(Yicai Global) June 10 -- The son of Skyworth Group’s founder will face the challenge of taking the business forward after being named the next chairman of the leading Chinese television maker, following years of grooming for the role.

Lin Jin, the son of Huang Hongsheng, will replace Lai Weide as chairman next month, the Shenzhen-based company said in a statement this week. Lai, 64, who has been in post since 2016, is set to retire.

The succession was inevitable as Lin’s father had been training him for the job and he is 38, a good age to take over, according to a senior professional in the home appliance industry. His much-anticipated elevation will be good for Skyworth, the person added.

Skyworth has been trying to diversify from TVs to smart home appliances and photovoltaics but the transition has not been very successful as there is still room for improvement in terms of staff, incentives, and emerging business layout, the source said.

Lin’s challenge will be to think outside the box on product innovation, while maintaining the group’s original advantages, since appliance makers reliant on a single product have a hard time succeeding, the person added. 

Lin has signed a three-year contract with Skyworth. He will receive an annual director's fee of CNY500,000 (USD74,801) and a salary of up to CNY3 million (USD450,000) a year, including performance-based compensation, according to the company.

Lin joined Skyworth in 2011. He is co-founder and chairman of Skyworth's smart TV subsidiary Coocaa Network Technology which is preparing to go public. Before that, he worked in the firm's research and development division and its sales department.

He previously also worked for chipmakers MediaTek and Ruiyu Semiconductor and has an applied science degree from the University of Toronto.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi