Kwon Oh-hyun, Samsung Electronics’ CEO, vice chairman, and the head of the company’s successful components business, has announced that he will be resigning. He will step down from the CEO role, as well as his positions on the board and as CEO of Samsung Display, starting March 2018.
In a letter to employees, Kwon said that “It is something I had been thinking long and hard about for quite some time. It has not been an easy decision, but I feel I can no longer put it off.”
In addition, he states that “As we are confronted with unprecedented crisis inside out, I believe that time has now come for the company start anew, with a new spirit and young leadership to better respond to challenges arising from the rapidly changing IT industry.”
Since the imprisonment of Lee Jae-yong, the de facto leader of the entire Samsung group, it’s been hard on Kwon. This seems to be the “unnamed crisis” that he’s referring to. That could also be the main trigger, along with several other things that let him to resign. Kwon’s resignation does lead us to believe that Lee’s scandal could have a major impact on the company’s culture and how it operates.
“There are no words to describe how proud I am that we built together one of the most valuable companies in the world. We have come a long way to create a company that truly changes how people live, work and communicate with each other,” Kwon’s letter continues. “But now the company needs a new leader more than ever and it is time for me to move to the next chapter of my life.”
