Financial firms simplify titles to break hierarchy

A businesswoman shows a blank business card in this file photo. / gettyimagesbank

By Park Jae-hyuk

When an EBS-owned outspoken penguin character Pengsoo addressed the state-run educational broadcaster's CEO Kim Myung-joong without mentioning his title, Korean adults were enthusiastic about the character's “unthinkable behavior.”

Under the nation's rigid corporate hierarchy, it is barely conceivable for most Koreans to address their bosses without mentioning their titles.

This has been no exception in the conservative financial industry.

Commercial banks and credit card issuers, however, have recently begun moving to break their hierarchical structures to allow their employees a sense of freedom to become more creative.

Hyundai Card, for example, is considering streamlining its five-level ranking system to three.

“After a half year of study and revision, I began surveying employees to listen to their opinions on streamlining the five-level ranking system to three,” Hyundai Card Vice Chairman and CEO Chung Tae-young wrote on Facebook.

Shinhan Bank's digital strategy division also adopted a two-level ranking system.

“Our digital strategy division is using the two-level ranking system to enhance efficiency and promote creative thinking,” a Shinhan Bank spokesman said.

But still, the nation's financial giants have been slower than fintech firms and foreign companies in reforming their corporate hierarchies.

Kakao Bank employees address Yun Ho-young and Lee Yong-woo, co-CEOs of the internet-only bank, as “Daniel” and “Yan,” respectively.

Employees of Viva Republica, the Toss mobile money transfer app operator which submitted a bid to open the country's third internet-only bank, call each other without addressing titles.

Viva Republica CEO Lee Seung-gun is also called “Seung-gun-nim” in the company.

“Nim,” which is often translated into “mister” or “sir,” is a Korean honorific title above “ssi,” but is still used as a commonplace honorific title for guests, customers, clients and unfamiliar individuals.

The same honorific title has been used at Citibank Korea since September 2014, considering the foreign bank's employees vary in their nationalities.

Citibank Korea CEO Park Jin-hei, who has led the U.S. commercial bank's Korean subsidiary since 2014, is called “Park Jin-hei-nim,” instead of “haengjang-nim.” Haengjang means bank president in Korean.

Among Korean commercial banks, employees of Shinhan Bank's smart contact department, a customer service center which is currently named the digital contact department, addressed each other by English names when Cho Kyoung-sun, the bank's executive vice president, led the department.

However, the bank's other departments did not adopt the change.