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CH41 | Heir
🕑 Added 2025-03-22 04:12:14 +0000 UTCPresident Park Jin-hoon was trying to tame me.
If the mobile phone business completely failed, he believed he could maintain a regent-like role even after I became chairman.
Because of that, I was able to secure a lot.
Not only did I acquire the mobile phone business team, but I also managed to recruit 30 additional employees from Taewoo Electronics.
Thirty people might not seem like much.
But they were the elite—the most capable employees in Taewoo Electronics.
I had spent an entire night poring over personnel records to handpick them.
That wasn’t all.
I also secured access to high-end equipment that the mobile phone team previously lacked.
And on top of that, I was promised substantial additional funding—some of which had already been transferred to the research lab.
Money and manpower.
I took everything I could get.
Especially surprising was that they even allowed me to recruit Lee Seok-jun, a manager who was considered one of Taewoo Electronics' best.
He had started on the production line and was an expert not only in component development but also in refining existing products.
It was no exaggeration to say that Taewoo Electronics’ TVs and other electronic products bore his signature touch.
And now, that very man was heading with me to the Incheon factory.
"Director, we've arrived at the Incheon factory. I worked here for five years."
"It’s a bigger facility than I expected."
"It used to manufacture mobile phones, but now it produces smaller products."
"Let’s continue the conversation inside."
As soon as we stepped into the factory, we were greeted by a thick layer of dust.
Workers on the production floor had upbeat trot music blasting as they assembled small products.
"The atmosphere seems quite disorderly. Was it like this when you were here, Manager Lee?"
"It wasn’t this bad."
"How did it end up like this?"
"My guess? The work has become too easy. This factory used to assemble complex products like mobile phones, but now they’re making things so simple they could do it with their eyes closed. That’s probably why they’ve become so lax."
Most of the workers at the Incheon factory had over ten years of experience.
I checked the profiles of a few at random, and they all had outstanding work records.
Why were such skilled people being treated this way?
To find out, I arranged a meeting with the factory manager.
"Oh my, welcome! I can’t believe the young master himself has come to our humble factory. It’s truly an honor."
"Please, just call me Director Kim. But I must say, the atmosphere here seems a bit... dull."
"That’s just how the Incheon factory is. Within Taewoo Electronics, this place is known as the exile site."
Factory manager Koo Chul-gyu had no hesitation in exposing the factory’s shameful reality.
He didn’t seem to care—probably because his tenure was nearing its end.
"Oh, so this place is considered an exile site?"
"We haven’t had new hires in a long time. Instead, workers who cause issues at other factories get sent here. Though, to be honest, most of them aren’t troublemakers—they just failed to align with the right factions."
Another case of internal power struggles?
Just like in Taewoo Motors, promotions at Taewoo Electronics were also determined by factionalism.
No wonder the entire group collapsed, with problems like this spreading everywhere.
“Well, now that the factory is under the research lab, you don’t have to worry about factional issues.”
“I heard that’s only temporary. Once we return to Taewoo Electronics, won’t things go back to the same old ways?”
“If we successfully produce this new product, that won’t be an issue.”
“I heard we’ll be manufacturing mobile phones. But I’m not sure if our current production lines can handle that properly.”
The factory was indeed outdated.
But that was nothing a new production line couldn’t fix.
We still had time before mass production, so we could rebuild the facility in the meantime.
“I plan to install new lines to match the product specifications. This is the phone we’ll be making. Manager Lee, come take a look as well.”
I carefully took out the foldable phone prototype.
To reconfigure the factory, both the manager and Lee had to see the prototype firsthand.
“This is a phone? I’ve never seen one shaped like this in my life.”
“Wow! This will be a fun challenge to build.”
“Do you think production is feasible?”
“Well, since we’ll be sourcing the parts externally, all we need to do is assemble the final product, right? If there’s one thing our employees excel at, it’s assembly.”
The factory manager exuded confidence.
He seemed to have unwavering trust in his workers’ skills.
“The mobile phone production team will be coming in soon to assist. Please set up the new production lines as quickly as possible.”
“Rebuilding the lines will take quite some time. It’s also going to be expensive.”
“Taewoo Electronics has promised unlimited financial support, so don’t worry about the money.”
“In that case, would it be alright if I call in a few more key people to discuss this? These folks can take one look at a product and immediately know what’s needed.”
“Of course, that’s exactly what you should do.”
The factory manager summoned several senior team leads.
They, along with Manager Lee, disassembled the foldable phone and analyzed what machinery would be required and how to structure the production line.
The factory manager’s confidence wasn’t just empty talk.
These people solved problems at a glance that I couldn’t make sense of no matter how much I looked.
Why were such skilled individuals sent to this so-called ‘exile’ factory?
Were they too competent and resented by others?
“Director, we’ve finished the meeting. We’ll need a few additional machines, but we won’t have to rebuild the entire production line. If we maximize the use of the existing infrastructure, we can set up a functional mobile phone production line within two months.”
“That quickly? But will it still be adaptable if the design or components change?”
