Samsung Electronics announced on Friday the appointment of HK Park, its former chief financial officer, as the new head of the company’s Business Support Office — a central strategic body that supports chairman Jay Y. Lee and coordinates operations across Samsung Group.
The Business Support Office, which evolved from a task force into a core decision-making division, acts as a mini-control tower within South Korea’s largest conglomerate, overseeing alignment among Samsung’s various affiliates, from chips and smartphones to shipbuilding and pharmaceuticals.
Park succeeds Chung Hyun-ho, who will transition to an advisory role for Chairman Lee. Samsung said Chung, 65, chose to step back from active management “to focus on nurturing future leaders, as Samsung’s business has been back on track.”
The reshuffle is the first major change since the office’s establishment in the wake of Samsung’s 2017 corporate restructuring, which followed a graft scandal that led to Lee’s temporary imprisonment. Lee was later pardoned in 2022 after serving 18 months in jail.
Samsung confirmed that it does not plan to expand the office’s staff, signaling a focus on stability and efficiency as the company navigates volatile global chip and smartphone markets.
Analysts see Park’s appointment as a move to strengthen internal governance while maintaining Samsung’s strategic agility in an era defined by AI investment and semiconductor innovation.
