Cost efficiency has been a crucial factor for corporations and individuals to consider when leasing offices due to a continued rise in rental costs and an economic slowdown at home and abroad. As a result, a number of corporations have adopted and embraced the idea of mobile desks to reduce office rental expenses, particularly for employees who operate in sales and business development. The majority of companies still favor having an office in a major business district such as the Central Busine

GS Group, the nation’s eighth-largest conglomerate by assets, is expected to further tap the power business beyond its three core businesses of oil refinery, construction and retail. This shift was reflected by the launch of GS E&R, a new affiliate focusing on the power business, last week. GS E&R is the new corporate name of STX Energy, which GS Group took over last December with LG International from Japan’s Orix Corp. for about 600 billion won ($564 million).GS Group aggressively sought the d

Kim Young-mi, 43, a working mom who lives in Daechi-dong, Seoul, has a monthly routine of applying for free concert tickets given away by POSCO. “The monthly music concert, held at POSCO Center on the third Saturday of each month, has become the location for regular family outings,” Kim said.POSCO Center is the steelmaker’s Seoul headquarters located in the heart of southern Seoul’s Teheran Valley ― an area dubbed the Silicon Valley of Korea.The steelmaker said it first began the free concerts i

JEJUDO ISLAND ― The scenic island of Jejudo, located near the southwest end of the Korean Peninsula, is building itself a new reputation as a destination for high-tech companies. As a case in point, several construction projects by tech companies are underway in Jeju Science Park, a high-tech business complex located in Ara-dong, Jeju City. The state-run Jeju International City Development Center, or JDC, opened the park on 1.1 million square meters of land in 2011 as one of its six mega-develop

Korea Electric Power Corp., a company whose core business is powering up society by generating and distributing electricity, has long been pursuing corporate social responsibility programs that reflect its role as a power supplier. “Some companies consider CSR as a passing fad or another source of pressure, but it’s a critical factor for becoming a socially responsible firm for business to build key infrastructure for the development of a society,” said Korea Electric Power Corp. CEO Cho Hwan-ik

The management know-how of General Electric, a leading U.S. conglomerate, has long been considered a model for executives of Samsung Electronics. The tables have turned, as GE now studies the success of the South Korean tech giant in areas such as mobile devices and semiconductors. In 2013, Samsung Electronics became the world’s top IT and electronics company in terms of sales and profitability to beat previous leaders such as Apple and HP. Reflecting the changing tides, the GE management at its

Hanwha Group, a family-owned Korean conglomerate, has spurred its drive to market its fledgling engine-solar power business, starting with the 2014 World Economic Forum as the first international venue for promoting its goods. Hanwha, together with other firms, sponsored the annual meeting ― better known as the Davos forum in Korea. The forum is a global gathering of world business and government leaders who meet in Davos, Switzerland, to discuss pressing global agenda and build worldwide networ

Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction is poised to sign a 3 trillion ($2.8 billion) nuclear power deal in the U.K. next month involving the maintenance of outdated nuclear plants.The move is now prompting market watchers to issue an optimistic outlook for Korea’s power heavyweight. “When the deal is sealed, Doosan Heavy, which has failed to meet its annual order target for two years in a row in 2012 and 2013, will be able to make a turning point in recovery this year,” Choi Won-kyung, a stock a

The nation’s chief economic policymaker made another public apology on Friday to contain mounting public anger over his comments on the worst-ever data leak by three local credit cards.Before a breakfast meeting hosted by the Korea Management Association in Seoul on Friday, Finance Minister Hyun Oh-seok bowed from the waist and said, “I thought I should apologize (again) to the public rather than explain the intention behind my words, if the words hurt the heart of the public.”Public uproar has