Shin Yong-byeong, Chairman of Shinhan Financial Group, "Not Just a Simple Number One, but a True First-Class"

Financial Holding Companies' Management Strategy This Year ⑵ Shinhan Financial
"Solid Foundation, Swift Change" Announced as This Year's Management Slogan
"Era of Complexity" Raised as a Key Topic... Leadership 4th Term Core Keywords Presented ⑵

Shin Yong-byeong, Chairman of Shinhan Financial Group, is giving a lecture on the challenges facing the group, ways to address them, and the direction Shinhan should take at the '2021 Shinhan Management Forum' held on the 4th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kangwook Cho] "Build a solid foundation! Change swiftly! Let us move forward vigorously toward becoming a 'First-class (Ilryu) Shinhan.'"

Shin Yong-byeong, Chairman of Shinhan Financial Group, made this statement on the 4th while announcing this year's management slogan at the opening ceremony, the first event of the '2021 Shinhan Management Forum,' attended by the group's executives.

The chairman's goal is not merely to be 'number one' but to become truly 'first-class.' His philosophy is that "being number one focuses only on going faster than others, but 'first-class' means taking paths others have not taken," and "being number one is just a relative ranking, but first-class signifies absolute trust from customers and society."

◆ 2021 Management Slogan: 'Build a Solid Foundation! Change Swiftly!' = Among the management slogans presented by Chairman Shin this year, 'building a solid foundation' corresponds to 'Fundamental' and 'Resilience' in the group's mid-term strategic goal 'FRESH 2020s.' The plan is to establish a strong fundamental base and discover new growth engines through qualitative improvements in core businesses. This reflects a firm determination to fundamentally improve everything in the group under the unwavering principle of 'Customer First.' Furthermore, it aims to enhance early risk detection capabilities across the group amid uncertain management conditions, respond swiftly to crisis situations, and, based on strong resilience, demonstrate a willingness to take risks and actively pursue challenges.

Chairman Shin urged the rapid promotion of the 'Eco-system' and 'Sustainability' for change. He emphasized that building an eco-system depends on digital transformation and highlighted the need for openness that transcends industry boundaries. Additionally, sustainability was given significance as practicing 'warm finance' that embodies Shinhan's sincerity.

The foundation for building a solid base and driving swift change is 'Human-talent.' Chairman Shin emphasized that ultimately people and culture are crucial and pledged unwavering support for nurturing digital and convergence talents.

◆ Four Powers to Overcome the Age of Complexity, 'Gyemohyeongse (計謨形勢)' = At the forum, Chairman Shin described the current environment?marked by changes in politics, society, economy, and consumption patterns due to COVID-19, increased volatility in financial markets, intensified trade conflicts among major powers, and the emergence of the MZ generation?as the 'Age of Complexity.' He raised the question of how to survive and grow amid increasing confusion and chaos. He stated, "Leaders must understand both internal and external complexities and provide clear leadership," and presented four key keywords to overcome complexity, called 'Gyemohyeongse (計謨形勢).'

The first step to overcoming complexity, according to Chairman Shin, is 'Clear Strategic Design.' He said, "Strategy should not be complicated; it must be easy to understand and clearly indicate direction." He also emphasized that leaders should clearly indicate the direction of innovation based on accumulated strengths to establish a clear strategy.

The second is 'Skillful Tactical Planning.' He explained that while strategy determines the broad direction an organization should take, tactics find the most efficient methods to proceed. To this end, companies must accurately identify current and future revenue sources and select optimal ways to enhance both customer experiential and meaningful value, boldly entering new markets according to established standards and principles.

The third is 'Building a Winning Organization.' For this, leaders must share their thoughts and align organizational goals as one. He stressed the importance of decisively delegating authority to frontline employees and enabling the organization to respond swiftly under autonomous judgment at the field level.

Lastly, he emphasized that 'Swift Execution' is the most important aspect of all strategies. To increase organizational speed, it is essential to build consensus among members that speed equals competitiveness and to make efforts to remove obstacles that hinder this.

Chairman Shin, reaffirming his determination with the CEOs of group companies, said, "The secret to success in 2021 is to focus on the present and start today," and urged, "From today, the start of the new year's business, let us run hard together to create Shinhan's brilliant future."

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