Tencent billionaire goes on a tirade as cracks appear in empire

Last week, Ma convened a town-hall meeting to personally deliver a blistering attack against the way staff managed businesses from social media and content to gaming. — Bloomberg

Many multinational CEOs like to close out the year with a message of congratulations. Tencent Holdings Ltd’s billionaire co-founder Pony Ma delivered a no-holds-barred rant about slacking, oblivious and even corrupt employees.

Ma’s tirade marked a rare show of frustration for the usually mild-mannered mogul who helped create China’s largest Internet firm away from the spotlight. Last week, the tycoon convened a town-hall meeting to personally deliver a blistering attack against the way staff managed businesses from social media and content to gaming. The message: with the survival of some businesses in doubt, they all needed to get their act together, according to people who attended the 10-minute lecture.