Lee Turns Crisis Into Opportunity
By Kim Jae-won
Staff Reporter
Woori employees say that Lee's leadership has played a key role in the group weathering the economic crisis and getting back on track.
"Lee spearheaded the cost reduction drive by returning 10 percent of his salary in October 2008, when the global financial crisis hit the nation due to the collapse of Lehmann Brothers," Jeong Joon-beom, team head of public relations at Woori, said.
In October 2008, executives and employees of the group and its subsidiaries followed his move by reducing their paychecks by 10 percent. The group also consolidated overlapping branches. Four months later, they returned an additional 10 percent of their salaries.
During the crisis, the 66-year-old Korea University graduate put the group on an emergency footing, which is one of the key reasons why Woori bounced back from the crisis faster than its peers.
"Lee launched an emergency risk management system, which focused on reducing costs. Due to such efforts, our group's profitability and financial soundness have improved significantly," Jeong added.
The chief officer also suggested "OneDo" as the new motto for the group this year. "One" means harmony, best and cooperation, while "Do" represents creativeness, volunteerism and practice.
"We need to change the DNA of Woori to leap forward as a leading global firm in the financial industry. To achieve this goal, every single employee should contribute to such efforts," Lee said.
It is not first time that Lee's leadership changed a whole organization. His leadership as a CEO shone further after he transformed the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra, once regarded as a poorly-managed group, into a model of management reform during his three-year term from 2005 to 2008.