How to attract and retain talent? Yunhe County implements a series of new talent policies under its “building nests to attract phoenixes” initiative.
Wooden toys are a traditional pillar industry in Yunhe County. Currently, the wooden-toy industry is entering an era of transformation and upgrading centered on “replacing workers with machines.” Given that labor-intensive operations still dominate locally, Yunhe’s wooden-toy enterprises are increasingly seeking external support—leveraging Yunhe’s talent-recruitment initiatives to attract highly skilled professionals and managerial talent through attractive incentive policies. “Our company is at a critical juncture of transformation via automation, and the severe talent shortage remains our biggest bottleneck,” said Sun Dawei, expressing his concern.
Yunhe Jincheng Wood Industry Co., Ltd. is among the earliest enterprises in Yunhe County to implement “replacing workers with machines.” As a provincial pilot demonstration enterprise for this initiative, it has invested over 15 million RMB since 2015 to actively adopt automation technologies—doubling its output value and surpassing the 100-million-RMB mark. “While we rely on machines to boost efficiency and production volume, talent remains indispensable to our success.” In recent years, Yunhe County has accelerated the aggregation of high-end talent by combining strategies: introducing top-tier talent, adopting flexible recruitment models, building supportive platforms, and cultivating local talent—all aligned with industrial transformation and upgrading.
In 2018, Yunhe organized 35 enterprises and public institutions to participate in job fairs held in Xi’an, Wuhan, and Nanchang, successfully recruiting over 60 university graduates—including six master’s degree holders. Two individuals were also recruited under Lishui City’s “Lügu Elite 550 Talent Introduction Program,” effectively promoting cross-sector integration and development within the wooden-toy industry. “Our company prioritizes talent’s daily life needs—especially for those relocating from other regions. Upon arriving in Yunhe, their most basic living requirements—food and housing—must be addressed first.”
During interviews with business owners, staff from the County Party Committee’s Talent Office learned that talent’s quality-of-life concerns constitute one of the most urgent issues requiring resolution. In response, Yunhe County has continuously optimized its talent ecosystem, investing funds to construct 56 high-level talent apartments and 132 enterprise talent apartments—effectively alleviating talent’s daily living needs.