An Expat’s Insight into the Korean Business Psyche

Greetings fellow KBC members.

 

I wanted to share an article that I have submitted for publication in a global business journal.

Although it is long-winded I feel that it shows and covers my experience of living and working in Korea for the last 5 years. I have attached both a .docx. & a .doc version for your review. PLease see the updated version below in the discussion thread.

 

Look forward to a great discussion and/or comments.

 

Enjoy.

 

William

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Permalink Reply by Wally Nes on October 11, 2011 at 3:06pm

As you've submitted it for publication I think someone on the other end will do the editing as well, but I pointed some things out as I automatically pick these things up anyway.

 

Koreans have a high respect for their elders both . . . (No ')

 

PyeongChang (no e at the end)

 

nano- and biotechnology (added -)

 

I thought Japan, China and India ranked higher in GDP than Korea, making it the 4th Asian economy. But I could be wrong.

 

I also look forward to the discussions of that actual content

Permalink Reply by William Sisson on October 11, 2011 at 3:29pm

Thanks Wally - nice catches. I will contact the editor and make sure they make those changes.

 

Cheers,

William

Permalink Reply by Cory Olson on October 11, 2011 at 3:08pm

Hello William,

Very good read, thanks for putting it together. I particularly liked the "glocalization" term. As discussed back during the Tesco interview, adaption rather than wholesale adoption is probably the name of the game in the modern international business environment. Personally, I think too many Korean businesses (and the people involved in them) at too strongly pushing "Westernization" for themselves and business practices. As individuals and as a market, Korean culture brings something unique and valuable to organizations, the key is understanding where and when it can be applied effectively and when it can't.

I'll reread for more depth later and hopefully a good discussion will develop here to enhance the information. Hope for the best with publication and thanks again.

 

-Cory Olson

Permalink Reply by William Sisson on October 11, 2011 at 3:35pm
Updated files attached. Thanks Wally
Attachments:
Permalink Reply by Michael Choi on October 11, 2011 at 5:53pm

Typo:

1st Paragraph: Boarded (change to) Bordered

Permalink Reply by William Sisson on October 11, 2011 at 5:56pm
Thank you sir. Nice catch as well.
Permalink Reply by Stephen Ronto on October 12, 2011 at 9:09pm

Uhm..Well, if I follow such advise I'll be out of business in Korea before I can say "5000 years of Korean history" (a Korea history which actually is only significant from around 300 A.D.)  Each and every Korean businessperson  I've worked is uniquely different in his business actions.  I strongly disadvise from stereotyping Korean partners, competitors, leads, and clients.  Using the Korean language with Korean businesspeople is my way of gaining insight to the "psyche" of my Korean counterpart today, and then a client tomorrow.

Permalink Reply by Lara Tosh on October 20, 2011 at 6:15am
Well said, Stephen ...stereotyping limits what's possible for EVERYONE involved. While, I've observed trends in my 12+yrs here, I've also observed just as many exceptions ...William, have yet to read the article (just found this discussion) ...will give it a read over the next couple of days & comment (for real ^.^).
Permalink Reply by Brian on October 17, 2011 at 5:32pm

A well written article but very one sided.  You've talked quite glowingly about Korea's positives, their successes in hard technology such as R&D, materials, and bio-pharmaceuticals. You've also pretty accurately outlined the issues foreign executives and multi-national companies face(d) in Korea. All of which i don't disagree with, and is important to know.

However you have neglected to mention the looming negatives facing Korea businesses today. 

