Xi Jin in Shanghai: I've become a very good cook much to my parents' delight!

Xi 'Mako' Jin (MBA 19) looks back fondly on his MBA year at Audencia as being formative and exciting. He won a place on the first learning expedition to Las Vegas and San Francisco in 2019, fully funded by alumni of the school. When asked about his experience of the Covid-19 situation, he says that although unplanned, he was not in Shanghai, but in his hometown, a small city near the seaside. He followed news of the developing situation in Shanghai from a distance, via friends and media platforms such as Tencent News.

In nearly all parts of China, Mako feels that the virus is under control. Initially he felt that time as wasted due to bureacracy but that ultimately the government and the Chinese people overcome the difficulties. 

What measures do you think worked the best?

1. Our government had the power to relocate the necessary goods for the war against the virus. When the virus broke out, it was the Chinese New Year, nearly all the factroies were closed, and people were returning to their hometowns. The government laid down strict rules, blocked travel and kept people at home. In this waythey prevented the virus spreading. After that, doctors and nurses in other provinces (nearly 30 provinces, over 40,000 people) went to Hubei province and built new hospitals in very short time (the first one was set up in 10 days). All aspects of the medical supply chain were called back into manufacturing process.
2. New technologies were used everwhere. Infected people were tracked so we knew who may have touched them and then gave the priority to identifying them. Another example is that, some big internet companies like Alibaba and Tencent helped the government to set new system to separate the healthy from the sick. So in recent days, the healthy people are allowed to work. Infrared devices and IOT technology helped to increase the effeciency of detection.
3. The Chinese people reacted well to the crisis. 99.99% stayed at home for at least 3-4 weeks and when they had to go shopping, they wore masks. I think this is the most important. The way of spreading the virus was totally cut off. This worked not only in Shanghai but all the parts in China. 

How did you keep in touch with your family and friends during confinement?
I was lucky that I went back to my hometown on 19 January so I spent the period of confinement with my family. With my friends we used Wechat, so keeping in touch was easy. We also used new tools such as Dingding and Tencent Meetings to work and study. 4G and even 5G is fast enough to keep the connection running smoothly and quickly.

What advice would you give to fellow alumni in France during this period of confinement?
Stay optimistic, humans can beat this virus! Adopt as healthy a lifetyle as possible and try to increase yor levels of immunity since there is no reliable vaccine right now. Store some canned food, biscuits, etc... Reduce outings and gatherings. Prepare masks and hand sanitisers (someone said that in western countries, wearing a mask means you have got the illness, but it's really a good way to avoiding the virus when you have to go out).

What did you learn about yourself during this period?
For me, it was interesting, as before the confinement I preferred staying at home rather than going out, so it didn't affect me too much. But now I would like to increase exercise to keep healthy. I ate too much staying an home, so now I have to lose some weight...!

How about work?
I am job-seeking at hte moment so I had a few interviews online and I'm hoping for a good opportunity soon. I am glad that the recent crisis has meant that some companies have started to interview online instead of face to face. 

Are there any new habits that you gained during your confinement that you will continue to use?
During this period I read books about IT, programming and cloud management to increase my understanding of the IT industry and new technology. I also became an expert cook which made my parents very happy.