Professor Hong Seung Ko
Former Information Strategy Manager , Strategic Planning Office ,
Samsung Electronics Co . , Ltd . (CIO)
Representative Director of the Japan Society for Applied Information Science
Professor Hong Seung Ko was born in South Korea, and formerly worked for the giant South Korean electrical appliance and electronic components maker, Samsung Electronics as the Manager of Information Strategies to bring to life Internet-based corporate strategy, CALS (primarily B2B conceptually-based), and e-commerce for general consumers. He also made major contributions to the informatization and profitability of that company.
Professor Hong spoke at length about the human talent that will be needed in the e-business world, as it undergoes dramatic shifts.
Developing human resources to lead e-business
E-Business Requires an Information Strategy
- With the spread of the Internet, e-business has rapidly transformed the business environment and created a situation that is changing the very nature of business.
Samsung launched their Website, both domestically and for international customers, in the mid-90s shortly after I became the Manager of Information Strategies.At the time, no one considered the Internet as a powerful tool for marketing, and it appeared to be no more than a means to improve the brand recognition of a company.However, when we opened the website, we received around 200 e-mails a day from all over the world inquiring about product aftercare services, complaints etc.That's when I had a feeling that we could probably use our website as a marketing tool.
Businesses that used the Internet, such as booking systems and stock trading, grew after that.But, we didn't see large-scale growth in sales simply by developing and launching a system for use on the Internet.There was a failed IT boom that occurred in South Korea at the time where people thought that if they just used the Internet their business would do well.They thought that they could make commerce happen if they made an Internet shopping mall, put the products up and host customers from all over the world.But almost all of those Internet shopping malls disappeared from the Internet in several years' time.
Ultimately, what they probably didn't realize is that the Internet is just one tool. To put it simply, you could say they lacked a “business and marketing strategy.”No matter how much product information is available online, it’s ultimately nothing more than what’s displayed on the screen.After all, my usual shopping habit was to go to a physical store, pick up the item, and check it out before actually buying it.
Companies Falling Behind and a Shortage of Talent
- Given the rapidly changing business environment, how do you view the current state of global business?
With the widespread adoption of 5G, the very nature of business is rapidly changing from the ground up.First, cyberspace—which until now had been limited primarily to two-dimensional space—can now be expanded into three-dimensional space.The era of the so-called “Internet Metaverse” has arrived.On the other hand, from a marketing perspective—which focuses on selling large quantities of goods and services to increase sales and generate profits—it is expected that business-to-business (B2B) transactions will continue to grow and flourish in the future.This is because 5G makes it possible to quickly exchange large volumes of heavy business data between companies—including data related to security—over the Internet.
Even in today’s fast-paced business environment driven by the Internet, I get the sense that outdated ways of thinking and business practices—such as “Japan still has superior technological capabilities compared to other countries, so we’ll be fine” and “If we make high-quality products in Japan, they’ll sell worldwide”—are still prevalent, even among Japan’s major corporations.Even in today’s fast-paced business environment driven by the Internet, I get the sense that outdated ways of thinking and business practices—such as “Japan still has superior technological capabilities compared to other countries, so we’ll be fine” and “If we make high-quality products in Japan, they’ll sell worldwide”—are still prevalent, even among Japan’s major corporations.
On the other hand, American Big Tech companies, represented by GAFAM—and Google in particular—have demonstrated and proven to the world that they can create new markets and grow their businesses through “open innovation.”Through open innovation—where competing companies first share business-related technologies and collaborate to expand the overall business pie, and then engage in healthy competition to determine their respective shares of that market pie—Google and other companies have grown into world-class global enterprises.
To a Professional Graduate School for Training IT Professionals
- In this business environment, what kind of features should KCGI hammer out; what should we aim for?
Advances in information technology—such as the Internet and social media—have been remarkable. Whereas in the past there was a significant time lag of several days to several months before the rest of the world learned about and imitated events that occurred in the United States, today people anywhere in the world can find out about cutting-edge developments the very moment they happen.In an era where companies around the world are instantly connected on a global scale, the concept of national borders is becoming increasingly blurred, and a wide variety of business models unlike anything we’ve seen before have emerged.With the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI), the opportunities for humans to perform physically demanding work—such as farming and factory labor—are steadily decreasing, and it is becoming a reality that AI will eventually handle everything, including office work and the writing of academic papers and books.Furthermore, there are high hopes that a time will come when AI will solve all the various issues related to sustainable global development, including climate change.
In an era when 5G is driving the widespread adoption of metaverse environments and the vigorous growth of B2B business, the question of what to learn will become increasingly important going forward.At The Kyoto College of Graduate Studies for Informatics (KCGI), where students can study both cutting-edge IT and business management simultaneously, it is possible to delve into learningthat is directly linked to creating the world of the future—such as exploring questions like, “What kinds of businesses will thrive in the metaverse?”If you’re interested in learning about the future of IT and business, I hope you’ll consider enrolling at KCGI.