Extraordinary Endeavors in Turbulent Times: Asian Innovation, Inclusion, and Impact during COVID-19

ASIA BUSINESS COUNCIL HONG KONG UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY Lenovo (Mainland China) Extraordinary Endeavors in Turbulent Times Lenovo (Mainland China) Championing Educational Technologies to Enable Virtual Learning ExperiencesWorldwide By Winnie Peng, Pauline Yeung, Colleen Howe, and Theodore Chow The following case study is based on written correspondence with Lenovo in November and December 2020, and an interview with Rich Henderson, Director of Global Education Solutions at Lenovo, on December 3, 2020. Introduction “As your elder friend, I would like to support your efforts in this battle,” wrote Lenovo Chairman and CEO Yang Yuanqing in March 2020, in a letter to students from impoverished families in Hubei Province in China. 1 Placed in a gift package with a Lenovo tablet and a three-month data card of 90 gigabytes, Yang’s letter said, “I hope that these tablets help you all. No matter where you are, you can connect to the online knowledge library, browse encyclopedias, take classes virtually, and interact with teachers.” 2 Initiated during the pandemic, this public welfare project was called “Lenovo E-classroom” and was supported by a donation of $1.4 million personally funded by Yang. It also represented an attempt to tackle the “digital divide” in China, where students from underprivileged backgrounds do not have access to virtual learning, an issue that has only become more important because of COVID-19. 3 As one of Lenovo’s major initiatives in China in 2020, the project was jointly sponsored by Lenovo Foundation China and the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation and reached children in 2,375 families in Hubei. 4 Lenovo’s philanthropic endeavors during the pandemic touched nearly every part of the world. In North America, Lenovo’s efforts included $2.4 million in hardware donations to support distance learning education. 5 In Europe, as Italy became hard hit by the crisis, Lenovo partnered with Microsoft to donate 190 laptops to students most in need in schools in Milan. 6 In the Netherlands, Lenovo donated laptops to enable refugee university students to learn from home. 7 Lenovo also had numerous Asia Business Council Lenovo Group Region China Year of Founding 1984 Headquarters Operational Headquarters in Beijing and Morrisville; Financial Headquarters in Hong Kong Type of Company Listed Multinational Company Number of Employees 63,000 Total Revenues in FY2019/20 (USD) 50,716 million Major Businesses Computer Hardware, Electronics, Smart Devices, Data Center, Services COVID-19 Initiatives in a Nutshell Provided Advanced Education Solu - tions to Students and Schools to Facilitate Learn-from-home Access, both on a Charitable and a Com - mercial basis; Provided Equipment and IT Infrastructure to Hospitals; Matched Employee Donations to Support Community Needs