目前，全世界都已經知道，阿里巴巴集團創始人馬云將在一年后辭去執行主席一職，讓位給集團當前的首席執行官、46歲的張勇。在上周的全球媒體上，有關張勇的介紹都會將他描述成一名守舊的會計，而作為鮮明對比，馬云則被刻畫成一位白手起家的企業家和慷慨激昂的演說家，而且在公共場合也是非常有范。

很多人預測，張勇會發現馬云“難以超越”，還有人警告說，“新任壓力山大”。《華爾街日報》則調侃道，張勇在公司內部為自己選的昵稱（逍遙子——譯注）取自于武俠小說中的角色，意為“自由不羈的精神”，但這只是他自己的一廂情愿罷了。Veteran China的科技分析師鄧肯·克拉克認為張勇走的是“克拉克·肯特路線，少了些超人氣質”（漫畫中超人的普通人身份是克拉克·肯特——譯注）。在阿里巴巴于上周一宣布馬云將退位之后，其股價下跌近3%。

似乎最不擔心阿里巴巴前景的莫過于馬云，他在給員工的信中對張勇大加贊賞：“他具有超級計算機般的邏輯和思考能力……敢于站在未來創新設計新型商業模式和業態。”

張勇在晉升為中國最強大科技集團的最高職務之前也走了不少彎路。在從上海財經大學畢業之后，他開始在英國巴林銀行工作，直到公司破產。他的下一個雇主安達信因安然丑聞而倒閉。張勇最終來到了普華永道，然后跳到了領先的網絡游戲公司盛大。他于2007年加入阿里巴巴，擔任集團在線電商平臺淘寶的首席財務官，然后一路平步青云。

在阿里巴巴，張勇有著輝煌的戰績。他是雙十一購物節的構建者。該節日的創建初衷是促進中國單身青年的線上消費，經過9年的發展，他已經將11月11日轉變為了全球最大的購物狂歡節。張勇是阿里巴巴盒馬鮮生超市背后的策劃人，而且最近，他主導了阿里巴巴與星巴克的合作。

張勇在中國科技公司的動蕩年代接過了馬云的指揮棒。但我傾向于亨尼·森德的觀點，他認為阿里巴巴“正處于最強盛的時期”。其主要對手騰訊、京東、滴滴和百度，都在努力應付更大的挑戰，而且這些公司依舊在原始創始人的掌控之中，而阿里巴巴卻將重任交給了更加年輕、更看重執行力的領導手中。隨著中國科技領域的革命進入新的、更加成熟的階段，這位克拉克·肯特型的人物說不定恰好就是時代所需要的超級英雄。（財富中文網）

譯者：Pessy

審校：夏林

The world now knows that, in a year’s time, Alibaba Group founder Jack Ma will surrender his position as executive chairman to Alibaba’s current CEO, 46-year old Daniel Zhang. In the global media last week, profiles of Zhang have contrasted his background as a buttoned-down accountant with Ma’s rags-to-riches story, impassioned oratory, and flamboyant public appearances.

Many predict Zhang will find Ma a “tough act to follow,” or warn he has “big shoes to fill.” The Wall Street Journal snickered that the nickname Zhang chose for himself within the company, taken from a martial arts character whose name means “free and unfettered spirit,” was wishful thinking. Veteran China tech analyst Duncan Clark described Zhang as “more Clark Kent than Superman.” On last Monday, after Alibaba’s announcement Ma will step down, BABA’s stock price slumped nearly 3%.

The guy who seemed least worried about Alibaba’s fate was Ma, who heaped praise on Zhang in a letter to staff: “His analytical mind is unparalleled…and he has the guts to innovate and test creative business models.”

Zhang’s rise to the top of China’s most powerful tech group had several false starts. After graduating from Shanghai University of Finance and Economics, he was set to work for Barings, the British bank, until it collapsed. His next prospect, Arthur Anderson, was done in by the Enron scandal. Zhang eventually landed at PwC, and from there jumped to Shanda, a leading online gaming company. He joined Alibaba in 2007 as chief financial officer of Tabao, the group’s online e-commerce platform, and rose swiftly up the ranks.

At Alibaba, Zhang’s track record is impressive. He is the architect of Singles Day, an event created to promote online spending by China’s singletons that, over nine years, has transformed November 11 into the world’s biggest shopping extravaganaza. Zhang is the brains behind Alibaba’s Hema supermarket franchise and, more recently, he spearheaded the Chinese tech giant’s partnership with Starbucks.

Zhang assumes the reins amid turbulent times for Chinese tech companies. But I’m inclined to agree with Henny Sender, who argues Alibaba has “never looked stronger.” Its major rivals—Tencent, JD.com, Didi, and Baidu—grapple with bigger challenges. And they remain under the thumb of original founders while Alibaba is transferring control to younger, more execution-oriented leaders. As China’s tech sector moves into its next, more mature phase of evolution, Clark Kent may be just the superhero the times require.