Thoughts on Korean Business by Don Southerton

South Korea (as well as China and Vietnam) celebrate two New Years'. One on Jan. 1 and the Lunar New Year celebration, which this year falls on Saturday, January 25. For your Korean colleagues (living and working in Korea), you can wish them Happy Lunar New Year on Wednesday afternoon by phone, text, or email, which is Thursday AM in Korea and their last workday before the holiday.  Koreans this year will have a 4-day weekend starting Friday K time. For expatriate Koreans working outside Korea/ globally, you can wish them a Happy Lunar New Year on the day itself, Saturday, January 25, or at some time prior on Friday.   Here is the formal greeting. Sae hae bok mani ba deu say yo One more thing… The year of the rat opens up a new 12-year cycle of animals in the Chinese zodiac. As the first animal to finish the Great Race of the Chinese zodiac legend, the quick-witted rat represents new beginnings and versatility. ...

With the new year, I thought I’d share some Korea facing updates. First, it's nice to see a Korean film nominated for several Oscar awards. South Korea has a rich history of film production. This is no surprise to me as the film, “Parasite” has gained considerable attention by critics and movie-goers. Me and Toki, the Robot Next, I’m back from CES 2020. South Korea had the 3 rd  largest number of companies at the annual electronics trade show held in Las Vegas. The LG and Hyundai Motor booths were visionary and inspiring.  My work at the Show centered on developing a western facing brand message and PR for the Hancom Group—one of South Korea’s largest information software companies. The booth shared their robotics, AI platforms, Life Blockchain and smart cities technologies.   The brand message and PR were quite successful with considerable traffic to the booth and media attention.  https://w...

With the CES 2020 Show just weeks away, and the Holidays upon us, I wanted to share more on how Hancom sees the future of technology. Pre-show and Show media interviews are welcome, too You can reach me at   Dsoutherton@bridgingculture.com Don SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, Dec. 20, 2019 /Hancom Group, South Korea’s leading ICT company has announced it will unveil its next-generation Life Blockchain technology at the 2020 CES Show in Las Vegas. How Hancom sees Blockchain Within the Group’s “Safe World” vision, affiliate Hancom WITH has built upon its 30 years of core competencies as a trusted and integrated information security provider. Ever evolving and steering the 4th Industrial Revolution IT ecosystems  Hancom WITH  offers convergence solutions that enhance productivity in both Blockchain and Intelligent City Platforms.  1. Next generation Blockchain Hancom provides a robust and trustworthy blockchain service by integr...

Who is Hancom? How does Hancom envision Robotics, Smart City and AI Life Blockchain technology? For Immediate Release SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA, Dec. 13, 2019 /Hancom Group, South Korea’s leading ICT company today announced that it will participate at CES 2020, Jan.7-10, 2020, in Las Vegas. The company will present its visions for making the world better through pioneering future innovation for an ever-evolving tech industry. Rendering of the Hancom Group CES 2020 Exhibit The new exhibit will be located at South Hall 2, AI & Robotics, Booth 25628 of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Who is Hancom? Hancom like the other highly recognized South Korean market leaders will share with the industry how it uniquely envisions Robotics, Smart City and AI Life Blockchain technology. How Hancom sees Robotics Led by Hancom’s Convenient World vision for work and life, Toki is one in a line-up of specialized robots for home and educational use. With customized AI conversatio...

Exploring Change  I've been in editing mode for the past few days. Plans are for an end of December release of my new book  Korea 2020: A workplace in transition.  Many thanks to those of you who previewed the manuscript and shared comments. If you, too, would like to preview and comment, I'll email you a draft copy. Korea 2020 shares not only what’s behind the current corporate trends but also the impact of Change both in South Korea and for operations outside Korea.  Exploring this change is at the core of this new book. Topics include the restructuring of age-old corporate norms such as more casual dress, a simplification of workplace titles leading to flatter organizations, and the pushback against workplace bullying and gender discrimination.  It also drills deeper and provides readers with workarounds, work throughs, and insights. Don

As I have shared before my ongoing book writing project “Korea 2020” will explore the most recent and ongoing changing Korean workplace. I look to provide “the what,” and “the why”.  Don Southerton Author The present corporate “restructuring” underway among the top Chaebol is beyond the scope of what many of us who have long supported Korea have seen before and should not be dismissed. I do not see it in the same regard as, for example, the annual year-end shuffling of teams and leadership, or the common Korean corporate practice “change for the sake of change. “ I see the current driver as something much deeper and more significant. I also feel that now more than ever with the wide range of changes underway and their potential implications that all working with Korean facing businesses to recognize, seek out and gain a deep understanding of what impact it will have on the local overseas operations and their work.  Something I do my best to provide amid an e...

