“Captain” Choi Joo Ho: “Vietnam will be Samsung’s R&D center”

In contrast to the common stereotype of a strict CEO, who has hundreds of thousands of employees at his disposal (note below: Samsung does not call their employees workers, but rather employees, including production and office workers), Samsung Vietnam’s President Choi Joo Ho greeted his guests with an enthusiastic and fluent “xin chao”. Following the firm handshake, he told us the most impressive thing for him over his past 9 months in Vietnam is the love of the people for President Ho Chi Minh. Despite his hectic schedule, he took time to visit the Mausoleum, and felt the President’s simplicity through the small stilt roofed house … and then our story began, but not from the boring numbers about turnover of the leading FDI enterprise in Vietnam as we envisaged…

The captain and his fortune with Vietnam

- It is my pleasure to be conducting your first official interview with a news agency in Vietnam. What was it that brought you to our country?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: When I was in fy fourth year at university, the 1988 Seoul Olympics took place. That was a major event that brought Korea closer to the world, and a time for me and many Korean youngers to learn about the spirit of globalization. And on my journey to search for a company that could help me realise my dreams, I have found Samsung.

Our company assesses employees based on their capabilities, not on their degrees, families or any other factors.

During my 30 years working for Samsung, I have become an expert in the human resources field. Prior to Vietnam, I had a chance to work in England for a short period. After, Samsung assigned me to be the President of Samsung Vietnam, and I was happy to come to your country.

- You have been in Vietnam for nine months. What has challenged you the most?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: Learning Vietnamese (laughs)!

At my first meeting with my employees, I promised them 3 things: Learn to love Vietnam’s culture, history; the Vietnamese people and the Vietnamese language.

I have successfully completed the first two, due to the pleasant impression the Vietnamese people and culture have on me. However, I am still trying to fulfill the third promise…

- During my conversations with Samsung’s employees, I noticed they call you “Captain” instead of President. Which one do you prefer?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: I appreciate it when people address me like that.

In a sporting competition, the captain is different from the leader or coach. I always want to be the captain and accompany my teammates, rather than a sideline coach. I want to go through the ups and downs with them. The motivation for me to be the captain started 4 years ago when I was still the HR Deputy Director back at the parent company. Back then, I created a startup-like environment, with the only differences being embracing teamwork and creative spirit. At that time, I told my employees that I wanted to be the captain, not the boss. From there, the nickname kind of stuck.

- What’s your opinion of the Vietnamese employees at Samsung?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: The Samsung employees are hard-working, intelligent and graceful people. They are quick to learn new technologies. They also follow the rules and regulations closely, which makes my time working with them pleasant.

I have worked in many Samsung facilities across the globe; however, I have never met such respectful and rule-oriented employees like in Vietnam. I can certainly say they are reliable people, and incomparable to other places.

Talent is the core

- For the past 10 years, Samsung has always been the highlight of FDI enterprises in Vietnam. Do you feel the pressure to take over this responsibility from your predecessor?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: Being the President of Samsung Vietnam Complex is an extremely important mission, therefore the pressure is certainly there. In terms of numbers, Samsung Vietnam’s export turnover accounted for 25% of Vietnam’s total. The number of employees that were directly recruited by Samsung ireached 140,000, plus the extra people from our first-tier suppliers who total 300,000.

However, being the President of Samsung Vietnam Complex, I always think about the company’s 10-year vision, along with Vietnam’s sustainable development, rather than feeling the pressure of my job.

- Samsung Vietnam’s first 10-year development period has just concluded. A new age will begin, but this is also a difficult time when the phone market is saturated and the world economy is unstable with trade wars lingering between countries. How will this affect Samsung Vietnam?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: Having been with Samsung for 30 years and witnessed all the ups and downs of the company, one thing is for certain that we never give up on our goals.

2019 has witnessed instability in the global economy, along with the saturation of the mobile market, however, Samsung Vietnam always strives to contribute to Vietnam’s economic development. Despite the harsh circumstances, but thanks to the unity of our employees, in 2018 Samsung Vietnam achieved over 60 billion USD in export turnover, and we predict the export remains stable in 2019 despite downward trend.

- Being an expert in human resources, and now being in your current position, how will you help Samsung Vietnam to grow?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: In our development history, Samsung has met with numerous challenges. However, we have prevailed thanks to the united spirit of our employees.

At Samsung, we often say that there is an inherent gene that can solve all the difficulties and crises. Other than this, I think that our culture and talent are the key factors that help us prevail.

