Son Tae-seung's Digital Innovation Gamble... Establishing the 'Digital Innovation Committee'

On the 15th, Woori Financial Group held the group's 'Digital Vision' proclamation ceremony and the launch ceremony of the 'Digital Innovation Committee.' Sohn Tae-seung, Chairman of Woori Financial Group (fifth from the left in the back row), and Kwon Kwang-seok, President of Woori Bank (fourth from the left in the back row), are taking a commemorative photo with the Digital Innovation Committee members, composed of subsidiary CEOs, and the Blue Team. (Provided by Woori Financial Group)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyo-jin] Sohn Tae-seung, Chairman of Woori Financial Group, has made a bold move in digital innovation.

Woori Financial Group announced on the 17th that it newly declared the group's digital vision, "Digital for Better Life," on the 15th, and established a control tower called the "Digital Innovation Committee," jointly led by Chairman Sohn Tae-seung and Woori Bank President Kwon Kwang-seok.

At the digital vision declaration ceremony, Chairman Sohn emphasized, "The untact (contactless) trend caused by COVID-19 is not a temporary trend but has become the next normal," adding, "Now is the golden time for digital innovation."

Chairman Sohn presented "Digital First, Change Everything" as a new management slogan to prepare for the post-COVID-19 era, meaning that digital strategy will be the top priority within the group and that all the group's capabilities will be concentrated on digital.

Together with subsidiary CEOs, Chairman Sohn selected ten major digital innovation tasks, including hyper-personalized marketing plans using innovative digital technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and big data, and the establishment of a group mobile platform system. He also urged accelerating the group’s shared cloud, currently being built by the group’s IT subsidiary Woori FIS.

Chairman Sohn also announced plans to strengthen external cooperation through a bold open innovation strategy, such as directly acquiring fintech companies or actively pursuing digital collaboration with other industries. At the same time, recognizing that the group’s future depends on the competitiveness of its digital experts, he plans to enhance internal capabilities by dispatching employees to AI expert training programs linked with ICT companies.

Woori Financial plans to immediately launch the "Digital Innovation Committee," with Chairman Sohn as the chairman and President Kwon as the general manager of the "Digital Innovation Headquarters" under it. Additionally, they plan to establish a field-led innovation system responding to rapidly changing digital trends by involving a "Blue Team" composed of young and innovative employees from group companies.

A Woori Financial official said, "Going forward, Woori Financial will communicate interactively with customers centered on the mobile brand 'WON,' and create a financial group that brings happiness to customers' daily lives by applying digital innovation to finance."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.