Listening to stakeholders becomes new norm

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Bank CEOs enhance communication with customers, employees

By Lee Kyung-min

Building a close rapport with key stakeholders is emerging as the new norm among CEOs at banks and other financial companies.

With the advent of the digital era calling for a new corporate culture, they are trying to reinvent their relations with customers and employees as well as shareholders through direct communication.

Shinhan Bank CEO Jin Ok-dong invited 300 valued customers in Seoul and the surrounding Gyeonggi Province to a hotel in Seoul for a breakfast meeting April 2.

The invitation extended in appreciation of their years of loyalty was the first official move taken by Jin who was inaugurated March 26.

Listening to the voices of customers is one of the key values Jin is placing top priority on to survive and continue to win customers' hearts and minds.

Thoughts exchanged at the meeting will be shared with customers nationwide this month during which he will visit major cities to deliver his thanks in person and listen to their concerns.

KEB Hana Bank CEO Ji Sung-kyoo, center, proposes a toast with young workers at a friendly get-together at the bank's headquarters in Seoul, April 1. Courtesy of KEB Hana Bank

KEB Hana Bank CEO Ji Sung-kyoo had an informal gathering with young workers at a bar, having beer and fried chicken.

The dinner menu ― largely associated with a chummy get-together among close group of friends to relax and have fun ― was the new CEO's choice to show his willingness to let his business philosophy known.

Rather than relying on the conventional strict, top-down chain of command, the highest and the most powerful figure in the company let himself be approachable by surrounding himself with employees many years his junior, most of whom would not “dare” to have a non-work-related conversation ― let alone a casual chat.

The approach is rather fresh given the financial industry is known to be one with the most conservative values.

It would have been easy for him to set a goal and order subordinates to simply follow them without question.

Listening and having a debate over the pros and cons not to mention dealing with workers' complaints is a process that requires a lot of time, energy and effort, especially from a management always pressed for time.

NH Investment and Securities CEO Jeong Young-chae has expressed a similar management approach.

At the recent shareholders meeting on Yeouido, March 27, he stressed the importance of process, rather than immediate results.

Financial services firms, especially securities business are judged by how much money they make. Every day, week, month, quarter, every half and every year.

By definition, they are to prioritize results rather than how they got there.

For a remark that brings a wildly fresh perspective to a conventional mindset, Jeong proved that he was a leader with value and vision, a quality needed by the top figure, and also illustrated by Ji and Jin.

Lower ranking workers look to the top for answers.

What they get as answers mostly determines what priorities they seek.

The future course of a company largely hinges on how leaders conduct themselves because the outcome is the aggregate result of hints taken by individual workers further down the chain of command.

Now the question remains as to whether they will follow through with it or was it just a one-off event where they put on a show.