Samsung on the verge of its annual reshuffle

Samsung is set to launch its annual reshuffle across its affiliates starting today at the earliest.

It is highly likely that the overhaul will follow in the same schedule as last year, with changes on the president level taking place today, the executive level on Friday and an overall reshuffle on Dec. 10.

“We will complete a personnel and organizational reshuffle as soon as possible under the leadership of Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee,” a Samsung executive said. “A major personnel change will take place at Samsung C&T and Samsung Electronics.”

This will be the second time the top conglomerate has undergone internal changes under heir-apparent and Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee after Chairman Lee Kun-hee was hospitalized in May last year after a heart attack.

The scale of the first overhaul was minimal, as the group was practically in the middle of a management vacuum and the number of those promoted - even at major affiliates including Samsung Electronics - was reduced from a year earlier as those companies posted worsening earnings.

Samsung C&T, the de facto holding company of Samsung, is predicted to see the biggest changes. It will add bio to its business portfolio as the company that formerly emphasized construction, fashion and chemical products now seeks to concentrate its efforts on bio and construction.

Samsung Electronics, on the other hand, is expected to announce it will focus on so-called smart cars - which include both electric and self-driving vehicles - as its new growth driver.

The world’s No. 1 producer of smartphones, TVs and memory chips said at a recent forum with investors that its potential competitors in the vehicle sector would be Apple and Google.

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun@joongang.co.kr]