[News Focus] Samsung prepares organizational change focused on R&D convergence

Samsung Electronics is preparing to announce follow-up organizational reshuffles of executives and employees possibly Tuesday with a focus on collaborative research and development across different divisions in order to accelerate synergy, according to company officials Friday.

After promoting 221 executives -- 27 executive vice presidents, 60 senior vice presidents, 118 vice presidents and one fellow and 15 masters -- Thursday, the South Korean tech titan is continuing to work on the formation of an organizational structure that will reflect the company’s plan for next year.

“Considering the belated promotions and reshuffles, any changes in the organizational structure should be announced by Tuesday at the latest,” said a Samsung official.

An unprecedentedly large number of promoted executives in the R&D units may suggest that Samsung is making a vast change towards enhancing the research power and converging development capabilities of different technologies, according to industry watchers.

In an earlier appointment of key executives on Oct. 31, Samsung hinted at a launch of a new research center, tentatively dubbed “Samsung Research,” which is going to incorporate the Digital Media & Communications R&D Center under the Consumer Electronics Division with Software Center under the IT & Mobile Communications Division.

The new research organization is expected to oversee integrated development of leading technologies for smartphones, TV sets and mobile devices and development of needed software, including artificial intelligence algorithms and Internet of Things platform and services.

The consumer electronics division is expected to be slimmed down to a lighter organization by combining the home appliance unit and visual display unit under a common vision for the smart home.

The IT & mobile division is likely to hand over its software development unit to the new Samsung Research Institute, and provide greater support for software development in order to empower its flagship AI program Bixby, and expand appliance of the program to more Samsung products. 

“Samsung officials are aware of such upcoming organizational changes,” an insider said. “Rather than which division we belong to, what service or technology we will be developing will be the matter of pride (for Samsung employees) from now on.”

Samsung’s personnel and organizational reshuffles gained have traction since Kwon Oh-hyun, who used to represent the tech giant’s most lucrative chipset unit, stepped down from the vice chairman position last month and was promoted to chairman of Samsung Advanced Institute of Technology, demanding a change in leadership for future businesses.

Samsung carried out the largest scale of promotions since 2014 after refraining from such changes due to Chairman Lee Kun-hee’s hospitalization and Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong’s alleged bribery of former President Park Geun-hye. 

Considering the dire situation, the company held the 30th memorial ceremony for the late Samsung founder Lee Byung-chull with the smallest number of participants at Hoam Art Museum in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, on Friday.

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