Overview of Samsung Company: Strategy, Capabilities, Organizational Structure

Samsung Electric was established in 1969 in South Korea and occupies as the largest shareholder of the group. Although the Samsung group is a mega organisation right now, they have gone through many crises.

Strategy

Samsung has always maintained a mission that responds to changes, in terms of as a company and the development in the world. Economic contribution to the nation and Priority to human resources and becoming Pursuit of rationalism. This slogan represents its direction from a domestic industrial leader to a Global consumer electronics powerhouse. Samsung management philosophy dictates its determination to contribute towards the prosperity of people all over the world. Samsung relies on its staff’s talent, creativity and dedication in improving in their technology and to improve higher standards living everywhere.

Samsung has an effective market readership and is good in adapting to change. Samsung has proved effective in replicating its design and important features from Apple. It has been noted that “one internal Samsung presentation from 2010 provided a step-by-step process for Samsung engineers to follow in an effort to steal so much of what made the iPhone such a unique product”. Samsung business strategy constantly look for gaps in the market and exploit any possible opportunity. Samsung phone/tablet series the note device was an example as Samsung noticed Asian language speakers wanted a device that they could write on. Samsung also has a huge advantage in distribution. Samsung having relationships with wireless carriers makes it easier to get its product distributed. The spirit from its first chairman Kun Hee Lee having continuous improvement and emphasizing the spirit to its employee as he felt that there is never a rest time for Samsung. Samsung has a great leadership in top management. Formerly, the top management had instructed to concentrate all their resources on Galaxy S to release the same day as I phone 4.

Samsung has their own institution, Changjo Kwan in shaping the employee’s understanding about the business. Only the CEO has the power in controlling the company’s direction majorly. Before Samsung goes to a business, normally it becomes the supplier. It creates costly barriers for others by investing in massive money on plants to limit the competition. It diversifies in many operations to capture various market types.

Lee(2002) concludes of Samsung organizational structure of members are disciplined and have a strong preference of formalization. Then they emphasized on procedures and the organization exhibited each department uniqueness with strong reluctance of outsourcing, high preference for internal procurement and a possessive perception of its technology and capital.

Government role

Samsung being a chaebol, family-controlled conglomerate, thrived through tax benefits, special loans, anti-labour polices and other government subsidies. When Kun Hee Lee took over, the Korean government’s policies regarding external engagement and rising import quotas transformed Samsung into a manufacturing multinational. Although many investments failed, Samsung launched its global strategic initiative in 1993, and became a world brand mover in microchips, screens, and mobile phones. However, history has shown that Samsung and the government walk through the corruption line and had been caught numerous times thus the current chairman is serving in prison now.