SK Vice Chairman Jang Donghyun: "After 35 Years, I Realized Corporate Management Is Ultimately About 'Survival'"

At the Korea Academy of Management's 'CEO Talk Concert'
"Employee happiness is the fundamental condition for corporate continuity"
SK's unique Sovereign AI as a survival strategy in the AI era

Jang Donghyun, Vice Chairman and CEO of SK Ecoplant, stated, "After 35 years of work, I have come to realize that the ultimate goal of corporate management is 'survival,'" and identified "the happiness of members" as a core condition for building a sustainable company. On December 8, at the Korea Academy of Management's "K-Management CEO Talk Concert" held at The Zone Eulji Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, Jang spoke as a guest speaker, sharing his leadership experience and discussing corporate strategies for industrial transformation, governance, and responding to changes in the global environment.

Jang Donghyun, Vice Chairman and CEO of SK Ecoplant, is explaining SK's management strategy at the Korea Academy of Management's "K-Management CEO Talk Concert" held at The John Eulji Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, at 7 p.m. on the 8th. Photo by Shim Sunga

Jang emphasized, "A company must continuously seek and implement the means and methods necessary for survival," adding, "At SK, the happiness of our members is considered the most fundamental condition for the company's continued existence and growth." He went on to say, "We established the Social Value Research Institute to quantitatively assess the value created by the company, and we are making efforts to ensure that the essential conditions for growth-such as education and compensation-are at least sufficiently met for our members."

He mentioned SK's ongoing "Can Meeting" initiative as a means of communication with members, stating, "If there are aspects of happiness that are not fully shared, we continue the conversation until we reach an understanding." Referring to the 2012 SK Hynix management crisis, he recalled how Chairman Chey Tae-won frequently visited the Icheon plant to engage directly with employees, saying, "At the time, Chairman Chey made efforts to win over the hearts of our members by having beer with around 2,000 employees, and managed to bring back talented individuals who had left the company for other opportunities. Thanks to this proactive communication, we were able to attract talent and experienced relatively fewer conflicts with the labor union."

Jang Donghyun, Vice Chairman and CEO of SK Ecoplant, is explaining SK's management strategy at the Korea Academy of Management's "K Management CEO Talk Concert" held at The Zone Eulji Tower in Jung-gu, Seoul, at 7 p.m. on the 8th. Photo by Seongah Shim

Regarding survival strategies in the age of artificial intelligence (AI), Jang explained, "SK can leverage data accumulated across various industries, including telecommunications, semiconductors, and petrochemicals, to create a differentiated 'sovereign AI.'"

Addressing recent controversy over remarks related to the separation of industrial and financial capital, he said, "The fab in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, may require an investment of up to 600 trillion won," adding, "If a company were to bear such a massive investment solely with its own resources, it would be burdened with enormous debt." He stressed, "We are not asking for a relaxation of the separation between industrial and financial capital, but rather calling on the government and the financial sector to consider realistic investment structures together."

Jang has served as President and CEO of SK Telecom in 2014, President and CEO of SK Inc. in 2016, Vice Chairman and CEO of SK Inc. in 2022, and is currently serving as Vice Chairman and CEO of SK Ecoplant.