Huang Tieying

4.4500 learners

Haidilao You Can't Learn pulls back the curtain on how a humble Sichuan hot pot chain became a global service icon—revealing why its success is nearly impossible to copy. Founder Zhang Yong didn’t rely on rigid standardization; instead, he built a culture rooted in treating frontline staff like family. Unlike most restaurant workers who cram into basements, Haidilao employees live in city apartments with cleaning services, have access to subsidized childcare, and even get monthly stipends sent directly to their parents. Zhang’s radical trust in his team lets even entry-level servers comp dishes or waive bills for unhappy guests. The book dives into real stories: from a manager who faced down 60 armed thugs to protect her store, to a former kitchen worker who rose to run 6 locations. It also explores Haidilao’s growing pains—like scaling challenges with its apprenticeship model—and why competitors fail when they only mimic surface-level services, not the human-centric values at its core.