Checking emails at 2:30 AM.   Trying to not doze off and miss a late evening phone or Facebook Message call. Responding early morning to a previous evening’s urgent Text. Waking up to a rather lengthy request for revisions on a multi-page document that the Korean team needs to finalize as is due that day in Korea.  Don Southerton This week we look at some of the new challenges as we’re finding more open and direct communications between Korean HQ and local teams. This is more and more commonly surfacing for teams.  By its very nature, Korean facing business is the interaction of worldwide teams operating in different zones—with Korea and North America—their working days beginning as our ends and visa versa. Beyond the different cultures globally working together on a daily basis, which I speak of often, we have seen the advancements in telecommunications as well as more open communications between working-level teams in the West and Korea. ...

Year-end timing for organization-wide promotions, restructuring, and new assignments are part of Korean corporate culture. Each year, high-level moves are the norm we see among the major Groups—the first of these we saw last week. We can assume there will be more senior-level announcements with new leadership taking the helm in their new positions and roles soon, while some leadership long in the ranks will be exiting or remain in advisory roles. Top to bottom within Korean companies they follow this annual transition, with the changes to senior leadership happening first, and team level changes made known the weeks just before or between Christmas and New Year's Day. After the Holidays, teams then report back to work. Some employees assume new roles frequently in departments in which they have little experience—requiring employees to acquire new skills—sink or swim. Meanwhile, some Koreans currently in an overseas assignment may be returning back to Korea or be en-route to...

Proud to announce The Habit Burget Grill Looks to South Korea! Interested? Contact me at  dsoutherton@bridgingculture.com The Habit Burger Grill (Nasdaq: HABT) is setting its sights on South Korea as the next international growth target as the burger-centric restaurant concept continues its steady march abroad. To support its expansion plans, The Habit has partnered with the experienced business development consulting firm, Bridging Culture Worldwide to attract multi-unit franchise development companies. “South Korea, with its savvy consumers, open minded culture and interest in global brands is an ideal marketplace for The Habit Burger Grill’s expansion,” said John Phillips, The Habit Burger Grill’s Chief Global Business Partnership Officer. “The people of South Korea appreciate quality food and enjoy the fast-casual experience. We look forward to working with Bridging Culture Worldwide to find the right franchise partner to ensure our mutual success.” The Habit Burger Gril...

In this week’s Vodcast we look at the nuances in market entry. I’ll also share my most recent project The Habit Burger Grill. For more on my most recent project. The Habit Burger Grill Sets Sights on South Korea Habit Burger Grill Plans to Bring America’s Best Tasting Burger to East Asia — https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20191009005219/en/%C2%A0The-Habit-Burger-Grill-Sets-Sights-South Don

In this week’s Vodcast, we look at Language, Communication Styles, and Culture. My role over the years as a trusted advisor has been to recognize the issues and then assist teams and leadership to move past misunderstandings.   If they fit well, I am open to new engagements, coaching and mentoring, too. Your business questions, comments and inquiries always welcome. Don

This week and next Korea celebrates National Foundation Day and Hangul Day. Read on to learn more about these important days. FYI, most Korean HQ teams will be off from work, so plan accordingly. Thursday, October 3 National Foundation Day. This important day celebrates the legendary founding of the first Korean nation in 2333 BC. Wednesday, October 9 Hangul Day. Hangul day commemorates the invention (1443) of Hangul the native Korean alphabet. Some people confuse Hangul with the Korean spoken language but it's the name of the written Korean alphabet letters. 한 (han) means 'Korean' and 글 ( geul ) means 'letter'. King Sejong the Great, who created Hangul, is one of the most honored rulers in Korean history. King Sejong the Great Questions, Comments, Requests, Inquiries welcome. Don Southerton

