Samsung Electronics announced the resignation of Vice Chairman Oh- Hyun Kwon on Friday, October 13.
It was announced to all the employees in the company through a letter where Kwon stated that his retirement is one of the most difficult things for him to do, but he sees his decision is in the best interest of the company.
Kwon will also resign as the Chief Executive Officer of Samsung Display and plans on not pursuing re-election as a member of the Board of Directors and the Chairman of the board when his term ends in March 2018.
"It is something I had been thinking long and hard about for quite some time. It has not been an easy decision, but I feel I can no longer put it off," Vice Chairman Kwon said. "As we are confronted with unprecedented crisis inside out, I believe that time has now come for the company start anew, with a new spirit and young leadership to better respond to challenges arising from the rapidly changing IT industry."
He further said that the company needs newer leaders, and hopes that his employees share his sense of pride and honour in working for Samsung.
The press release stated that serving for 32 years as both a researcher and a CEO, he has watched the company grow and flourish into a globally renowned enterprise.
After the company's de facto chief, Lee Jae Yong was convicted of corruption and sentenced to five years in prison in August, Kwon took over as the face of Samsung. The company also has two other CEO's who oversee its mobile phone business and home appliance division.
Samsung reported its best-ever quarterly profit, but Kwon still sees the need for a better leader to handle the previously mentioned unprecedented crisis.
Vice Chairman Kwon joined the company in 1985 as a researcher of the company's Semiconductor Research Institute in the United States. He also served as president and head of the System LSI Division and as president and head of the Semiconductor Business before becoming CEO of the company in 2012. He also has served as the CEO of Samsung Display since 2016.
