Chairman Chey Tae-won: "CEOs Must Become Business Designers... Integration and Synergy Creation Needed"

'Tokyo Forum 2024' to be held at the University of Tokyo, Japan, on the 22nd-23rd

Choi Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group, argued that in an era of global uncertainty, we must respond with 'design thinking.' He explained that CEOs, who need to allocate limited resources efficiently to optimize their businesses, must also become 'designers.'

On the 22nd, at the opening speech of the 'Tokyo Forum 2024' held at the University of Tokyo in Japan, Chairman Choi stated, "Most people think design is different from business, but fundamentally, both share the characteristic of creating new businesses with given resources."

Choi Tae-won, Chairman of SK Group, is delivering the opening speech at the "Tokyo Forum 2024" held at the University of Tokyo in Japan on the 22nd. (Photo by SK Supex Council)

The Tokyo Forum has been jointly hosted annually since 2019 by the Choi Jong-hyun Academic Foundation and the University of Tokyo. This year, it was held over two days on the 22nd and 23rd under the theme 'Shape the Future, Design for Tomorrow.' The Choi Jong-hyun Academic Foundation was launched in 2018 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the late Choi Jong-hyun, former SK Chairman. It serves as a global knowledge exchange platform that analyzes geopolitical risks and challenges and opportunities brought by scientific and technological innovation, seeking response strategies.

Chairman Choi emphasized the importance of design thinking in business by saying, "CEOs must become designers who efficiently allocate limited resources to meet customer demands and create value through optimal business operations." This means that business leaders need to design their businesses while adapting to rapid social changes.

He also introduced how SK Group has utilized design thinking in shaping its history and overall business portfolio. He explained, "SK Group has a history of over 70 years, expanding its business from textiles to petroleum and telecommunications, and innovating its portfolio with semiconductors and AI. This design thinking has been the foundation for allocating limited resources and embracing new challenges."

He continued, "We have always faced significant challenges in adding and accommodating new business areas, but we have successfully managed businesses and created synergies. Design thinking is necessary even in complex businesses that integrate all business areas to generate synergy, such as AI businesses."

In particular, he stressed that to encourage people to participate in solving social issues like carbon emission reduction and social inequality from a societal perspective, goodwill alone is insufficient, and design thinking that provides incentives is necessary. Chairman Choi emphasized, "A newer and more creative approach is needed to build a sustainable future."

Finally, Chairman Choi said, "This forum will also feature a Youth session where university students from Korea and Japan will share new ideas, and expectations are high. We will always listen to the ideas of the younger generation who face new challenges and overcome the impossible."

On the same day, Chairman Choi also participated as a panelist in the 'Business Leader Session,' proposing the establishment of various incentive systems that can normalize companies pursuing not only economic value creation but also social value to solve social problems simultaneously.

At Tokyo Forum 2024, experts from academia and the economy, including Chairman Choi, Kim Yoo-seok, CEO of the Choi Jong-hyun Academic Foundation and Korea Higher Education Foundation, Fujii Teruo, President of the University of Tokyo, Sato Yasuhiro, Special Advisor of Mizuho Financial Group, and Daniel Novak, Director of the World Economic Forum, participated as speakers and panelists to diagnose various social issues and seek sustainable solutions.