Samsung Electronics, 'Best Partner Growth Company' for 11 Consecutive Years

Excellent Evaluation of Comprehensive Win-Win Cooperation Activities with Partners
Support for Non-Partner SMEs through Smart Factory Construction Support Project

At the '2022 1st Excellent Technology Presentation' held in June at the Suwon Convention Center, Gyeonggi-do, an official is explaining Samsung Electronics' open patents. / Source=Samsung Electronics

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Pyeonghwa] Samsung Electronics announced on the 21st that it received the highest grade for 11 consecutive years for the first time among domestic companies in the '2021 Win-Win Growth Index Evaluation' selected by the Win-Win Growth Committee. The Win-Win Growth Index is a quantified indicator that evaluates the level of win-win growth of companies annually to promote win-win growth between large and small and medium-sized enterprises. It is divided into five grades: highest, excellent, good, average, and poor. Last year, it was selected as an 'Honorary Best Company,' awarded to companies that have received the highest grade for three consecutive years.

Samsung Electronics pointed out that the reason for receiving a favorable evaluation was due to various win-win cooperation activities carried out under the core values of 'pursuing coexistence and integrity management.' It explained that it expanded the horizon of win-win cooperation by supporting not only first-tier partners but also second- and third-tier partners and non-trading small and medium-sized enterprises.

From Cash Payment for Partner Transactions to Providing Patents to SMEs

Samsung Electronics led the improvement of the payment culture for transaction payments among domestic companies by being the first domestic company to pay partner transaction payments in cash in 2005. Since 2010, it has established a 1.4 trillion KRW win-win fund to provide low-interest loans for partners' technology development and facility investment funds. Since 2010, it has also paid 500 billion KRW in incentives to semiconductor partners to prevent safety accidents and improve quality.

Samsung Electronics also supports optimizing factory operations and manufacturing and quality innovation by discovering and improving partner issues such as productivity decline or defects through the Win-Win Cooperation Academy 'Consulting Center,' composed of experts in manufacturing, quality, development, and purchasing. It helps improve inefficiencies and enhance cost competitiveness through cost reduction by transferring Samsung Electronics' accumulated cost innovation cases to partners. Over the past nine years, it has provided consulting free of charge to about 1,600 partner companies.

Samsung Electronics has been holding technology briefings since 2009 to support discovering future growth engines for partners by introducing technologies owned by domestic universities and research institutes. It has also opened patents owned by Samsung Electronics to non-trading small and medium-sized enterprises, transferring about 1,900 cases free of charge until August this year. Since 2013, it has contributed funds to the 'Joint Investment-Type Technology Development Project' with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, supporting about 20 billion KRW. This year, it plans to additionally establish a new fund of 30 billion KRW to support securing next-generation technologies and environment, social, and governance (ESG) technologies over five years.

Samsung Electronics established the 'Win-Win Cooperation Academy' in 2013 to promote win-win growth with partners. The Win-Win Cooperation Academy includes the 'Consulting Center' supporting partner innovation, the 'Education Center' supporting courses in innovation, job skills, technology, and leadership, and the 'Youth Job Center' supporting partner companies struggling to secure talent recruitment. In addition, various educational programs equivalent to Samsung employees' training courses have been conducted for 160,000 partner employees, and support has been provided for recruiting over 4,500 talents. Especially, from the second half of this year, the previously separately executed consulting, education, and recruitment support activities have been integrated into a 'Customized Comprehensive Consulting for Partner Companies,' which is being piloted.

On the 2nd of this month, representatives and officials from small and medium-sized enterprises attending the '2022 Smart Factory Kickoff Event' held at Samsung Electronics Gwangju Campus are touring the Precision Mold Center. / Source=Samsung Electronics

Includes Support for Manufacturing Innovation and Youth Education-Focused Social Contribution Activities

Since 2015, Samsung Electronics has been supporting the establishment of customized smart factories to innovate manufacturing for underprivileged small and medium-sized enterprises. Since 2018, in cooperation with the Ministry of SMEs and Startups and the Korea Federation of SMEs, about 200 Samsung experts with decades of manufacturing and quality know-how have been deployed on-site. This provides comprehensive support for manufacturing site innovation, workforce training, and aftercare.

Samsung Electronics and the Ministry of SMEs and Startups have invested 10 billion KRW each annually until this year, totaling 100 billion KRW, with Samsung adding an additional 10 billion KRW. This is to support market development such as discovering domestic and overseas buyers, global promotion, and operating educational programs. Since 2020, to overcome the COVID-19 crisis, emergency support has been provided to small and medium-sized enterprises producing essential quarantine products such as masks, diagnostic kits, and low dead space (LDS) vaccine syringes to improve productivity and quality.

Additionally, under the CSR vision 'Together to the Future! Enabling People,' Samsung Electronics carries out social contribution activities focused on youth education and win-win activities. Youth education-focused activities include ▲Samsung Youth SW Academy ▲Samsung Dream Class ▲Samsung Junior SW Academy ▲Samsung Smart School. Furthermore, through win-win programs such as ▲Samsung Future Technology Development Project ▲Smart Factory ▲C-Lab Outside, Samsung continues activities to share its accumulated technology and innovation know-how with society.

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