Short 2-minute video on Collaboration.  Timely as so many JVs, MOUs, and partnerships.  Questions always welcome. Don

Today is an exciting day for me. I just launched my Patreon page. https://www.patreon.com/EverythingKorea Don in Action  Staying on top of Korea facing business issues and breaking news that impacts you makes a large demand on my time.  The research, analysis, writing, and delivering the best content possible to you every week has become a full-time job. In order to continue providing the very best content I can, I could really use your help.  I feel Patreon is a great option to offset the costs. If you aren’t familiar with Patreon, it’s an easy way for those interested in my work to see new exclusive content and have access to a range of my services. 100% of all funds contributed through Patreon will be used to cover my bandwidth, so I can focus on creating great content. As a friend, I wanted to share the news with you before promoting more widely. So, if it feels right to you, anything you or the company contribute is most appreciat...

As a service, I enjoy providing you and your teams with exclusive, timely Korea facing updates and insights.  It’s that time of the year with Chuseok, (the Korean Harvest Moon Festival) right around the corner. This year, Chuseok will be observed Sept. 12-14, with the holiday on Friday, and the day before and after celebrated as National Holidays, too. Koreans, like many agrarian cultures, once followed the lunar calendar, but in recent history, they have deferred to the solar calendar in line with international practice. While public holidays are based on the solar calendar, there are a few days that are celebrated based on the lunar calendar.  These are the two most important traditional holidays, the Korean New Year’s Day (the first day of the first lunar month) and Chuseok, the Harvest Moon Festival (the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month). En mass a substantial part of the population travel. For many, this means going back to their ho...

Summer, so happy to offer complimentary PDF copies of Korea Perspective. In particular, my work shares the interconnectedness , norms, and expectations we find in the Korea workplace. Just ask and I'll get you a copy.  ###

Our culture determines how and to the degree information is shared and whether it is critical, to be ignored, inappropriate, or outside of our boundaries. For example, in the West, we often use "low content" communications. Conversations are direct and can be confrontational. We require background information in the message—little is assumed as known—including why an issue may need to be deemed sensitive. Transparency means fewer boundaries, too. Don Southerton Within Korean organizations, the very nature of the Asian “high content” culture means less is shared in explicit verbal and open communication. Since teams foster long-lasting relationships much is shared informally within their circle of close trusted colleagues, and much is also accumulated knowledge, so issues require little explanation or even discussion. When something is seen as a sensitive issue or an issue with strong boundaries, an individual may steer clear of openly sharing, especially if they fe...

Staying current on all the moving parts within a Korean Group or Korea in general, is no small effort.  Knowing the gaps in communications, I do my best to keep teams and leadership updated. Some thoughts …. Don Southerton on Korean Business From time to time concerns occur in the overseas workplace regarding communications between the HQ and local operations. This can range from feelings of being disconnected and being the last to know as global announcements are made or important news surfaces. This information gap can include working teams but is also felt by local leadership. Team members may even feel that information is being deliberately withheld. While there may be some truth in the disconnection, the feeling that Koreans are withholding information deliberately is most often a perception not reality.  What may be a surprise for western overseas teams is that Korean staff in their home offices must make quite an effort to stay informed. As one entry-level em...

American holidays allow me to step back, see what I may be missing, take a deep breath and uncover the best solutions to current challenges.  My goal is to provide frank insights and pro-active recommendations. Below are a couple helpful talking points.  Talking Point #1 As with all individuals, no two of us are alike—and the same goes for westerners and Koreans .... Each has his or her unique cultural workplace strengths, skills, and experiences. That said, one topic I constantly revisit is the assumption that executives and teams engaged in Korea facing business will simply "get it" and “learn as they go.” Without ongoing coaching, this common default seldom works. More damaging is that some team members without support and mentoring may “never get it.” Arguments that such support can wait often come with a price tag—missteps along the way, poor productivity, and miscommunications.  Push back attributed to the costs for support is often cited, too, as...