Samsung holds first strategic meeting without heir

Samsung Electronics on Monday embarked on two-day biannual meetings to set global strategies for the first time in the absence of its heir apparent arrested in a presidential bribery scandal.

Since it is also the first time for the electronic titan to hold the strategic meetings after Samsung Group was disbanded in March, attention was focused on how each division of the tech giant came up with strategies in a competition to become a major business division representing South Korea’s largest brand.

The tech titan holds the meetings every June and December, attended by more than 100 executives around the world. 

Samsung Electronics’ Device Solutions Division, Consumer Electronics Division and IT & Mobile  Communications Division respectively held their meetings presided over by each division head -- Kwon Oh-hyun, vice chairman and DS division head, Yoon Boo-keun, president and CE division head and Shin Jong-kyun, president and IM division head.

The DS division in charge of producing chips is currently the largest business unit of Samsung Electronics, which posted 6.3 trillion won in operating profit in the first quarter of this year. The company’s entire Q1 operating profit was 9.9 trillion won.

Major agendas at the strategic meeting of the chip-making division include supply strategies for the company’s fourth-generation 64-layer V NAND Flash chips.

Samsung aims to solidify its leadership in the memory chip market differentiating with global competitors by supplying the latest high-speed, large-storage memory chips during the continued super cycle of the chip industry.

The company is set to announce an official launch of its newly built semiconductor plant in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province.

The IM division’s top agenda is said to be the upcoming launch of the next flagship smartphone Galaxy Note 8, which is set to be unveiled in late August in New York.

The global smartphone market is suffering flat demand growth, and Samsung’s archrival Apple is also planning to introduce a new iPhone series in the latter half of the year.

Samsung officials dismissed rumors that the ongoing meetings are to seek measures to fill the void of its de facto chief Lee Jae-yong who is arrested on charges of bribing former President Park Geun-hye.

Industrial sources said much of the latest global strategic meetings would be allocated to discussing measures in the longer-than-expected absence of Lee.

“The June meetings are typically held to review the sales performances for the first six months and discuss plans for the next six months,” said a senior manager for public relations at Samsung Electronics. “Although the meetings are held separately, each division will share conclusions at the end.”

By Song Su-hyun (song@heraldcorp.com)