Samsung Electronics Co Ltd has reached a point where it seems to be leveling off in its innovative impact on the technological gurus. The electronics frontrunner is striving to reinvent itself and create a fresh outlook without straying away from its original mentality, according to Reuters.
Despite Samsung’s recent growth and reestablished reputation, the company fears a burnout that will send the business down in flames. According to CNBC, chairman Lee Kun-hee strives to keep the company in a “state of perpetual shake-up” in order to prevent stagnation of leadership ideals.
“The company is in somewhat of a Catch-22 when it comes to changing its culture. It desperately needs to adopt a culture that fosters openness, creativity and innovation. But doing so would jeopardize its greatest existing cultural asset, its militaristic hierarchy, which enables it to operate at lightning speed to outpace the competition,” said Jay Subhash, former senior product manager, according to Reuters.
The balance between reinventing the business culture and keeping the leadership focus in line is a tricky equilibrium, but Samsung understands the urgency of this accomplishment. As smartphones are tied more and more to strict competition and are becoming more globalized, the potential drop in earnings is of serous concern.
Kun-hee is not accepting of the possibility for a business downturn, however. In his eyes, changes need to be made – taking no for an answer is not an option.
“In the long term, the company needs to become global and open. Giving employees more autonomy can lead to loss of control, but this will in the long run benefit the company by developing talent that can run the business from a global perspective,” said Chang Sea-jin, a business professor at Korea Advanced Institute of Science, according to Reuters.
