Korea Rail Network Authority "Organizational Restructuring to Project Management Type Focused on Field Operations"

The Korea Rail Network Authority announced on the 16th that it has carried out an organizational restructuring in line with the transition to a field-centered project management system.

The restructuring was implemented to improve the previously dispersed management departments according to project stages and types of construction, and to introduce and apply a field-centered project management system.

The core of the restructuring is to resolve issues such as delays in work caused by the dispersed management departments, and to establish a structure where the project leader oversees tasks in various fields including civil engineering, track, architecture, electric power for electrification, signaling and communication, and land compensation, enabling quick grasp and handling of progress and budget execution status.

The restructuring also reflects the establishment of a dedicated organization for the Metropolitan Area Express Railway (GTX) project and the promotion of railway undergrounding. Additionally, to prepare for the continuous expansion of private investment projects and to strengthen the design competitiveness of the Rail Network Authority, the previously separated construction and system design departments are integrated into a single headquarters.

To prevent major accidents, the Safety Headquarters has been granted the authority to halt construction, and the existing research organization has been transformed into the Railway Innovation Research Institute to accelerate the development of practical research technologies responding to the 4th Industrial Revolution.

The personnel changes aligned with the restructuring also include new initiatives. The newly established project management organization classifies project leaders into director, department head, and deputy department head levels according to project scale and stage, staffed with convergent talents possessing project management capabilities. Among them, deputy department head-level project leaders are selected through a position recruitment process, followed by an in-depth interview with the president for final selection.

Lee Seong-hae, president of the Korea Rail Network Authority, said, “The transition to a field-centered project management system, along with the organizational restructuring and personnel appointments, will be a turning point for the Rail Network Authority to leap forward as a ‘second founding.’ To maintain railway sites that the public can use with confidence, all employees will unite their capabilities within the new organizational system.”