Major Companies "Must Actively Prepare for Management Uncertainty Next Year" (Comprehensive)

LG Chairman Koo Kwang-mo Orders 'Active Preparation' as Management Uncertainty Expected to Persist Next Year

Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group

[Asia Economy Reporter Changhwan Lee] LG Group anticipates that management uncertainties will continue next year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and has decided to strengthen the businesses of its core affiliates in electronics, chemicals, and telecommunications, along with enhancing management in areas such as quality and environment.

Samsung, Hyundai Kia Automotive Group, SK Group, and others are also preparing business strategies for next year that focus on management uncertainties.

According to LG Group on the 28th, Chairman Koo Kwang-mo recently held a video conference with the CEOs of major affiliates to finalize and implement key management tasks to be prioritized next year.

During the meeting, Chairman Koo emphasized that the gap in capabilities between companies that properly respond to uncertainties and crises and those that do not, as well as between companies that find opportunities and those that do not, will become clear going forward. He stressed the importance of overcoming the current crisis well. In particular, he ordered that quality, environment, and safety must be thoroughly ingrained in the organizational culture by being faithful to the basics and ensuring that customer value is not compromised.

Chairman Koo said, "Quality, environment, and safety should be approached with a sense of responsibility by each member, thinking of the products as those used by their own family and the workplace as where their own family works," and urged, "For this, I ask the executive team to take the lead."

He also decided to focus on growth based on quality rather than quantity. This means expanding sales that can increase business value by actively building sustainable customer bases and future growth assets such as data, not just quantitative growth or simple profitability-centered qualitative growth, but proper preparation for the future.

To this end, LG Group plans to reinforce core competencies and strengthen business execution capabilities. Under the leadership of affiliate presidents, business strategies will be executed agilely, while key functions such as research and development (R&D), merchandise planning (MD), and digital transformation (DX) will be reinforced with specialized personnel to support these efforts.

Not only LG Group but other major groups are also preparing for management uncertainties next year. Samsung discussed countermeasures to overcome significant internal and external management uncertainties such as COVID-19, the US-China trade dispute, and intensified semiconductor competition during a global strategy meeting held in mid-month. It is reported that Samsung set strategies to expand market share in key products, including increasing smartphone sales, maintaining a semiconductor super-gap, and launching innovative home appliances.

Hyundai Motor Group held a 'CEO Investor Day' online on the 10th and presented a goal to invest 60.1 trillion won by 2025 to achieve an 8% operating profit margin in the automotive sector and a global market share in the 5% range. In particular, the strategy is to overcome the crisis by significantly expanding sales of future vehicles such as electric and hydrogen cars starting next year.

SK Group plans to overcome the crisis by strengthening environmental, social, and governance (ESG) management. SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won said in his opening speech at the 'Shanghai Forum 2020' on the 18th, "Companies must achieve fundamental changes through ESG management that pursues eco-friendly businesses, social value, and trustworthy governance," adding, "As the ESG value measurement system advances, changes in corporate management strategies and behaviors will accelerate."

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