Open management makes Google strong
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Members of the Corea Image Communications Institute (CICI) pose during a Korea Culture Quotient (CQ) event at the residence of Singaporean Ambassador to Korea Yip Wei Kiat in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, Nov. 24. From left are CICI President Choi Jung-wha; Kiat; head of Chromecast and TV Partnership, Asia Pacific at Google Mickey Hyunyu Kim; Pinar Okcal, wife of the Turkish ambassador; Turkish Ambassador to Korea Arslan Hakan Okcal; and Kuwaiti Ambassador to Korea Jasem Albudaiwi. / Korea Times photo by Kim Jae-heun
By Kim Jae-heun
Mickey Hyunyu Kim, the head of Chromecast and TV Partnership, Asia Pacific at Google, praised the working environment at his Silicon Valley office during his hour-long speech at the Korea Culture Quotient event hosted by the Corea Image Communication Institute (CICI) at the residence in Seongbuk District, northern Seoul, of Singaporean Ambassador to Korea Yip Wei Kiat, Nov. 24.
Also a former official at Samsung Electronics, Kim considered one of the youngest high-ranked employees in Google’s Korean branch, has always aspired to play in the big leagues. Despite Samsung Electronics’ outstanding performance in the global mobile sector, Kim longed for the experience of Silicon Valley, Calif., the home of many global IT companies such as Facebook, Intel and Oracle.
“I wondered why so many successful companies in the field of IT were born in Silicon Valley,” said Kim. “There must be something special about the place.”
He decided to leave his position at the most powerful company in the country and left for the American IT firm. After acquiring an MBA in the United States, Kim joined Google in 2007, a multinational tech company that provides the world’s largest online portal and search engine.
The Google official picked the unique working culture as the driving force that brought about many revolutionary changes in the American company. Google is comparatively free from face time compared to Korean firms and the employees do not have to work in cubicles all the time. However, they have to take responsibility for their time management and they are evaluated twice a year on project results. The company gives two to three chances for stragglers, but there is no mercy for people who cannot meet the minimum expectations. Notifying people is important too; staff must update others on their achievements through e-mail. The news is shared with staff in relevant departments and sometimes with the CEO, who sends back congratulatory messages for encouragement.
Kim explained three more elements _ powerful managers and open management, respect for diversity and networking, which he said was absent in Korean offices. Most domestic companies, regardless of size, adopt an organization where the group stands on top of individuals.
“The ultimate decisions for big and small matters are made by one CEO and respect for diversity _ race, sex or religion _ is not thought so important in Korean companies,” Kim said. “Google managers are very powerful in that they make important decisions and obviously they will take responsibility for them. Management only helps managers to take the right direction.”
The Google official mentioned networking as the last element that Korean firms should adopt in their system. While others seek to be the life of the party and make new contacts, Koreans are wallflowers, feeling too shy to meet new colleagues.
Kim agreed that there are strengths within this organization such as fast decision-making and unity among the workers, but the previously-mentioned elements are key factors in the IT field where creativity should be pursued.