INTERVIEW Olympus seeks to be needed brand
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Olympus Korea CEO Naoki Okada speaks during an interview at his office in Seocho-dong, Seoul, Tuesday. / Courtesy of Olympus Korea
By Yoon Sung-won
For an enterprise, returning part of the profit it has gained to the local community is considered a socially responsible activity. But unfortunately, not all companies fulfill such responsibilities.
Olympus Korea opened a center for medical training and education in Songdo, Incheon, on Oct. 12 by investing 37 billion won ($33.23 million). It is the largest medical training facility ever established by a foreign company in Korea.
Olympus Korea CEO Naoki Okada stressed it was natural for the company to make the investment and set up the facility to support Korea in training doctors with endoscopic and laparoscopic skills as one of the largest medical equipment providers here.
“In Korea, especially at major hospitals such as Hyundai Asan Hospital, Samsung Medical Center and Seoul National University Hospital, laparoscopic techniques are increasingly being adopted by doctors,” Okada said during an interview with The Korea Times in Seoul, Tuesday.
“With the rapidly aging population, the demand for laparoscopic procedures to treat cancer patients will further expand here. But doctors need training for the new skills. We established the training center to meet such public needs. We believe it is our responsibility as a manufacturer of the medical devices they use.”
Olympus is generating more than 70 percent of its sales from the medical equipment business on the back of its global dominance in the gastrointestinal endoscopic devices sector. Still, the move to invest 37 billion won in establishing the training center came as a bold decision considering Olympus Korea posted about 170 billion won in sales and 10 billion won in operating profit last year.
The new facility, called “Olympus Korea Medical Training & Education Center” (K-TEC), was established under an agreement between the company and the Incheon Free Economic Zone in May 2015.
Located in the new industrial cluster in Songdo, the four-story training center has various facilities including medical training rooms with surgical equipment as well as a product showroom where Olympus’ latest medical equipment is showcased.
“We established a solid brand as the sole provider of both endoscopic image devices and energy devices for actual surgery. Our advanced optical technologies have realized 3D and high-resolution 4K imaging for laparoscopic procedures,” he said. “But more important, we seek to be recognized as a trusted and needed brand in Korea.”
Through K-TEC, Olympus Korea plans to cooperate with Korea’s medical academic institutions to provide them with endoscopic and laparoscopic techniques as well as facilities necessary for educating medical professionals. It also signed an agreement with the Korean Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, the Korean Urological Association and the Korean Surgical Society for developing medical device education programs.
Olympus Korea has a five-person team dedicated to corporate social responsibility activities in Korea. The team is pushing for diverse projects not just in the medical sector but also in cultural circles. Under cooperation with the Seoul Foundation for Arts and Culture, the company has sponsored talented artists to produce creative works.
Okada has led Olympus Korea for two years. In the meantime, the CEO said he has been trying to blend the core values of global Olympus as well as individual ideas of local employees.
“As a global enterprise running businesses all around the globe, Olympus has cherished the value of diversity in each local subsidiary while promoting open communication between employees,” he said. “But at the same time, we seek to maintain honesty to keep promises with our customers as well as professionalism to meet diverse demands of the market.”