Honor, the spin-off handset brand from Huawei Technologies, implemented further management changes this week after last Friday’s abrupt departure of its CEO, as the company prepares for a public listing amid cutthroat competition in the world’s largest smartphone market.
Following the appointment of Huawei veteran Li Jian last Friday to replace outgoing CEO George Zhao Ming, Honor’s management shake-up continued as its chief marketing officer (CMO) for the China region, Jiang Hairong, also tendered his resignation, according to a report by the China Business Journal on Monday.
The company’s global CMO, Guo Rui, will temporarily assume the China region role as well, according to the report. Further, Honor’s China sales chief Zheng Shubao will be replaced by eastern Jiangsu province’s regional head Chen Haoqian.
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Honor confirmed the changes when contacted on Tuesday. “This is a routine adjustment of regional managers,” a company representative said.
A view of Honor’s smartphone factory in Shenzhen. Photo: Handout alt=A view of Honor’s smartphone factory in Shenzhen. Photo: Handout>
The latest departures reflect internal complexities within the company after it underwent an organisational overhaul as part of preparations for an initial public offering (IPO), which was announced in November 2023.
Honor’s new management team will face mounting challenges, including recovering lost ground in the local smartphone market as well as putting its IPO on track.
Honor, the fourth largest smartphone maker in China in 2024 based on IDC data, has seen its market share shrink amid cutthroat competition at home from rivals including a resurgent Huawei, its former parent.
“Huawei had the most direct impact [on Honor],” said Will Wong, senior research manager for client devices at IDC Asia-Pacific. “Although Huawei also brought challenges to other local and foreign brands, Honor faced unique challenges due to its association with [its former parent].”
Honor’s China shipments fell 14.9 per cent year on year in the fourth quarter last year, the biggest drop among the top five smartphone makers in the period, according to IDC. It ranked fifth with a 13.7 per cent share in the quarter after Apple, Vivo, Huawei and Xiaomi, down from 16.8 per cent in the same period in 2023.
“2025 will be another challenging year, with intense competition among [smartphone makers] to capitalise on the market recovery,” Wong said, adding that the new Honor CEO will play a crucial role in navigating competition and driving the company’s growth.
However, IDC’s Wong noted that Honor’s single-digit growth last year, based on total global sales figures, was “impressive” thanks to its expansion in Europe and emerging markets.
The company surpassed Samsung Electronics to become the No 1 foldable-handset maker in western Europe in the second quarter of last year, according to data from Counterpoint Research. It has continued its international expansion, announcing plans earlier this month to launch more than 30 products in Indonesia in 2025.
In 2020, Huawei, which was added to a US trade blacklist in May 2019 and saw tightened restrictions on access to advanced chips in 2020, sold its sub-brand Honor to a consortium of more than 30 agents and dealers to protect that business from sanctions.
Veteran Huawei executive Li Jian was appointed the new CEO of Honor. Photo: Handout alt=Veteran Huawei executive Li Jian was appointed the new CEO of Honor. Photo: Handout>
The consortium, Shenzhen Zhixin New Information Technology, was founded by Shenzhen Smart City Technology Development Group, which counts state-owned investment firms in the southern tech hub as its main shareholders.
In 2023, Honor recruited Wu Hui, a veteran state-owned enterprise executive, to take over as chairman of the board, replacing Wan Biao who served as vice-chairman until he left the company last September.
Last October, the company revealed new investors that included China Telecom, CICC Capital, Cornerstone Venture Capital and Shenzhen-based fund SDG. In August, Honor received an undisclosed amount of investment funding from China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile network operator.
Honor currently has 23 shareholders including state-owned investors, suppliers and other investors, according to business information platform Tianyancha.
Last month, the firm said it has transformed into a joint-stock limited company as it proceeded further along with its IPO plans. That involved changing its shareholding structure and adopting the name Honor Device, which had no impact on daily operations, according to the announcement on its website.
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