Samsung Electronics’ Year-End Reshuffle Won’t Be Drastic, Sources Say

Samsung Electronics is scheduled to hold its annual reshuffle meeting this week, but big changes are unlikely to happen.

Industry sources told South Korean news outlet The Investor on Monday that Samsung will likely maintain a status quo during its year-end top brass reshuffle later this week.

Samsung is said to be hesitant to implement drastic changes amid growing concerns over the slowing smartphone and chipset markets. The company’s semiconductor body might have enjoyed robust sales this year, but its smartphone unit suffered sluggish sales in the face of U.S. and Chinese rivals.

Kim Ki-nam, Koh Dong-jin and Kim Hyun-seok were respectively assigned to lead Samsung’s semiconductor, smartphone and home appliance divisions last year. From the looks of things, the three CEOs will likely keep their positions until 2019.

“The tech giant will likely take a conservative approach in the upcoming reshuffle with few changes to the current executive trio in the face of anticipated risks in the chip sector next year,” one insider said.

The tech giant is also believed to be more concerned with improving its divisions in emerging businesses, such as artificial intelligence, automotive parts and smart connected devices instead of its principal units.

While changes to the top brass are unlikely this year, industry sources claim Samsung could conduct a reshuffle of junior executives and promote C-level positions. The company made a big move by promoting 221 executives last year. It remains to be seen if it’s promoting even less people this year.

“Most of the promotions are expected to be carried out at the semiconductor division that recorded an unprecedented performance this year, while some of the senior executives at the smartphone and consumer electronics divisions are expected to retire,” a source told Korea Herald.

Local news reports from Samsung’s home country also claim that the tech giant would be reducing its workforce in the face of stiff market competition next year. The electronics division is reportedly reducing its people by 10 percent from 1.049 to around 900.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s crosstown rival LG Electronics has already announced the changes to its company that are mostly aimed at improving its mobile business, which has been reporting huge losses in the recent years.

The biggest change LG announced last week its decision to make LG Home Electronics Company President Brian Kwon the leader of its Mobile Communications Company. This marks the first time in LG’s history for one person to head two divisions at the same time.