"Leave Your Seat for 30 Minutes, Submit a Reason"…What’s Happening at Hyundai Card [1mm Financial Talk]

First in Card Industry: 30-Minute Absence Reporting System Introduced
"Hurts Creativity" VS "Rather Proud"

Hyundai Card has introduced a system that requires employees to submit a reason if they leave their workstation for more than 30 minutes during work hours. This move is interpreted as an effort to create a somewhat more tense work atmosphere. However, considering Hyundai Card’s culture of flexible thinking and innovation, the reaction inside and outside the company has been one of surprise.

According to industry sources on the 1st, Hyundai Card recently implemented and is operating this work system. While employees do not need to report directly to their superiors or obtain approval, they must select and enter a reason from a list categorized into meetings, business trips, non-PC tasks, personal errands, etc., whenever they leave their seat for more than 30 minutes. Despite continuing remote work and flexible working hours since COVID-19, the company has started to manage employee work attitudes more strictly. Although several card companies have adopted remote work or flexible commuting systems, Hyundai Card is the only one in the industry to have introduced such a 'absence reporting' system.

This approach is seen as somewhat out of step with Hyundai Card’s corporate culture, which pursues innovation by being the first to introduce various new initiatives, including the first domestic adoption of Apple Pay.

Previously, Hyundai Card had already introduced flexible working hours like 'Flex Time' and autonomous lunch breaks called 'Flex Lunch' as early as 2017, before COVID-19, similar to IT companies. In May last year, it became the first financial institution in Korea to implement permanent remote work. At that time, Hyundai Card explained, "This system entrusts the entire process of deciding when and where to work to the employees’ autonomy, helping them generate diverse ideas in a freer environment." Jung Tae-young, the Vice Chairman leading Hyundai Card, has always been regarded as an 'icon of innovation' in the financial industry. He has emphasized communication and innovation by criticizing hierarchical seniority and authoritarian spatial arrangements.

A representative from another card company said, "It is surprising that Hyundai Card, of all companies, has introduced a system that seems more typical of conservative financial firms. Leaving one’s seat for more than 20 minutes happens occasionally in general companies, but requiring detailed reasons for every absence seems questionable in terms of whether it will increase work efficiency or inspire creative ideas."

Hyundai Card, on the other hand, emphasized that the system actually makes working more convenient. Employees no longer need to verbally inform their superiors face-to-face when leaving their seat; they just enter the reason, so no one asks further, allowing them to avoid feeling pressured. A Hyundai Card official explained, "It functions like a kiosk where employees can work at their preferred time and place without having to speak face-to-face. Although it felt awkward at first, after implementation, both superiors and subordinates find it convenient as there is no need to ask or explain every time."