Thai Son Group is an economic-defence enterprise that has nearly 20 member units and associated companies together with more than 5,000 officials, employees and workers. The Group operates in different fields, such as application and transfer of new technologies, import of military equipment, construction of defence facilities, unexploded bomb and mine clearance, and investment in real estate, industrial zones, commercial areas, civil construction, and vocational training.

Over the years, under the direct leadership and guidance of the Central Military Commission and the Ministry of National Defence, the Group has worked out a number of drastic policies and solutions to shape its development strategies, improve the quality of its human resources, acquire modern equipment, and equitize its affiliates, thereby enhancing its competitiveness and providing a solid foundation for its fast and sustainable development.

The Group was honoured with the Certificate of “Transparent, Reliable and Sustainable Business” in 2019

As a military enterprise taking part in economic activities, in addition to advantages, the Group also faces a number of difficulties and challenges. It has to combine economic development with national defence and security consolidation. A number of the Group's projects are in remote, coastal, island and extremely difficult areas, thus being costly. Meanwhile, a certain amount of profits from its production and business is deducted for military and defence activities; therefore, there are limitations in its high-quality human resources for economic management and the resources for its investment, reproduction and expansion. Additionally, the Group is in the process of dealing with financial backlog, restructuring itself, equitizing its affiliates and streamlining its workforce. All of these cause a direct impact on the thought of officials, employees and workers, thus affecting the competitiveness of the Group, especially in terms of production and business operations under the market mechanism and in the context of our country’s deeper and wider international integration. Without proper development strategies, improving competitiveness, and building strong brands, a corporation might fail right in the domestic market. That objectively necessitates the Group achieving breakthroughs in improving its competitiveness and running business towards sustainable development.

First of all, the Group has concentrated on areas that it has competitive advantages. In the field of construction (accounting for about 70% of its revenue), the Group has implemented a competitive strategy focusing on its professionalism, construction quality, project implementation schedule, prestige, and brand. With a team of high-quality, strictly disciplined, and experienced cadres, employees and workers who can work in difficult and harsh conditions, along with modern and specialized construction equipment imported from Japan, Russia, USA, Sweden, and Germany, etc., the Group has completed major national defence and dual-use projects with high requirements, such as airports, wharves, posts, border guard posts, bases of the Coast Guard, and border patrol roads. With these capabilities, the Group has participated in bidding for national key projects, huge civil plans, and industrial parks, with a strong commitment to ensuring progress and quality, in accordance with the requirements set by investors at a competitive price. Adopting the business philosophy of "Avoiding putting all eggs in one basket" and advocating that "If you want to go farther, go together", the Group deeply engages in the field of commerce, services, and logistics. It is not only a brand development strategy, but also a proactive solution to change direction if economic recession occurs. Therefore, while the recent Covid-19 pandemic leads to a global economic crisis and many enterprises have been seriously affected, the Group has been remains proactive in its production and business. Its revenue has been maintained. In the time of economic integration and cooperation for mutual development, the Group’s Party Committee and Board of General Directors understood that the excluded competitive business thinking is no longer appropriate. Hence, the Group has focused on strengthening cooperation, with the strategic motto of "addition and multiplication" (adding the strengths of each enterprise to gain benefits by multiplication). On the one hand, importance has been attached to maintaining the traditional cooperative relationships; on the other hand, emphasis has been placed on enhancing trade promotion and expanding new markets, such as South Korea and Japan, etc. Consequently, a series of joint venture and cooperation activities have been established, creating a business and production network associated with Thai Son brand from the domestic market to the international ones. Catching trends and opportunities brought about by the 4^th Industrial Revolution, since 2019, the Group has conducted businesses with a focus on information technology, acting as a bridge to access Smart City Projects. Accordingly, the Group has signed a Principal Contract with the Eagles Company for cooperation in deploying and installing AI, IoT & Robot systems. Initially, it made preparations as the basis for implementing the Cooperation Project in the future. Besides, the Group continues to explore new and potential fields that can bring about economic and social efficiency, participating in the production of electricity from solar energy and garbage exhaust, liquefied gas, merchandising products that are modern, environmentally friendly and good for public health, such as fireproof construction materials, air purifying products, and smart LEDs, etc.

