[Power K-Women] "If There Is Something to Solve, Think That It Is You"

Jo Yeon-ok Park Systems Executive Director

"There is no gender in work, everyone is an owner"

World's No.1 Atomic Force Microscope Company
Twice Failed KOSDAQ Listing, Took 12 Years
CEO Salary Cut by 50%, United for Success

Seven Years in Finance, New Challenge
Introduced Birth and School Enrollment Bonuses
Company Grows When Employees Stay Long

Park Systems Park Systems, the world’s number one company in the field of atomic force microscopy within nano-measurement equipment, has an executive who acts like a 'storekeeper' for HR matters. This is Executive Director Jo Yeon-ok. Although Jo is not an owner, she works like one. She practices the saying from the Confucian classic I Ching, '궁즉변 변즉통 통즉구' (When in a palace, change; when changed, communicate; when communicated, seek). Even as a financial expert, she studies welfare systems and semiconductor technology when necessary. At Park Systems headquarters, there are 350 people like Executive Director Jo. One in three are women (113 people). There is no distinction between men and women in work, and there are no mere members in the company. Everyone is an owner.

Why are they so tightly united? They bonded unknowingly through two setbacks and a 12-year challenge to list on KOSDAQ. In the two years before listing, they fell into a deficit swamp, making the KOSDAQ listing requirement of 'net income of 1 billion KRW' unattainable. Salaries were cut by 20% for employees, 40% for department heads, and 50% for the CEO. The CEO promised compensation once management normalized. They did not give up. Everyone became owners and tackled the challenge together. Miraculously, they turned a profit in 2015, and the government lowered the technical evaluation threshold for KOSDAQ pre-listing companies. Eight months after the government announcement, they entered KOSDAQ and compensated employees for the salary cuts as promised. The stock options granted to employees finally bore fruit.

Executive Director Jo studied accounting. However, she led the introduction of company policies such as childbirth congratulatory money, school entrance congratulatory money, selective welfare benefits, flexible working hours, and stock grants for long-term employees. Why did a financial expert devote herself to improving employee welfare like an HR manager? Although the average tenure at the company is currently four years due to increased headcount after listing, many employees endured the difficult times before the KOSDAQ listing and stayed until the company became the world’s number one. Since these employees’ children have grown enough to enter elementary, middle, high school, and university during their long tenure, welfare policies have been improved with employees’ families in mind. Executive Director Jo believes that this helps retain excellent employees longer, allowing the company to grow together.

- You have 7 years of experience in finance and 21 years in manufacturing. What was your biggest challenge before and after joining the company?

▲ Moving from finance to manufacturing was a big challenge. Unlike finance, manufacturing has a longer growth and turnover cycle. Everything took longer than in finance, making adaptation difficult. The biggest challenge was listing on KOSDAQ. When I joined in 2003, I thought it would take 3 to 5 years, but it took 12 years.

- There must have been many variables during the listing process, such as revenue growth, securities market conditions, and government policies.

▲ We faced two setbacks and tried three times. One of the KOSDAQ listing requirements in 2005 was a return on equity (ROE) of 5%. When I joined in 2003, annual sales were around 3 to 4 billion KRW. Even then, since atomic force microscopes cost about 100 million KRW each and had a high gross profit margin, we thought selling 100 units would be enough, but it was not easy. We achieved 10 billion KRW in annual sales in 2006 but struggled to generate sufficient profit. Operating costs for the US subsidiary established for sales were higher than expected. Meanwhile, listing regulations changed. Besides ROE, a net income requirement of 1 billion KRW was added. We estimated that sales needed to reach 20 billion KRW to meet the conditions. This marked the start of the second attempt. Then the most difficult third attempt began.

- Wasn’t it just about reaching 20 billion KRW in annual sales? Did you face obstacles other than sales?

▲ After overcoming the 2008 global financial crisis, we reached 20 billion KRW in annual sales around 2012, but the business conditions of our largest customer in the hard disk sector worsened. Delivery performance plummeted, and we quickly turned to a deficit. We recorded losses in 2013 and 2014. Investors were in turmoil. Some investment firms discussed countermeasures, while others threatened lawsuits. We even faced outright verbal abuse.

- How did you overcome the fall into deficit? It must have been difficult to prevent employee turnover in a small company.

▲ Cost reduction was inevitable. In 2014, salaries were cut by 20% for employees, 40% for department heads, and 50% for the CEO. We told employees they could come to work only four days a week. This was a difficult decision for a manufacturing company. We promised to compensate for the salary cuts once management normalized. We endured by reducing the deficit in 2014, and in April 2015, an opportunity came. The government expanded the KOSDAQ pre-listing technical evaluation track, previously exclusive to bio companies, to include more companies. Even if a company was in deficit, it was given a chance if its technology was excellent. One month later, the board declared, 'We will list within this year,' and we listed on December 17, 2015. All 100 employees united tightly to respond to various evaluations and reviews. It felt like the pages of history were turning rapidly. As promised, when the situation improved in 2015, we compensated employees for the 2014 salary cuts. Employees experienced salary cuts, company listing, and salary compensation together. Above all, they experienced that the company did not make empty promises but truly compensated them.

Jo Yeon-ok, Executive Director of Park Systems, is showing a bio-research atomic microscope in the company demo room within Gwanggyo Technovalley, Suwon City. Photo by Heo Young-han

- Were there values or philosophies you insisted on during the company’s turning points?

