The Korea Times

GM seeks to break monopolistic hold in Korea

US auto giant aims to win market share by focusing on niche segment By Kim Jae-kyoung For foreign enterprises, South Korea is known as one of the toughest markets to break due to strong local players, the unique characteristics of consumers and the government’s strategic policies to protect local industries. Even if they successfully settle here, they face bigger challenges in winning market share. Against this backdrop, many global players, which compete effectively against local majors in other markets, either position themselves as a small but competitive local player or give up this market in the end. Wal-Mart is a case in point. The world’s No. 1 retail giant tried to make forays into the Korean market but it failed to gain a foothold here and eventually left the country empty-handed. Since then, many global companies have followed in the footsteps of Wal-Mart. General Motors (GM), which has managed to get out of bankruptcy protection, is gearing up to break this tradition. GM Korea, the Korean arm of the U.S. auto giant, has pledged to break the monopolistic hold

Jul 10, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

The Future of Telecommunications

As wireless earnings wane, carriers confront hard choices By The Boston Consulting Group Since deregulation in the 1980s and the emergence of the commercial Internet in the 1990s, the telecommunications industry has faced a rolling set of disruptions. The stock market has punished most large carriers while richly rewarding companies that compete with telcos. Since Google’s IPO in 2004, its market capitalization has risen to about $150 billion, while the value of most operators in developed markets has fallen. Carriers are not standing still. They are rapidly reducing costs and trying to streamline operations. These moves are necessary but not sufficient. The world is spinning too rapidly for restructuring as usual to keep working. Game-changing forces, such as cloud computing and “voice for free” services, are warping the industry. Cloud computing exposes operators to competition from major IT players, while free voice services, led by Google, Skype, and others, threaten operators’ main source of revenue. As demonstrated by the successes of Google, Apple and other

Jul 8, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

When pockets are empty of wallets

KT seeking to capitalize on BC Card's payment infrastructure By Yoon Ja-young What is the main thing a wallet and a mobile phone have in common? Both are carried by the owner all the time. One of the two however, may soon disappear and the survivor will be the mobile phone. There have already been some signs that the mobile phone will eventually absorb the wallet. Mobile credit cards, where the USIM (user services identity module) chip including credit card information is embedded in a cell phone, is attractive to users seeking convenience, and the surge of smart devices is accelerating the absorption. Convergence is going on between telecommunications and financial services, the two main pillars of the service industry. Using BC infrastructure The merging of mobile and financial services is enhancing convenience for users. Businesses, meanwhile, have their own reasons to pursue the two in one option. In the eyes of Pyo Hyun-myung, president of KT’s Mobile Business Group, the ongoing trend is a great opportunity for the country’s largest fixed-line company and sec

Jul 3, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

How to make your decision-making more efficient

By Anton Kapel A key finding from Towers Watson’s 2010 Global Enterprise Risk Management survey was that having a clear understanding of risk appetite is important to ERM (Enterprise Risk Management) success. More than half of respondents indicated they had a documented risk appetite statement in place, with these respondents being significantly more likely than others to be satisfied with the performance of their ERM capabilities. Reflecting the dynamic nature of the insurance industry and the risks faced, most of these companies planned to further develop their risk appetite statements over the following year. Amongst European insurers ― who are arguably the most advanced in the world in embedding risk management into their businesses as a consequence of the Solvency II initiative ― the most commonly identified area of ERM for development/improvement was risk appetite. Well over half of the respondents cited this as an area of focus for 2010-2011. This indicated that companies recognized that getting the risk appetite statement right is critical to ERM success. There i

Jul 1, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

Hungry for risks?

By Towers Watson The financial crisis and move toward market-based accounting both indicate a need for greater transparency about an organization’s risks. External stakeholders are increasingly demanding evidence of clear boundaries and guideposts that inform the nature and amount of risk an organization accepts. A “clear risk appetite statement” goes some way to meeting these demands by expressing the nature of the risks that an organization is willing to accept to achieve its strategic objectives and meet its obligations to stakeholders. Such a statement can provide assurance to stakeholders that the company has established clear boundaries for overall risk taking. Defined well, risk appetite (with the related tolerance and limits) forms the boundaries of a dynamic process that encompasses strategy, target setting and risk management. As a result, risk appetite is central to adopting and embedding enterprise risk management (ERM) in the business. A framework for managing risk in the business The aim of a risk appetite statement is to provide an overarching fra