Secondly, promoting the cultivation of high-quality human resources to meet development requirements in the new period. Human resources serve as a decisive factor in competitive advantage, providing the basis for advanced and scientific business management, labour productivity enhancement, production cost reduction, and competitiveness improvement. Therefore, the Group determines to promote in-depth investments in developing human resources, associating the development of human resources with the implementation of its Production and Business Strategy. According to the Group, its human resources must have firm political will, high level of professionalism, and standard qualifications and skills. For the leaders and managers, attention has been paid to sending them to participate in training courses at domestic and foreign educational institutions, organizing short training programs to improve their management and administration capabilities, and updating them on knowledge of international business laws, universal standards of advanced, and modern management.

For its workers, importance has been attached to providing them with practical training and especially training them via emulation movements that promote technical innovation and improvement, and rationalization of construction methods. Its member units have succeeded in improving employees’ skills and updating staff members on advanced and modern technologies to ensure that they would be able to master new machines, equipment and technological lines when being invested. Consideration has been given to training workers on discipline, improving their industrial working style, and enhancing the labour productivity. Along with that, emphasis has been placed on ensuring the material and spiritual life of employees, building up the Group's culture, well implementing the policies on income, especially in the process of equitization, creating motivation to improve the work quality and efficiency and professional ethics, promoting ultimate personal capabilities, and encouraging them to sign long-term contracts with the Group. At the same time, great value has been attached to gradually building up a recruitment policy, attracting high-quality human resources, and appointing and promoting competent young cadres to leadership and management positions.

Thirdly, focusing on technological innovation and equipment modernization to improve capabilities in production and business. The Group’s offices in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi have been renovated in a professional and modern way, keeping pace with the general trend of major enterprises in the region. Importance has been attached to improving the information technology system, applying high technology in administration, and gradually synchronizing the infrastructure to meet the immediate and long-term task requirements. At the same time, emphasis has been placed on continuing to mobilize capital sources, increasing investments in technological innovation, modernizing equipment in a focalized, in-depth manner, selecting and prioritizing the procurement of specialized equipment and machines with advanced and modern technologies, meeting the requirements of construction of large-scale and key projects with high technical requirements. Besides, the Group has accelerated the movement to promote technical initiatives and improvements, while effectively executing the "Campaign 50".

Fourthly, promoting administrative reform, actively restructuring resources. The Group has reorganized and restructured its management and corporate administration apparatus in a compact and effective fashion, created favorable conditions and working environment, and encouraged individuals and collectives to promote their dynamism, creativity, autonomy and self-responsibility, hence creating new breakthroughs in its production and business. The Group has developed the Regulation on organization and operation and the Regulation on financial management under the Enterprise Law and the provisions of State law. Then, the Group continues to supplement and amend the system of internal management regulations, while perfecting the management, cooperation and association mechanisms between the Group and its member companies and among those companies themselves in order to raise competitiveness and implementing decentralization of management in a focalized and specialized direction, especially for the executive boards of significant projects. At the same time, due regard has been paid to maintaining the quality management process in accordance with ISO 9001: 2008, ensuring that each project and product is a certificate of prestige and brand of the Group before being delivered to customers.

The Group has also given priority to strictly managing financial resources and assets, completely handling serious debts, disclosing capital sources, and ensuring capital sources for commercial activities. Importance has been attached to the inspection and management work and cooperation with banks, customers, and credit institutions in restructuring and controlling capital sources for investment and construction in a transparent and sustainable manner. At the same time, the work of inspection, legislation and audit has been strengthened, under the principle of financial management, in compliance with the law on manufacture and business. In addition, the Group has actively conducted its propaganda and marketing strategy via mass media, opportunely delivered products to consumers, promoted public activities, strengthened and developed relationships with partners, well carried out the social work, and displayed the image of a responsible enterprise to the community.

With the spirit of a "Pioneering soldier", being active and creative, daring to think and to do, keeping renewing itself with high political determination, Thai Son Group will continues to overcome all difficulties and challenges,  improve its competitiveness, and facilitate its rapid and sustainable development to make contributions to building the Military and consolidating national defence.

Sr. Col. PHAM GAP, PhD, Chairman and General Director of Thai Son Group