▲ I joined in 2003. Many companies collapsed due to accounting fraud amid the 'dot-com bubble' frenzy. Founder CEO Park Sang-il’s emphasis on 'slow but steady sustainable growth' felt refreshing. After listing, he aimed to satisfy long-term employees, early investors, partners, and investment institutions. Employees were 'sincere about technology.' They took technology seriously and purely. I liked this CEO and employees. As a financial expert, not a science and technology specialist, I wanted to fill the company’s gaps.

- You seem to care deeply about employees. Are there welfare policies you personally initiated?

▲ There are several, but I think the childbirth congratulatory money and school entrance congratulatory money policies are meaningful. When we introduced the childbirth congratulatory money policy in 2007, many employees were unmarried. When they married and had children, we gave 1 million KRW per child as childbirth support and 250,000 to 300,000 KRW monthly for daycare support. Over the listing process, many employees who stayed long had children who entered and graduated from school. This year, we introduced a school entrance congratulatory money policy. We provide support for elementary, middle, high school, and university entrance. Elementary and middle school entrance grants are tens of thousands of KRW, high school is 1 million KRW, and university is 2 million KRW. We also operate a selective welfare benefit system where employees can choose desired products from an online shopping mall using welfare points.

- You said you cherish customers as much as employees. What is the secret to supplying atomic force microscopes to global semiconductor manufacturers like Samsung Electronics and research institutions such as Stanford University and MIT?

▲ Unlike the Dutch semiconductor lithography equipment (EUV) company ASML, which attracts customers as the 'super second' (super Eul) in atomic force microscopy, we do not boast. Nanometer-scale technology research institutions want advanced measurement equipment because it affects yield (good product ratio). Our secret is 'honesty.' We do not rashly claim 'we can do it' just to increase orders when we cannot meet customer demands. We clearly state what is possible and develop technology according to customer requirements. We are the world’s number one atomic force microscope company. We are confident that if we cannot do it, competitors cannot either. Another secret is 'confidentiality.' Regardless of memory or foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing), each customer demands different technology types and levels. Without customer information, we cannot supply or manufacture equipment. We never disclose confidentiality during customized responses for each customer.

- You are a financial expert deeply involved in HR and welfare policies. It seems it’s not just because you love the company and employees.

▲ That’s right. Using a popular term these days, I became a CFO (Chief Financial Officer) who also acts like a CHO (Chief Human Resources Officer) by focusing on company value-up and personal value-up. I am in charge of IR (Investor Relations). But I considered employee welfare to increase the company’s intrinsic value, not just market capitalization. Thinking about how to keep excellent employees happy for a long time led me, a financial expert, to take an interest in HR tasks. People often say future market cap will improve, so they borrow now, like using a credit card to buy luxury goods without cash and promising to pay tomorrow. We must increase the value of the present moment. If I increase my value, my worth and the company’s market cap rise. Trying to increase value, I ended up saying things a CHO might say, even though I am a CFO.

Jo Yeon-ok, Executive Director of Park Systems, is being interviewed by Asia Economy at the company office in Gwanggyo Techno Valley, Suwon City. Photo by Heo Young-han

- You have protected the company for 21 years as a female employee and executive.

▲ Women make up about 30% of the company’s employees. They work in various fields such as R&D, manufacturing, and administration. Regardless of gender, Park Systems people are sincere about their work. Most of us are not owners in appearance. We work as members of an organization in society. But when working, we become owners of our tasks. We study what is necessary for work. Employees themselves know best what to study. When you work sincerely, people around you want to help. When you reach a certain position, you can help others too. Park Systems people are accustomed to this virtuous cycle. Even if it’s not their assigned task, if they judge it necessary for their development, they do it.

- Career breaks for women are an unavoidable challenge regardless of rank or industry.

▲ My children are a university freshman and a high school freshman. I couldn’t even take three months of maternity leave. Parental leave was unimaginable. But I think my children grew up well. The solution is expanding flexible work arrangements. In our company, both men and women use flexible work and parental leave systems. Most modern people are knowledge workers. There are many IT tools for collaboration, so employees with childcare responsibilities can use flexible work to focus on work while raising children. This applies to both men and women. Raising children is very important. But spending so much time on childcare that it breaks a career does not guarantee children grow well. Children can learn a lot by watching hardworking parents.

- What message would you like to give to female juniors and colleagues?

▲ I want to tell them to have a kind of pride that 'If it’s easy, there’s no reason for me to take it on.' Think that if there is a problem to solve, it is you who should solve it. When you develop a mission to solve a task, you study on your own and ask for help from those around you. When you receive help, you also have opportunities to help others. If the work is necessary for your development, you will inevitably give and receive help. Giving and receiving help makes it easier to build capabilities. Another point I want to emphasize is that you must develop proactively. It’s not enough to vaguely want to learn from a senior or get a degree. That’s passive. If you stay still, no one will help you. It’s hard to develop passively. When you work on tasks you must solve, you will hear about government policies you had little interest in and seek related people. Giving and receiving help creates a 'story.' I hope they develop a habit of leading and completing tasks without giving up.

Executive Director Jo Yeon-ok is

a financial expert with 7 years in finance and 21 years in manufacturing. She started her career in 1991 in the funds department of Hanwha Comprehensive Finance, handling call transactions. She passed the US CPA exam in 2003 and joined the manufacturing company Park Systems the same year. After 12 years of challenges, she transformed the company into a KOSDAQ-listed firm in 2015. Nine years after listing, the company’s market capitalization increased about 20-fold, placing it in the '1 trillion KRW club.' She completed an Executive MBA (EMBA) at KAIST while growing with the company. She continues to work at the company because she likes the CEO who pursues 'slow but steady sustainable growth' and the 500 employees who are 'sincere about technology and their work.'