Hong Kong actor who has been in showbiz since 1996, has added another achievement to his resume.

[[nid:357330]]



Tse is a co-owner of Post Production Office Group, a post-production firm with three offices in Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai.

The son of Hong Kong veteran actor Patrick Tse revealed in an interview with a Hong Kong business school that his secret to success was good leadership and respect for his staff.

"We want to be cared (for), we want to be loved and to be respected. That is why in my company, we have the least hierarchy problems," he said in a video interview which was posted on YouTube.

"I really don't know what my best leadership qualities are, or my worst," he admitted in the interview.

"Am I a good human being? You can say all that but it would mean nothing. It should be said by my staff," he added.

He said in the interview that he would cook for his staff, and even encourages the team to do sports and other activities together.

"We just went on a big vacation together. We do all the activities together," he said.

Apart from being open-minded with his employees, he also makes sure that their opinions count and that they are treated well so they can produce the best work for the company.

He recalled how he had sprung a surprise on his employees by allowing them to pick out a new office space with him. Telling them to stop work for a day, Tse took his employees on a vacation and sought their opinions on the kind of office they wanted to move in to.

He said to them: "I am not going to be the one sitting here 18 hours a day looking at the same screen. It's you.  I want to make this your home. You have got to feel comfortable here. You have got to feel that it is a part of you so you are actually looking forward to going to work. And that will also stimulate your creative thinking, and the job will get better" .

So what does it take to be a good leader? For Tse, it is realising one's passions and being honest with oneself.

"Ultimately, you've got to be really honest to yourself, what you like the most," he said.

"You cannot say: 'I love my post-production company, but I also want to join that karaoke function tonight, or have dinner with my girlfriend.' There are sacrifices to make. Now that means you really want something that bad."

With such passion, a leader's dedication will rub off on his staff, Tse says.

"If I'm here first person, first thing, every morning, and I set that example for a period of time, they know that this guy really cares, and then they are going to be here," he said.

Taking a gamble for his dreams

Despite being successful in the post production business, Tse said that his core business remains show business, and that his growing company exists to help him learn more about it.

When he started the business at 23  years old, Tse had to take a big risk by leasing his home to the bank.

While he took a gamble with the business, Tse says he did not do so blindly. He had utilised his connections well and ensured three projects even before the company was started up.

Bruce Lee an inspiration

While Tse hopes to inspire others with his leadership mantra, the actor gets his inspiration from the late Bruce Lee.

"I watch his interviews over and over again. (Bruce Lee) is charismatic and confident, but not to the point where he is arrogant. He is a philosopher, a well-known martial artist and an actor," he said.

Although Tse has proven himself both in all aspects of show business, from being onscreen to working behind the scenes, he insists he is no different from the average entrepreneur.

"I am just another kid with big dreams," he says.

ljessica@sph.com.sg

This website is best viewed using the latest versions of web browsers.