Major personnel changes at Samsung Electronics

On November 27th, Samsung Electronics announced routine personnel changes for the 2025 class of presidents, totaling 9 individuals, with 2 being promoted to president and 7 experiencing role changes.

Samsung, in crisis, has implemented a reorganization of its presidency, focusing on the memory semiconductor business.

Moving forward, the memory business will be directly managed by the CEO and vice chairman, without a separate president position.

In the regular 2025 president reshuffle, Samsung Electronics appointed Vice Chairman and head of the Device Solutions (DS) division, Jeon Young-hyun, as CEO, aiming to revive the semiconductor business.

The Device Experiences (DX) division remains under the leadership of CEO and Vice Chairman Jong-hee Han, with Vice Chairman and head of the Business Support Task Force (TF) Hyun-ho Jeong retaining his position, solidifying the vice chairman system.

The personnel changes include: transforming the memory division into a system directly under the CEO’s jurisdiction, replacing the foundry (contract manufacturing) business leader, and appointing an experienced and mature CEO to manage new businesses. To overcome uncertain internal and external business environments and achieve new leaps, a personnel reform has been announced, including the allocation and mining of tasks.

Additionally, to strengthen semiconductor technology competitiveness and renew the organizational atmosphere, we have established a president-level CTO position in the foundry division and a president-level management strategy position directly under the DS division, empowering senior presidents with authority. Challenges such as brand and consumer experience innovation have been introduced to improve the company. The company announced a focus on enhancing its medium and long-term value.

Among them, Jinman Han, Vice President of the DS Americas (DSA) division responsible for the semiconductor business, has been appointed as the president of the foundry business division. Jinman Han has served as the head of DRAM and flash memory design teams, SSD development teams, and the Strategic Marketing Office, and was appointed as the head of the Americas region at the end of 2022, leading the semiconductor business at the forefront. With his combination of technical expertise and business acumen, along with extensive experience dealing with global customers, it is expected that he will enhance the competitiveness of the foundry business through process technology innovation and strengthening networks with key customers.

Kim Yong-gwan, a member of the Business Support Special Task Force (TF) and vice president, has been promoted to the position of President of Management Strategy for the DS division. Kim Yong-gwan, after working in semiconductor planning and finance, and in the Strategy Group and Management Diagnostics Group of the Future Strategy Office, moved to the Business Support TF in May, responsible for semiconductor support, and is expected to play a leading role in the early recovery. It is reported that Samsung has indicated an intention to enhance semiconductor competitiveness through this forward deployment.

Vice Chairman Jeon Young-hyun, who is also the head of the DS division, serves as Samsung Electronics’ CEO and head of the DS division, memory business division, and SAIT President.

The CEO of Samsung Electronics has traditionally been a vice chairman. In particular, the DS division is generally led by executives such as Chang Kyu Lee and Ki Nam Kim.

Under the leadership of former DS division head Chang Kyu Lee, he unusually held a president-level position, but in May of this year, Vice Chairman Jeon Young-hyun took over the organization again and elevated the status of the president.

Samsung Electronics is expected to shift from a single CEO system led by the DX division head (Vice Chairman) Han Jong-hee to a dual CEO system, including the former vice chairman, thereby enhancing the competitiveness of the semiconductor business. Samsung Electronics explained that the reason for restoring the two-person system of CEO and vice chairman is “to establish a business responsibility system for each division.”

Nam Seok-woo, CEO of the Global Manufacturing and Infrastructure Headquarters of the DS division, has been transferred to the position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of the foundry division.

It is noteworthy that a direct system with the CEO also serving as the head of the business division has been established.

Most importantly, as Samsung Electronics’ memory division has ceded leadership in the high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and other artificial intelligence (AI) memory markets to competitors, a seasoned senior leader seems to have issued a special command to directly lead the division.

Jong-hee Han, Vice Chairman and head of the DX division and Home Appliances (HA) division, will also serve as the chair of the newly established Quality Innovation Committee.

This is seen as a determination to fundamentally prevent quality disputes over Samsung Electronics’ products, in light of recent quality controversies surrounding the Galaxy Buds.

Lee Young-hee, head of the Global Marketing Office and Global Brand Center of the DX division, has been appointed as the chair of the Brand Strategy Committee.

Wonjin Lee has been appointed as the head of the Global Marketing Office of the DX division. Wonjin Lee, a Google advertising and services business expert consultant, resigned from his position as the head of the service business team in the Mobile Experience (MX) division at the end of last year and will return to the management frontline after a year, serving as the head of the global marketing department, overseeing marketing, branding, and online business.

Koh Han-seung, CEO of Samsung Bioepis, has been transferred to the position of head of Samsung Electronics’ Future Business Planning division.

Park Hak-gyu, head of the Management Support Office of the DX division, has been transferred to the position of president, responsible for Samsung Electronics’ business support TF.

Samsung Electronics usually appoints presidents in early December, but this year, like last year, it was advanced by about a week.Previously, Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong stated in his final remarks at the second trial on November 25th, “I am well aware that there has been a lot of concern about the future of Samsung recently, and the reality we are facing now is more difficult than ever, but this is a difficult situation.

I will definitely overcome this and take a step forward.” He continued, “Please give us the opportunity to overcome this difficult situation and become a Samsung loved by the people.”

Therefore, following the personnel changes of the chairman, there is a high possibility of executive personnel and organizational restructuring in the near future.

Due to unfavorable internal and external situations, the scale of executive promotions is expected to be reduced compared to previous years.Samsung Electronics plans to complete personnel and organizational restructuring and hold a global strategy meeting in mid-December to discuss next year’s business plans.