Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has reached the fourth anniversary of his appointment as chairman, but this year, too, he is focusing on consolidating the company's fundamentals without holding any major events.
Although the semiconductor super-boom has produced astronomical results never before experienced, it appears that the company will exert its full efforts to maintain its ultra-competitive edge and other advantages, given that domestic and international uncertainties remain.
The chairman was appointed in October 2022, two years after the passing of his late father, former Chairman Lee Kun-hee, on October 25, 2020. As a result, late October at Samsung is a special period marked by the anniversary of the late chairman's death and the current chairman's appointment to the role.
However, Chairman Lee, the Samsung family, and management have quietly spent this time without drawing attention. The sixth-anniversary memorial service for the late chairman was held on Oct. 23 at the family cemetery in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, attended primarily by family members and key executives, and proceeded calmly.
On Oct. 28, a memorial concert will be held at the Samsung Electronics Human Resources Development Center in Yongin, as in previous years, but even this event is not expected to have a press release distributed.
In particular, there has never been an event commemorating Chairman Lee's appointment. In fact, no inauguration ceremony was ever held. Instead, he has focused on field management, such as inspecting overseas business sites in conjunction with the Chuseok holiday and other occasions.
The year after his appointment, during the 2023 Chuseok, he visited three Middle Eastern countries: Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Egypt. In 2024, he visited Samsung Electronics' home appliance factory in Poland. Last October, he toured the site of the APEC (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, and strengthened networks with global big tech executives, including NVIDIA Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang.
This year is no different. On Oct. 21, Lee visited the Middle East region, where tensions have risen due to the Iran war, to encourage employees at a UAE gas-fired power plant site.
Inside and outside the business community, many assessments view Chairman Lee's past four years as a period dedicated to restoring Samsung's fundamental competitiveness, despite the lack of flashy events.
When the company faced a crisis, recording an operating loss of over 14 trillion won in the semiconductor division alone in 2023, it swiftly appointed Vice Chairman Cheong Yong-hyun, a veteran who led the golden age of Samsung memory semiconductors (hereinafter referred to as "memory"), through an irregular personnel reshuffle in May 2024. Last year, the company reorganized its management strategy control tower by expanding the Business Support Task Force into the Business Support Office and appointing President Park Hak-gyu.
The report card for his four years in office is remarkable. Chairman Lee's management philosophy, which emphasizes the "essence of the business" over superficial appearances, has aligned with the era-defining trend of the AI (artificial intelligence) revolution, ushering in an unprecedented era of 100 trillion won in quarterly operating profit in the history of global technology companies.
The challenges are also formidable. As evidenced by the unprecedented plunge in stock prices that contrasts sharply with record-breaking performance, market anxiety over the profitability and expanded investment in the AI industry is emerging as uncertainty.
It is also a burden that the finished goods division has been pushed into an unprecedented state of deficit due to memory shortages and high inflation. The company must continuously elevate its overall business structure, encompassing non-semiconductor sectors, while repelling China's pursuit through rapid expansion of semiconductor production capacity and strengthening its technological lead.
The company must make a decisive move on what changes it will bring about in the upcoming year-end regular Samsung executive personnel reshuffle. As of now, no signs of formal radical measures, such as advancing the timing of the personnel changes, have been detected.
A business community official stated, "Lee is likely to continue his existing stance of seeking to be evaluated by performance and competence rather than showing interest in event-based initiatives or issuing external messages different from usual."
in INDUSTRY
