Jang In-hwa Administration Officially Launches POSCO... Aiming for 'Material Nationalism' Beyond Steelmaking (Update)

Jang In-hwa, the new chairman of POSCO Holdings. Photo by POSCO Holdings

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POSCO Group has officially launched the new chairman system with Jang In-hwa as the new chairman. The plan is to foster the future of the steel business, the root of the group, while accelerating the expansion of new businesses in eco-friendly energy and materials sectors.

POSCO Holdings held its regular shareholders' meeting on the morning of the 21st and approved the agenda to appoint Jang In-hwa as an inside director. At the meeting, the appointments of outside directors Yoo Young-sook and Kwon Tae-gyun, who are under investigation for alleged overseas leisure trips during board meetings, the approval of the 2023 financial statements, partial amendments to the articles of incorporation, and approval of the director remuneration limit were also passed. Immediately after the shareholders' meeting, the board of directors will finalize Chairman Jang's inauguration.

Although there were some issues during the selection process for the next POSCO chairman, the leadership transition proceeded smoothly after Jang In-hwa was chosen as the final candidate. On the 14th, the National Pension Service, the largest shareholder of POSCO Holdings, decided to exercise its voting rights in favor of the inside director appointment. The National Pension Service holds a 6.38% stake in POSCO Holdings and significantly influences the votes of major institutional investors and minority shareholders. Global proxy advisory firms such as ISS and Glass Lewis also gathered opinions in favor.

Chairman Jang In-hwa, who assumed the position, is regarded as the right person to lead POSCO’s two pillars: steel and eco-friendly new businesses. It is reported that Chairman Jang recently told his predecessor, Chairman Choi Jeong-woo, that "POSCO will move forward from 'Jeolche Bogu' (steel for the nation) to 'Sojae Bogu' (materials for the nation)." POSCO was founded under the banner of Jeolche Bogu, meaning "making steel to repay the country," by the late Chairman Park Tae-joon. Recently, the group’s identity has been changing as it expands its secondary battery raw materials business, including lithium, nickel, and secondary battery materials such as anode and cathode materials. Chairman Jang’s appointment, as a steel expert, sends a message dispelling concerns that the secondary battery business might be scaled back.

Chairman Jang earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering from Seoul National University and a Ph.D. in Ocean Engineering from MIT in the United States. He joined the Pohang Institute of Industrial Science and Technology (RIST) in 1988. Since then, he has served as head of the RIST Structural Research Institute, head of POSCO’s New Business Office, head of Steel Marketing Solutions, head of Technology Investment Headquarters, head of the Technology Research Institute, and head of Steel Production Headquarters, establishing himself as a steel expert. In 2018, as head of POSCO’s steel division (CEO and president) when POSCO was operating as a business holding company, he built a smart factory system for steelworks using artificial intelligence (AI) new technologies. Thanks to this, the Pohang Steelworks was selected as a 'Lighthouse Factory' by the World Economic Forum, the first domestic company to receive this recognition. He strengthened the competitiveness of the group’s core steel business. In the new business sector, he promoted restructuring through selection and concentration, reorganizing around lithium and anode/cathode materials, contributing to establishing the group’s new business foundation centered on secondary battery materials and raw materials. He was also one of the final two candidates for chairman alongside former Chairman Choi Jeong-woo in the 2018 chairman election.

In labor-management relations, he has been evaluated within the company as demonstrating harmonious leadership by acting as the management representative, showing affinity and a field-oriented approach. He is regarded as a 'wise and benevolent leader' who embraces members with his kind and generous personality. Since the 2021 shareholders' meeting, he has served as an advisor to POSCO Holdings, maintaining a keen sense of management issues, which is also considered a strength.

The CEO Candidate Recommendation Committee (HuChuWi), which recommended Jang In-hwa as the final candidate for chairman of POSCO Holdings, evaluated him as "the optimal candidate who is meticulously prepared for future challenges and capable of bold execution, with a clear awareness of the group’s core businesses and areas for improvement, and able to realize a clear future vision."

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