  1. With an educational system that significantly prioritizes a "memorize regurgitate" style of curriculum based on math and sciences rather than critical thinking, problem solving, concept and creativity, Korea has become a nation of doer's not thinkers.  The problem with being a nation of doer's is that inevitably an emerging country with a larger free labor force will start to siphon your production work (ie China, Philippeans, Malaysia).
  2. Because of point #1 Korean tech companies may succeed in material technology but fail in software and user experience. This is most evident from the problems they have had to the smart phone industry.
  3. Imitation flourishes in a nation of doers. (from handbags to bar signs to technology design, to software to cars)
  4. The majority of Korean businesses have not and will not adopt Western styles of management. (using a western title or bits of superficial anecdotes does not equate to adopting a Western style management system!) Valuing age and seniority over skills, results, and job experience inevitably strangles business competitiveness in the global market. It also causes younger, smarter, and more creative Koreans to seek employment with global companies or to leave Korea altogether causing talent drain.  
  5. An authoritarian Spartan management style that embodies a "do as i say, not as i do" rather than a career development or mentoring based system.
  6. Korean businesses (with a few exceptions) still remain largely inwardly focused, especially in tight economic times.
  7. Lack of a healthy entrepreneur ecosystem, and little to no government support for startups hampers growth and competitiveness. (Can Korea give birth to a Korean Mark Zuckerberg? The census is no)
  8. Corruption in corporate and political circles (9 out of 10 Koreans distrust the gov't)
  9. Has the highest demand for English but has one of the lowest English fluency/literacy rates among top OECD countries.  This poses problems not only for businesses interacting outside of Korea but even for Korean diplomats and aid organizations.
  10. An immature marketing and advertising industry overly reliant on celebrity endorsements for short term gains rather than cultivating brand loyalty based on product strengths.
 No offense intended but an article for publication in a global business journal needs to be more objective and provide factual information for positives and negatives.  Writing an article primarily based on your personal experiences of living and working in Korea is best suited for a blog or an opinions column.  Like Cory mentioned, i don't believe Korean businesses need to completely and immediately abandon all their culture (if that were even possible, which it isn't) but they need to change and modify their ways fairly quickly if they want to stay competitive with emerging developing countries.  I believe the biggest issues facing Korea right now are how to keep talent, be results driven rather than age driven, encourage innovation, fight corruption and foster creativity.
Permalink Reply by Stephen Ronto on October 17, 2011 at 9:43pm
Brian - well thought subjective output and often discussed within my Korean business circles. No#7 stands out in discussion.  So-called expat  "Korea consultants" should not glamorize ROK business, rather they should  foster & promote FDI, biz partnering, and expat-SME start-ups by exposing  ROK business reality, Selling "snake potion" is a disservice to business growth in any market. 
Permalink Reply by William Sisson on October 20, 2011 at 9:34am

As an Professional Expat Korea Business Consultant it is my goal to generate business and this article is NOT to be a "Dear Abby” column nor an objective Op-Ed piece for Cosmo. Why would any experienced, business professional highlight the negative side of any business or country where the point is to generate foreign business into Korea.

 Glamorizing ROK business is a very effective marketing tool to C-level foreign execitives.

Secondly, Invest Korea, KOTRA and the FEZs located all over Korea main objective is to foster FDI.

Ask Hank Ahn.

Business Partnering happens every day in Korea in the way of joint ventures, M&A, Investments etc.. usually with reputable multi-national companies.

Supporting expat SME - Seoul Global Business Support Center does just that.

However, why would Korea want to foster foreign SME when they should and focuse more on Korean SME.

Your logic is very mute, elementary, unfounded and should be saved for Craigslist Rants & Raves.

If you have trouble acclimating to the “Korean Way” of doing business you are not going to be remotely successful in this country and harping on the negatives of Korea, Korean’s and Korea business is simply a form of cancer that will gnaw away in your gut until you realize the obvious – accept and acclimate.

Finally - snake-oils have been proven to work even if they are a placebo.

Permalink Reply by Stephen Ronto on October 20, 2011 at 6:58pm

Mr. Sisson - your insight on my psyche is totally erroneous - but then again I'm not (thank fully) your paying client. 

Doing business in Korea for +20 years with Koreans for Koreans is my walking the walk, not just talking.

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