Samsung Strategic Management

Samsung 's history dates to 1938 when "Samsung General Stores" opened in North Kyung-sang Province, Korea. The company conducted its trade business until the 1950s when it became a producer of basic commodities such as sugar and wool. In 1958, Samsung be-came involved in the insurance industry by incorporating a local fire & marine insurance company.

During the 1960s, Samsung became one of the first Korean companies to actively expand its overseas trade. The group consolidated its manufacturing base by adding paper and fertilizer businesses. Samsung continued with expansion into the life insurance business, strengthened its retail operations and then moved into the communications sector, successfully establishing a newspaper and a broadcasting

The group began contributing to foreign economies by building facilities in the US, the UK and Portugal. Samsung also invested considerable resources into fostering Korea’s rich heritage by supporting a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.

The final decade of the 20th century saw the evolution of Samsung 's new approach to management. Chairman Kun-Hee Lee 's insightful vision and the introduction of the "New Management" in 1993 acknowledged the need to transform management philosophy in or-der to keep up with a rapidly changing global economy. More recently in 2000, a "Digital Management" approach was adopted to ensure that Samsung maintains a leading position as the Information Age continues to transform global business and culture.

Since Kun-Hee Lee 's appointment as Chairman in 1987, the group 's total sales increased by 7.2 times to US$98.7 billion and net income by 25 times to US$4.5 billion in 2001. Total assets of the group grew 12.6 times to US$124.3

Becoming Vice Chairman of the Samsung Group in 1978 and Chairman in 1987, Lee presented a blueprint for Samsung 's global success in the 21st century with his "New Management" declaration in 1993. In 1998, Lee took over the helm of Samsung Electronics Co. as Chairman.

Lee 's "New Management" encompasses intellectual capital, organizational creativity, tech-nological innovation and employee empowerment as the key strategies for Samsung 's profitable growth in an era of unbridled global competition. Lee was named among Asia 's 50 most influential people by Asiaweek for six consecutive years and was also named one of the world 's most influential people by the French weekly Le Nouvel Observateur. His broad perspective on business stems in part from his participation in many organizations such as the Korea-Japan Economic Committee and the Federation of Korean