Samsung aiming to get more women into senior positions

Samsung’s recent management reshuffle was partly aimed at getting more women into senior roles within the company, according to Korean press reports.

As SmartCompany reported earlier this week, 16 staff were promoted to the global conglomerate’s executive committee, with eight coming from Samsung Electronics.

The most high-profile promotion was that of Seo-Hyun Lee, the daughter of Samsung chairman Kun-Hee Lee and granddaughter of founder Byung-Chull Lee, who was promoted to the status of divisional president.

Lee now oversees the conglomerate’s theme parks, textile plants and fashion label.

According to a report in the Korea Times, the promotion of Lee is part of a broader strategy to promote women to senior ranks of the conglomerate, which had gender discrimination as an official corporate recruitment policy as recently as 1992. 

Over recent years, the number of women in executive and senior executive roles at the conglomerate has increased from just eight in 2012 to 12 this year, and 15 next year.

However, the proportion of women in senior roles at the tech giant remains low, representing just 3% of all executives, although the company is aiming to lift this to 10% by the end of the decade.

“Those four new executives who joined Samsung right after the declaration of New Management initiatives by chairman Kun-hee Lee will lead Samsung’s corporate growth. Women are getting more powerful,” a Samsung spokesperson says.

“The one thing I can tell you is that Samsung is trying hard to find innovative ways to change its corporate culture. Considering Samsung’s steady progress toward women, the day that Samsung will see its first female CEO isn’t that far off.”