Compassion, steel resolve keep Chae at top of FedEx

The Korean business world has traditionally been male-dominated, but even more so in the world of express shipping and logistics. Chae Eun-mi, country managing director for FedEx Korea, stands out not just because she is the first Korean female at the helm of a multinational express company in Korea, but also because of her management style.

Chae Eun-mi, country managing director for FedEx Korea, talks to The Korea Times about her experiences being the first Korean woman to helm a multinational express company in the country, at her office in downtown Seoul.

/ Korea Times photo
by Shim Hyun-chul

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia

The Korean business world has traditionally been male-dominated, but even more so in the world of express shipping and logistics. Chae Eun-mi, country managing director for FedEx Korea, stands out not just because she is the first Korean female at the helm of a multinational express company in Korea, but also because of her management style.

For Chae, compassion is the keyword.

``Passion means enthusiasm but if you prefix it with `com’ it means more caring. Compassion describes my management style ― caring, motivating, mentoring and encouraging my employees,’’ she told The Korea Times, at the FedEx Korea office in downtown Seoul.

But don’t mistake Chae’s compassionate side for softness, as she exudes a steely resolve that has allowed her to climb to the top of the corporate ladder despite many challenges along the way.

Chae, a graduate of Ewha Women’s University with a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in French education, had worked briefly for Korean Air and Flying Tigers, where at 28 she became the youngest division manager in the domestic airline industry. When Flying Tigers was acquired by FedEx, she served as a customer service manager in 1991.

``Back then, Korea was still very conservative. Korean customer service typically involved handling a lot of angry and irate customers. Most of them would ask, `can I talk to your boss?' so they transfer the call, and I say, 'this is the manager.' They say, `no, I mean, a male manager,’’ she recalled.

In 2000, Chae was promoted to a senior management position overseeing ground operations; and in 2004, she was appointed managing director of human resources for FedEx North Asia Pacific. Overseeing 3,000 employees in Japan, Guam, Korea and Taiwan proved to be a valuable learning experience, and prepared her for the task of leading the Korean operations of FedEx Express, the world’s largest express transportation company.

``All my predecessors were Americans and I am the first Korean country director. Communication was one area that I thought I could contribute more. I can communicate well to my employees in Korean and if there are some problems, I can summarize it and bring it up with headquarters,’’ Chae said.

While many Korean companies still shy away from appointing females in management positions, FedEx prides itself in providing equal job opportunities, regardless of gender, race or religion. In Asia Pacific alone, 40 percent of the managing directors are female.

``There are equal opportunities for promotions and employment. Like me, women can go to the top. Internally, I had no problems at all, but externally, there was still some customers and society, in general, who did not quite accept this (having a female managing director),’’ she said.

Since she is the only female country manager in the industry right now, Chae has received more than her fair share of attention. ``Initially, I thought it was stressful, but later decided to take it as an opportunity to address other concerns in the industry. I'm now enjoying it,’’ she said.

In recent years, FedEx has made significant strides in narrowing the gap with its rival DHL in the Korean market. In Korea, FedEx has 23 flights a week and has the latest cut-off time at 5 p.m. The company also boasts of the highest number of aircrafts and destinations in 220 countries. ``In terms of service, we are next to none,’’ Chae added.

Chae attributes this to the company’s core philosophy of ``People, Service, Profit.” ``If we take care of our employees, they will provide the best service; and our customers, if they get very good service compared to our competitors, they will keep using us, and eventually they will contribute to profits,’’ she said.

FedEx is committed to the Korean market, especially providing support for its Korean SME customers to help them compete in the international market.

``There are a lot more Korean SMEs than the chaebol, but their exports account for only around 30 percent. They need a lot of support for international trade knowledge. FedEx wants to be a good service partner by providing good logistics support,’’ Chae said.

FedEx is also giving back to Korea through various corporate social responsibility activities: building playgrounds for orphans and disabled children; economic training for high school students; and traffic safety education for children.

One of its major activities is the ``FedEx Cares’’ week, when employees voluntarily engage in CSR. This year’s theme is the environment.

``We have a lot of vehicles and aircrafts, which make a big carbon footprint. The environment is becoming such a big issue now. Every year, we publish a global citizenship report, which mentions that we will reduce the CO2 emissions by 30% by 2030. This is part of our efforts to achieve that objective,’’ Chae said.

Chae is perhaps the epitome of a successful career woman, having reached the top while raising a family. But she admitted juggling responsibilities at work and at home did not come easily. The 48-year-old executive counts herself lucky for having the support of her husband and other family members in doing household chores and raising her son.

Chae observed that women have to work harder than men in the workplace. Women are often excellent workers, but when they get married and have a family, their priorities are divided and their work suffers.

``I always tell them, when you are in the workplace, you should act professionally and concentrate on work. If you are professional, you will have equal opportunities to get promoted,’’ she said.