NongHyup vows to record W1 tril. net profit in 2019

NongHyup Bank Chief Executive Lee Dae-hoon, seventh from right, poses for a photo with company executives at 2019 strategy meeting at the bank's headquarters in Seoul, Dec. 29. Courtesy of NongHyup Bank

By Lee Kyung-min

NongHyup Bank Chief Executive Lee Dae-hoon vowed to continue efforts to post 1 trillion won ($895 billion) in net profit in 2019, a priority to maintain competitiveness in the financial industry amid fierce competition, the bank said Monday.

The goal was discussed at a 2019 strategy meeting attended by over 90 executives at the bank headquarters in Seoul, Dec. 29.

“NongHyup Bank will post over 1 trillion won in annual profit through stable management. Respective departments will leap forward to play a key role in helping agricultural households earn 50 million won in annual income,” Lee said at the meeting.

Under what it dubbed “sustainable growth one plus management,” the executives discusses ways to establish a sustainable business model whereby the firm's long term goal will be attained by a stable source of revenue, coupled with a continued risk management and customer-oriented services.

Another key objective in pursuit is digitalization, a key initiative among domestic and global financial services firms that require tighter integration among various sectors especially in the IT tech sector and the traditional financial services.

In early December, the bank initiated around-the-clock operation of Robotics Process Automation (RPA), an automated program that manages household lending, corporate lending and credit card transactions.

The launch of the program is part of a digital transformation, whereby workers are spared the time and effort needed to carry out menial yet necessary tasks, in turn allowing them to focus more on high-value creative work.

A digital taskforce had been set up to maintain effective work distribution between 40 robots carrying out such repetitive work including a computerized program designed to ensure fast and accurate work free from human error.

The approval of each review will undergo a final check with relevant department officials.

Distinguished by active interaction and engagement between human resources and the digital resources, the program will further boost customer satisfaction by offering improved real-time services, the bank added.

Meanwhile, outside experts were invited to the session and shared ways to improve leadership through direct, honest and to-the-point communication to boost workers' productivity.

They were also encouraged to share ways to maintain individual self-motivation which will help translate into a group-wide synergy to strengthen capabilities as an organization.

Lee will retain the post as the bank head in 2019 following the approval of its holding company NongHyup Financial Group, Dec 17.