Our president once said that a single talented individual can feed 100,000 people. This quote emphasizes the importance of nurturing talent. Samsung’s core value is “Human is number one”. Therefore, we always appreciate and endeavor to recruit talents for our company. In the past, we were able to create major achievements thanks to the unity of every single employee.

I always try to create a relaxed and comfortable working environment so our employees can be at their most productive.

- To nurture and develop human resources, the cultivation of a management mindset is important. How are these things executed at Samsung?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: The core of an enterprise is its people. At Samsung, we have a focused training program to develop the core values needed in a leader.

At Samsung Vietnam’s R&D center, every year, we send our employees over to the parent company to participate in the leadership program. We also conduct development direction programs and employees’ development programs. We have a regulation that leaders must assign 20% of the work to their subordinates without intrusion, while silently supervising. In the end, they see surprising results, much better than if they were involved in the process.

As for production employees, we also support them by conducting internal training courses, helping them to earn a college degree, from which they have a chance to be promoted…

Turning Vietnam into a R&D hub of Samsung

- What are Samsung Vietnam’s goals in the near future?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: We aim to create the most advanced products. Samsung will strive to overcome difficulties and adapt to changes in the market to retain our current number 1 position.

In Vietnam, to return the love afforded us by the Government and the people, Samsung is planning its next breakthrough: constructing an R&D center in the Western West Lake residence, contributing to Vietnam’s sustainable development. Other than the investments in the electronics manufacturing industry, Samsung is also enhancing cooperation with Vietnam’s core enterprises, such as Samsung SDS acquiring CMC shares…

- Please share with us more about this R&D center?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: In 2008, Samsung began the construction of our factory in Vietnam. Over the past 10 years, we’ve only focused on the manufacturing field, as these factories have become the corporation’s global manufacturing hubs.

In the next 10 years, along with manufacturing, we will also focus on the R&D field. Construction of the R&D hub in Western West Lake is expected to start in early 2020 and be completed by 2022. The number of employees working at this R&D center will increase from the current 2,200 to 3,000.

We will develop the necessary high-quality human resources to develop new technologies such as 5G, AI and Big Data, as well as investing in infrastructure. We expect this center to contribute to the general development of Vietnam’s IT sector and the economy.

- To become a “hub”, human resources are a key factor. How do you think about the Vietnamese engineers working at SVMC?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: I can affirm that the level of Vietnamese engineers is on par with other Samsung R&D centers across the world, such as South Korea and India.

For example, every single engineer at Samsung must possess a certificate at a certain level, and all the Vietnamese engineers have achieved that high level.

Despite only opening 7 years ago, SVMC has garnered attention from the parent company and has been assigned core projects, including the smartphone J series and A series. There are times that SVMC engineers fully manage and direct cooperation between other R&D centers around the world.

- What will Samsung Vietnam do to attract talented people in this field?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: You have asked a very important question. It takes quality human resources to fully develop a R&D center.

Currently, Samsung Vietnam is executing the Samsung Talent program, in cooperation with 9 Vietnamese universities. Every year, we would give scholarships to 120 excellent students (including an internship opportunity). We will also organize algorithm courses for students.

Following their graduation, these students can come to work at Samsung Vietnam’s R&D center with attractive renumeration and working environment, fostering capacity and development potential. This is Samsung Vietnam’s core development motivation. Other than that, the Global Mobility program is also being conducted, as Vietnam’s elite R&D personnel will be assigned to work at Samsung’s R&D center in Korea for 6 months to 1 year to garner global experience and enhance their own development.

Other than that, we are also conducting a demo program at the R&D center called “Job market”, so our employees can select the most suitable positions for their passions and skills.

- Other than R&D, will Samsung continue to develop new factories in Vietnam?

Mr. Choi Joo Ho: For the past 10 years, Samsung has focused on developing complete products such as mobile phones, home appliances and producing core components such as cameras, displays and batteries.

We have successfully disbursed 94% of the total 17.3 billion USD of registered capital to the Vietnamese government. Therefore, in the near future, we will continue to stabilize the established system, enhancing our global competitiveness through productivity and quality.

However, we also need to upgrade our technologies and machinery to adapt to new procedures. Therefore, despite not constructing a giant factory, we will continue to invest in new production lines. For example, we have constructed a 5G network production line at the Bac Ninh factory and registered an extra 120 million USD in investment capital to manufacture lenses – an important component for mobile phones at Samsung Electro-Mechanics Vietnam, and this production line is expected to come into operation in November.

- Thank you very much!