LG Electronics President Jo Ju-wan noted, "A crisis is also a term that combines danger and opportunity," and urged employees to focus on discovering growth opportunities during crises and navigate wisely.
LG Electronics announced that President Jo held a 'CEO Fun Talk' event on the 17th at the LG Twin Towers in Yeouido, Seoul, to reflect on the year and share the business strategy direction in response to changes in the global business environment for next year. The 'CEO Fun Talk' is a program created by Jo to facilitate honest communication with members since taking office; this year's theme was 'reinvent for sustainable growth, breakthrough for securing structural competitiveness.'
Jo first mentioned the expanding uncertainties in the global business environment due to internal and external policy changes and discussed the competitiveness of rapidly growing Chinese corporations. He stated, "The world economy is shifting from an era of geopolitics to a geo-economic era," adding that while there were previously rules and orders in the global market, the future standard will be "intense competition for survival in a world without rules and order."
In preparation for this, LG Electronics is collaborating with experts to develop various scenarios and is working on a 'playbook' to respond to them. LG Electronics explained that it is preparing strategies to establish plans and respond effectively by assembling various scenarios.
Having confirmed the chase of Chinese corporations through this year's overseas site management, Jo stated that in order to respond thoroughly, there are plans to secure structural competitiveness in terms of products, expenses, and operations, and to review the business more meticulously.
To solidify product leadership, LG Electronics plans to refine its innovation promotion system and strengthen QCD (quality, expense, delivery) competitiveness to enhance brand value. Additionally, regarding expense competitiveness, it aims to set challenging goals and pursue breakthroughs, while accelerating research and development in accordance with localization strategies. They are also exploring flexible response strategies, including reviewing collaborative business methods with external firms if necessary.
Finally, Jo emphasized that achieving qualitative growth and a healthy revenue structure requires a different level of consideration and rigorous execution compared to the past. He stated that strategies to enhance productivity and work efficiency should be closely examined and urged everyone to transcend habitual thinking to achieve excellent results.
In conclusion, Jo shared his reflections on management over the past three years, stating, "If we prepare thoroughly for scenarios considering the worst situations and respond calmly, while maintaining an attitude of preparing for the worst and aspiring to the best, we will surely overcome the crisis," emphasizing the stance of being 'a bold optimist.'
As this was the last 'CEO Fun Talk' of the year, LG Electronics reported that employee reactions were enthusiastic. Over 10,000 employees participated in real-time communication both online and offline, and a variety of opinions were shared in the online comment section.