Question

    On September 10, 2018, Jack Ma, founder and chairman of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, announced his successor(继任者)at the company he founded 19 years ago. Jack Ma will quit his role as chairman on September 10, 2019. Surprisingly, in a country where 70 to 80 percent of private companies are still family run, Mr. Ma did not name a family member. Rather, one of the world’s largest e-commerce companies will be led by Daniel Zhang, an 11-year Alibaba old hand chosen only for his “professional talent.”

The history of many countries can be marked by a trend away from dependence on family succession in business, or the belief that qualities of leadership flow through bloodlines. Ma is a true innovator(创新者)in many ways, most famously for building an innovative online shopping market worth more than the economies of most countries. But his legacy(遗产)may lie in showing how China as well as much of Asia can produce founders of successful organizations unwilling to pass the torch to relatives.

“Alibaba was never about Jack Ma,” he stated in announcing his succession plan. Instead, the former schoolteacher who came from lowly origins is stepping back from day-to-day operations because he has built a system that takes root in a company culture based on innovation, transparency, and responsibility. “For the last 10 years, we kept working on these ingredients,” he stated.

The company’s future will depend on developing a wealth of talent that drives innovation, he said. And in a society with a long tradition of cautious distrust toward those outside the family circle, Ma has built an “architecture of trust” with customers, who number over half a billion. Chinese now readily rely on Alibaba’s online payment system, its ratings of products and services, and other trust-building systems or methods pioneered by the company.

China’s rapid growth now produces a new billionaire almost every day. Many of them, like Ma, have favored systems of management based on talent and honesty. As many countries have discovered as they progress, it is better to swim in a talent pool, not a gene pool.

1.What do we know about Daniel Zhang from the passage?

A.He’s a talented professor.

B.He’s an experienced employee.

C.He’s a successful founder.

D.He’s Chairman of Alibaba.

2.Where does Ma’s legacy lie in?

A.Becoming a successful innovative founder.

B.Casting doubt on traditional succession plan.

C.Providing creative answers to succession problems.

D.Representing trends towards non-family-run companies.

3.What seems to be the recipe for the company’s future success?

A.Trust-building methods.

B.The “architecture of trust”.

C.A culture of talent development.

D.The latest successful innovations.

4.What can be a suitable title for the text?

A.Prefer Qualities to Blood.

B.Train a Potential Successor.

C.Favor Genes over Talents.

D.Provide New Management.

Answer

1.B

2.D

3.C

4.A

【解析】

这是一篇新闻报道。世界上最大的电子商务公司之一将由张勇领导，马云的这一决定代表了非家族企业的发展趋势。人才发展的文化是公司未来成功的秘诀。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中Rather, one of the world’s largest e-commerce companies will be led by Daniel Zhang, an 11-year Alibaba old hand chosen only for his “professional talent.”“ 相反，世界上最大的电子商务公司之一将由张勇(Daniel Zhang)领导，他是一位在阿里巴巴有11年经验的老手，只因为‘专业才能’而被选中。”由此可知，Daniel Zhang是个有经验的雇员。故选B。

2.推理判断题。根据第二段中his legacy(遗产)may lie in showing how China as well as much of Asia can produce founders of successful organizations unwilling to pass the torch to relatives.“他的遗产可能在于展示中国以及亚洲许多国家如何培养出不愿将事业传递给亲属的成功组织的创始人。”由此判断出，马云的遗产代表了非家族企业的发展趋势。故选D。

3.细节理解题。根据第四段第一句The company’s future will depend on developing a wealth of talent that drives innovation.“该公司的未来将取决于培养大量推动创新的人才”。由此可知，人才发展的文化是公司未来成功的秘诀。故选C。

4.标题判断题。根据最后一段China’s rapid growth now produces a new billionaire almost every day. Many of them, like Ma, have favored systems of management based on talent and honesty. As many countries have discovered as they progress, it is better to swim in a talent pool, not a gene pool.“中国经济的快速增长，几乎每天都会产生新的亿万富翁。 他们中的许多人，像马云一样，偏爱以才能和诚实为基础的管理制度。 正如许多国家所发现的那样，在人才库中游泳比在基因库中游泳更好。”所以短文的最佳标题为“宁要品质不要家族继承”。故选A。