Steven Craig shapes Western Digital's plans to meet China's ZB-level storage needs

Steven Craig, senior vice-president and general manager of China operations of Western Digital Corp, a US-based storage solutions provider, believes as long as technologies like 5G continue to evolve, there will be an increasing need for data storage.

"We see the Chinese market continuing to grow and the path is endless," Craig said. "It's a very massive number of things when we actually start looking at the opportunities and what we can do with data, which goes behind all that.

"All that fragmented data will get integrated in the next five to 10 years. With an increasing number of people using smartphones, they will need more data storage in the future. The mobile business will be an emerging market."

When Craig first came to China almost 20 years ago, he did not anticipate the massive change that would sweep over the country in a relatively short period of time.

"China's market is becoming more and more important for us," Craig said. "Taking into the nation's huge development during the past decades, we've seen huge opportunities."

China is expected to generate 48.6 zettabytes (48.6 trillion gigabytes) of data in 2025, up from 7.6 ZB in 2018, while the number for the United States is estimated to be 30.6 ZB in 2025 (6.9 ZB in 2018), according to a recent study by the International Data Corp and data storage firm Seagate.

Craig highlighted the growing quality-consciousness among Chinese customers and the rising demand for high-quality products.

"Data storage used to be perceived as a very cost-intensive market. But, today, there is a much more balanced market where cost and quality have an equal weight. It's of great importance that we keep that balance because quality-conscious customers are starting to be more and more well-informed," Craig said.

Having worked in the hard drive industry for decades in roles like senior vice-president of quality for Western Digital, Craig has rich experience in customer support, including dealing with Chinese customers.

"Now I'm in China and I have to do things differently than what I would do with Western customers. My previous experience will help me to customize and make it go better in the China market," Craig said.

He has set for himself an ambitious goal - to double the current China market revenue before he moves on to his next role elsewhere in the future.

"I'm ready to correct mistakes, if any, and everything is a challenge for me," Craig said. "I am determined to go and do it. It won't be easy, but I can see a path. If everything lines up and we execute flawlessly, we can make it."

Efforts will be made to work on integration solutions with local customers in China and also solve problems much more rapidly, he said.

The company is moving the decision-making authority from its corporate headquarters to China to meet the local market's specific needs.

Craig has an open mind on this task. "I'm trying to make sure I understand the culture that I work with. And I don't want to impose my ways. So I taught my colleagues to be transparent and honest with each other, putting the issues on the table openly."

Western Digital's revenue for its second quarter ended December fell to $4.2 billion from $5.3 billion during the same period a year ago. Steve Milligan, CEO, said the company is taking measures to better align its cost and expense structure with near-term business conditions.

With the acquisition of flash storage solutions provider SanDisk in 2015, Western Digital has broadened its portfolio. It is well positioned for the China market, as it has products that can compete in every segment in the market.

The company's main focus in China will be to grow the go-to-market team, aiming to be No 1 in every segment that it participates.

"The competition is fierce," Craig said. "We have to deliver high-quality products at the right price and let the products speak for themselves to win the business. We will continue to seek feedback from people in the market for something they really need, and we are committed to making unique type of products for these unique segments, such as the booming gaming market."

Craig calls himself a big power user of data. With his smartphone, he controls the smart devices in his home, including the intelligent lights.