"If the design changes drastically, it will take some time, but we can definitely handle it."
The factory issue was resolved far more easily than I had expected.
I had anticipated production problems lasting up to six months, but the factory workers were confident they could solve everything within two months.
And I believed them.
The team leads had at least A-grade skills.
"Then I'll send the production team down tomorrow. Once the detailed discussions are finished, please start the line construction immediately."
"Of course. It’s been a long time since this factory had such energy. Everyone’s been itching to get to work. We really appreciate this."
Was it because they had been pushed out due to office politics?
Just having the chance to work on something new seemed to bring them so much joy.
I would have liked to share a drink with them, but I had another appointment, so I had no choice but to return to Seoul.
Manager Lee drove while I sat in the passenger seat and brought up something that had been on my mind.
"The employees at the Incheon factory are incredibly skilled. Why were they forced out of their previous positions?"
"…It’s a bit complicated. To put it simply, field engineers tend to be looked down upon."
"So, they have the skills but are ignored because they didn’t graduate from prestigious schools. Is that it?"
"They aren’t included in the factions. If anything, being too skilled gets them pushed out even faster."
The research and development teams were filled with highly educated employees.
Most had graduated from top universities, many with master’s or even doctoral degrees.
To them, engineers who had learned their skills on the job were probably seen as beneath them.
"So, is that why you're still just a manager? From what I can see, you should be in a much higher position."
"Thank you for saying that. Honestly, the only thing I know how to do is work with machines, so the fact that I even made it to manager is a miracle."
In Taewoo Group, promotions weren’t about skill but about politics.
That was precisely why the company had fallen apart.
No matter how talented you were, if you didn’t align yourself with the right faction, you would never move up—and might even be exiled to a place like the Incheon factory.
It wasn’t that Taewoo Group lacked talented people.
In fact, compared to other corporations, it had an abundance of highly skilled individuals.
It just never gave them the right environment to succeed.
"Do you have contacts with others who are in a similar situation as you?"
"Of course. Field workers tend to stick together, so I can reach out to them easily."
"Call all of them to the Incheon factory. I’ll handle the personnel issues myself. Tell them they won’t have to suffer because of petty politics and factions anymore."
"You think the company’s factions will just disappear?"
"Well, factions form wherever there are people."
"Then tell them this—I’ll be their new faction."
If they were ignored because they had no faction, I would be the one to back them.
Was there anyone in Taewoo Group who could form a stronger faction than me?
I was in line to become the next chairman.
Who would dare challenge me?
***
I arrived in Seoul in Manager Lee’s car.
After parting ways with him in Myeong-dong, I headed to the traditional house in Gwanghwamun to meet the "Gom" (Bear).
I had been here a few times before, so I was familiar with the place by now.
Even the guards at the front gate simply nodded in acknowledgment and opened the door without any formalities.
"You’re finally here? I thought my neck was going to snap from waiting."
"Apologies for being late."
Chairman Lee's voice was filled with confidence.
He must have secured a significant amount of Taewoo Electronics' stocks and bonds.
"Do you have any idea how many times I had to bow my head because of you? I swept up every single Taewoo Electronics share those Myeong-dong bastards had."
"I didn’t expect you to pull it off so quickly."
"I used my head a little. The situation at the Changwon factory had already spread, so I told them I was going to have a big fight with you while quietly buying up Taewoo Electronics shares."
As expected, Chairman Lee was more of a fox than a bear.
He might have the build of a bear, but his cunning was that of a seasoned fox.
"And they just handed over their shares because you said you were going to fight me?"
"When I offered to trade them for my own stocks, they didn’t hesitate. I gave them all my shares in Sampoong Group and Hanil Bank—the ones you warned me were risky."
He exchanged the stocks of soon-to-be bankrupt companies for Taewoo Electronics shares?
Even without my advice, Chairman Lee was paving his way to becoming the king of Myeong-dong.
"Weren’t you short on funds?"
"CT Bank transferred 400 billion won just in time, so I wasn’t in a pinch. But if you don’t buy the Taewoo Electronics shares from me soon, I’ll be flat broke."
So he had received 400 billion won from CT Bank.
But that entire amount wasn’t his; most of it was likely borrowed from banks or other financiers.
He must have used the remaining funds, after repaying debts, to buy up Taewoo Electronics shares.
And as he said, if I didn’t purchase those shares from him soon, he’d be facing a liquidity crisis.
"Of course, I’ll buy them. An investment firm from Wall Street will be reaching out soon. When they do, transfer all your Taewoo Electronics shares to them."
"And once that’s done, my role is finished?"
"I’ll need you to keep acquiring shares from Taewoo Group’s other subsidiaries whenever you have the chance."
"Haha, more stocks? I have no idea what you’re planning. At this rate, you’ll become the owner even if you do nothing. But if that’s what you want, I’ll do it. So, what stocks should I offload this time in exchange for Taewoo Group shares?"
There was no shortage of failing companies.
When the financial crisis hit, more than half of the top 20 conglomerates would collapse.
