[2] Zhang Ruimin transformed Haier from a small, failing collective factory, to an Internet of Things (IoT) ecosystem brand.

[2] Zhang Ruimin was born on 5 January 1949, to a working class family in Qingdao, Shandong; his parents were employed in a local garment factory.

[5] As a youth, Zhang joined the Red Guards, visited Mao's birthplace, and attended rallies in Beijing since all schools had been closed, and when the movement was finally disbanded, he was able to avoid being sent down to the countryside.

[8][9] In 1984, Zhang was appointed general manager of the Qingdao Refrigerator Plant, predecessor of Haier Group, a company that was insolvent and going bankrupt.

[10][11] In 1985, in order to raise employees’ awareness about quality and increase their support of the brand-building strategy, Zhang Ruimin took the lead in smashing 76 defective refrigerators.

[2] Early in his tenure as general manager, Zhang traveled to Germany to visit the company's German partner, from whom they were purchasing technology and know-how.

After noticing that sales were poor in Sichuan province, he discovered the reason to be that villagers would use the machines to wash sweet potatoes, clogging the drains in the washers.

[7] In the same year, Zhang Ruimin invested USD30 million to build the Haier Industrial Park in South Carolina, USA in an effort to produce home appliances locally.

To break into the American market, Zhang realized that Haier would need to offer niche products such as wine coolers and mini-refrigerators, popular with hotels and college dormitories.

By 2005, revenues at Haier had surpassed $12 billion and the company employed over 30,000 people; the Financial Times recognized Zhang Ruimin as one of the "50 most respected business leaders in the world.

"[17] While a price war was ongoing in the home appliances industry in the period 2005–2012, Zhang Ruimin adopted the strategy of production on demand for zero inventory.

[19] On 18 October 2011, under Zhang Ruimin's leadership, Haier Group acquired the white goods businesses of Sanyo Electric in Japan and Southeast Asia.

When the industrial park is fully operational, its annual output will reach 3.8 million units, and its product categories will add washers, air conditioners, water heaters, and TVs to refrigerators.