Jul 1, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

How to retain loyal clients

By Bae Jung-hee Many companies aspire to capture maximum value from one customer by extending the customer lifecycle and activating purchase triggers at the right point in time. If successful, the company’s spending on CRM (Customer Relationship Management) generates lucrative return, in that the organization can build strong base of loyal customers. Those loyal customers not only contribute to the immediate revenue and profit, but also become enthusiastic advocates and evangelists of the company’s brands. Thus, “two birds” of marketing _ effectiveness and efficiency can be gained at the same time. However, when the customer retention efforts fail to create additional value, the spending becomes expensed, and the profit becomes deteriorated. So, why an organization fails to build loyal customer base through customer retention programs? The most commonly found pitfalls are lack of scientific approaches and tools such as; (1) Customer segmentation to distinguish high net worth and high influence customers from others; (2) Integrated customer touch point management base

Jun 20, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

Tailoring customer services

By Bae Jung-hee A customer-oriented company is constantly challenged to achieve the seemingly impossible mission; delivering customer service which supports corporate brand promise, meeting or exceeding customer’s ever-increasing expectations, managing operational, financial and reputational risks, while achieving ever more operational excellences. This requires an unrelenting focus on continuous improvement ― but managing changes can be an unwelcome distraction from achieving demanding customer service levels. Customer service executives will be bombarded with new ideas, hot topics and trends from the media, colleagues and consultants. Selecting what to focus will become very challenging and important. Deloitte Consulting presents customer lifecycle-based customer service approach to proactively manage important customer interactions with a customer-oriented company, at every step and through every stage of their lifecycles. This enables the company to align cost-to-serve with the potential value of the contact and the customer, differentiating services levels where approp

Jun 20, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

Develop a killer content for sustainability

By Kim Jae-kyoung, Chung Min-uck From a business perspective, the process of NANTA becoming a musical accepted and loved by the world offers important lessons for Korean conglomerates. Song Seung-hwan, CEO of PMC Production and producer of NANTA, cited three elements as key success factors in PMC’s attempt to produce a global cultural product: research and development (R&D), killer content, and a professional management system, musts for success in business. He stressed that in order to keep an entertainment business going, you have to have great content that can ensure a stable cash flow. At the same time, to develop such a product, you have to be active in R&D. He points out that producing a performance is a kind of art but also a business as it has to be profitable in order to keep the project going, especially in the case of Korea which has a small market. “Film producers make big bucks with one mega hit movie but can also go bankrupt with a bomb. Since we have a killer content like NANTA bringing in stable cash, our financial structure stays in good shape and we c

Jun 20, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

NANTA gives clue to globalization

By Kim Jae-kyoung, Chung Min-uck K-pop has swept through Asia and is now spreading in the West. A successful concert by SM Entertainment, “SM Town Live World Tour,” drew some 7,000 European fans at its first event in Paris and seems to prove that the magic is starting to work in Western markets too. It is too early to say the Korean music business has successfully entered the Western market since, as in many cases in the past, it could be just a passing fad. It still remains to be seen whether the interest will be sustainable. Over the past decades, many Korean artists and musicians have tried to make forays into Western markets but most of them ended without fruition due to various reasons, such as cultural differences and language barriers. While many have failed in their attempts to go abroad, there is only one Korean performance that has been accepted and loved by the world in a sustainable manner. It is NANTA, a non-verbal performance that integrates Korea’s traditional rhythm, Samulnori, with comedy and drama in a kitchen. It was the first show from Asia to hit New

Jun 20, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Economy

Companies urged to get faster, leaner

As business volatility continues to increase, global organizations are being forced to become even faster and leaner. Over the coming three years, they see their greatest opportunities coming from improving operational agility and optimizing cost competitiveness. Ernst & Young, as the world’s leading professional services firm, is sending this clear message through the 2011 edition of its annual business risks report “Turn risks and opportunities into results,” which explores both the top 10 risks and top 10 opportunities for global companies. On top of the business risks come challenges associated with regulation and compliance. Cost cutting and pricing pressure rose significantly from the previous year, though many respondents of the survey indicated steps taken to mitigate these risks have been reasonably effective. With regard to opportunities, improving execution of strategy across business functions was ranked first overall. Investing in processes, tools and training to achieve greater productivity came next, although individual sectors and countries varied widely in t

Jun 19, 2011By Kim Jae-kyoung

Kim Jae-kyoung

Read more

GM seeks to break monopolistic hold in Korea

The Future of Telecommunications

When pockets are empty of wallets

How to make your decision-making more efficient

Hungry for risks?

How to retain loyal clients

Tailoring customer services

Develop a killer content for sustainability

NANTA gives clue to globalization

Companies urged to get faster, leaner

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