[Future Car Talent War] ① Hyundai Motor Revises Research Staff Wage System... Competition to Secure SW Talent Intensifies

Hyundai Motor to Revise Research Staff Wage System
Aiming to Secure Top Global Software Developers
Worldwide Auto Industry Intensifies Competition for Software Talent

"Developers who only do basic coding are everywhere. Truly skilled developers who majored in computer science properly choose their preferred large companies after graduation. Now Hyundai Motor Company also has to compete with large corporations offering billion-won annual salaries to secure developers."

Hyundai Motor Group is aggressively recruiting software (SW) talent. This is because the proportion of software in vehicle development has become absolutely significant following the announcement of plans to convert all vehicle models to SDVs (software-defined vehicles) by 2025.

Last month, Hyundai Motor announced a large-scale recruitment for experienced R&D positions, hiring in the triple digits. Hyundai also conducted triple-digit R&D experienced hires in March and August last year. The recruitment fields focused on software development such as connected car services and car cloud platform development.

A Hyundai Motor official said, "About ten years ago, most new R&D hires were from mechanical engineering, but now the fields of study have diversified to software, data, electronics, materials, chemistry, robotics, and more," adding, "The scope of talent Hyundai Motor Group is looking for has changed."

Hyundai Motor Changes Research Position Performance System to Attract Top Talent

Recently, Hyundai Motor has started revising the wage system for research positions as the competition to secure software talent heats up across the industry. According to our comprehensive reporting, the union at Hyundai Motor’s Namyang Research Center is conducting a survey on the pros and cons of the seniority-based pay system. As opinions on the seniority system are gathered, there is talk that a full transition to a performance-based annual salary system for research positions might be under consideration. Hyundai Motor is expected to announce a finalized wage system reform plan for research positions soon.

The wage system reform based on job roles and performance aligns with the labor reform direction of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. Performance-based wage system reforms have also become a trend in the global automotive industry for sustainable growth. In 2021, Toyota abolished the seniority-based promotion system for all employees. Toyota’s performance-centered innovation led to securing top talent and motivating individuals. As a result, Toyota solidified its position as the world’s number one automobile market leader for three consecutive years.

Global Automotive Industry’s All-Out Effort to Secure Software Talent

Not only Hyundai Motor Group but also the global automotive industry is focusing on securing software development personnel. This is because future vehicles such as autonomous driving and connected cars are software technology-intensive products. If the first phase of future vehicle development was switching engines from internal combustion to electric, the second phase is shifting the driving entity from humans to systems.

Hyundai Motor Group has set a goal to convert all vehicle models to SDVs by 2025. It plans to invest 18 trillion won in software enhancement by 2030. Hyundai Motor Group is developing its own connected car operating system (OS) called 'ccOS.' The autonomous driving division is overseen by President Song Chang-hyun, formerly of Naver. The plan is to leverage Korea’s excellent IT development talent and technology to lead the advanced autonomous vehicle market.

Toyota is also transforming into a software company. Toyota is independently developing the next-generation vehicle OS 'Arene.' It has sequentially acquired IT companies with advanced autonomous driving technology to secure high-level engineering talent. Since last year, Toyota has been filling over 40% of new hires with software specialists, aiming to increase its developers to 18,000.

Volkswagen Group established the software subsidiary 'CARIAD' in 2020. CARIAD is responsible for developing Volkswagen Group’s vehicle OS 'VW.OS' and autonomous driving technologies. Currently, about 5,000 software engineers work there. Audi, a Volkswagen Group company, has announced plans to recruit up to 2,000 software personnel by 2025 to develop future vehicles.

Ford is increasing software-related personnel even while implementing workforce reductions worldwide. Ford has expanded its software programmers from about 300 in 2016 to around 4,000. GM’s subsidiary Cruise oversees the autonomous driving business. Last year, GM hired an additional 500 engineers for Cruise, increasing its workforce by about 20%.