Lee Hyun-woo continued to speak.
“Fortunately, dot-com companies are starting to emerge in Korea. Since they will all need servers, we should rent them out to collect some operating expenses.”
“Anyway, you’re really clever.”
Kim Tae-hyun looked at Lee Hyun-woo with admiration.
In fact, it was inevitable to acknowledge the outstanding abilities of this ‘prospective brother-in-law’ to avoid drawing a parallel line.
‘It’s really fortunate. It’s great you have Jungle.’
If Lee Hyun-woo were not the head of Jungle, he might have been tempted by Guseong. He always thought he would have been wary of that.
Even if that wasn’t the case, he recently confirmed that Lee Hyun-woo had no thoughts of coveting Guseong.
Therefore, Kim Tae-hyun had a strong intention to utilize Lee Hyun-woo’s ideas for practical benefits.
“Oh, right! I recently got a call from Chairman Son Jung-yi. He mentioned the data center.”
“Really?”
Lee Hyun-woo’s eyes widened.
He hadn’t even mentioned Yaho yet, but already a place called Software Bank was inquiring.
‘Come to think of it, Jungle Japan must also be concerned about storage capacity.’
It was indeed a natural flow.
“Yes, their servers are gradually getting overloaded. Although they don’t need a lot right now, they might request our technology once they confirm that the data center in our country operates successfully.”
“Oh, I see. But isn’t it difficult to build one directly?”
“Yes, for now, we have to go through a Japanese construction company. Since they frequently experience earthquakes, it has to pass certain standards to be classified as a top-grade facility.”
Seeing Kim Tae-hyun lick his lips regretfully, Lee Hyun-woo asked.
“What about the U.S.?”
“It’s possible.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Yes, I checked, and it seems we can do it.”
“Wow, you need to treat us to a meal! We can’t just entrust the construction of data centers to anyone.”
“Of course not. We need to consider things like temperature control and humidity control, which requires experience. Plus, the power supply must be redundant. Even if the power supply from the power plant is cut off, we need to supply power on time with internal generators.”
“Yes, yes. You will gain such expertise by building our company’s data center, right? You are already designing the data center in Jeju Island…”
“We’re also planning to build one here in Suwon.”
“Huh? Really?”
For reference, Jungle’s data center is planned to be built in Gwacheon.
So?
“We thought we should have our own data center.”
“A company that is about to complete one data center, is designing two more, and even selling technology at the request of Japan’s Software Bank will become the best company in the world at building data centers. You definitely need to treat us!”
“Why do you keep emphasizing ‘treat us’ today?”
“There’s a reason, hahaha.”
“……”
Hearing Lee Hyun-woo’s laughter, Kim Tae-hyun furrowed his brow.
“What is it? What are you trying to get from me?”
“You noticed, huh?”
“Do you think I’m stupid? You obviously have a favor to ask.”
“I actually want to ask for a person.”
“A person?”
Lee Hyun-woo started talking about Yoo Hoseon.
In other words, he wanted to scout her, and for that, he needed Guseong’s cooperation, so he directly asked Kim Tae-hyun.
“You want a mere fourth-year student… Is Hoseon really that remarkable?”
“She is. She has demonstrated her abilities in various program development competitions, even winning grand prizes.”
“I believe theory and practice are different.”
“That may be true, but development personnel are extremely rare right now.”
Lee Hyun-woo’s words were true.
Recently, a politician even mentioned a plan to train 100,000 IT talents, sensing the industry’s struggle with a manpower shortage.
This statement came from the recognition that the IT industry was suffering from a lack of manpower, and coincidentally, the reeducation being conducted by 21st-century venture companies was likely to receive special benefits.
Since the inauguration of the new government, the probability of policy funds being executed had increased.
Naturally, Lee Hyun-woo had also received attention.
The fact that he was taking basic courses twice a week had become a hot topic again.
“Moreover, female developers are very rare in this field, and the rarer they are, the higher the chances of them demonstrating their abilities.”
“What abilities? What do female developers have?”
“Yes, there are quite a few things that men don’t possess. For example, women have a unique ability to empathize.”
“Is that important?”
“It may not be important to your business, but it is to us. Social media combines empathy with IT.”
The representatives of using humanities in IT were people like Steven Jobs and Zuke Marker Burger.
IT didn’t just need engineering talents; women’s empathy was very important.
‘Indeed, even if it’s not Jung-woo, she’s an excellent talent.’
However, Kim Tae-hyun still looked at Lee Hyun-woo with a doubtful expression.
“Do you think I will just let such an excellent person go?”
“That’s why I’m offering to ‘treat’ you.”
“No, it feels like I’m losing out. Name something else.”
“Jamie Wang has recently shown interest in data centers.”
“Deal!”
Finally, using his trump card, Kim Tae-hyun immediately agreed.
A smile spread across Lee Hyun-woo’s face.
‘Although I was going to introduce him anyway, I feel a bit sorry for changing it this way.’
Determined to do better later, Lee Hyun-woo stood up.
As he headed towards Suwon, he received a call from Jamie Wang, but people were unaware of this fact.
Thus, upon returning, Lee Hyun-woo talked to Woo Sang-won about the data center.
“Even Son Jung-yi and Jamie Wang have finally recognized it.”
He let out a voice of admiration.
“Well, considering the number of dot-com companies emerging daily in the U.S. and Korea, the construction of data centers is essential when thinking about their usage.”
“Of course.”
“So, thanks to you, Guseong Electronics has gained another profitable business model.”
Anyone tends to think from the perspective of their affiliation.
Woo Sang-won was no different.
Although he wasn’t omitting the win-win basis, from his viewpoint, Guseong Electronics was enjoying many benefits thanks to Lee Hyun-woo.
On the other hand, Lee Hyun-woo couldn’t help but mention the backlash.
“The concern is, as we know from experience, pushing too much at once tends to create overload somewhere. Memory semiconductors, mobile phones, servers, and data centers. Guseong Electronics, which originally focused on home appliances, is now handling too many fields. Their employees must be having a tough time.”
This was a thought he had after hearing a recent expression about pouring one’s soul into work.
‘When an organization becomes bloated, a phenomenon of decreased productivity occurs. Overcoming this will be your brother’s ability.’
Recalling Parkinson’s Law, Lee Hyun-woo pondered.
Maybe it wasn’t just a problem for Guseong Electronics, but also for Jungle.
“Should we start establishing subsidiaries too?”
“Pardon?”
“I think it would be more efficient to manage the company by making each field independent.”
“Well, that is true, but I think it’s premature for our company…”
Woo Sang-won had thought about subsidiaries before Lee Hyun-woo brought it up.
About a year ago, Lee Hyun-woo had mentioned that when subsidiaries were established, he wanted to appoint capable people like Woo Sang-won as heads, offering them significant stock options and making them very independent subsidiaries.
‘I’m not ready yet.’
Initially, he was excited and eagerly learned management skills from Lee Hyun-woo, but now he felt many shortcomings.
In reality, it was better for Lee Hyun-woo to be the head and make critical decisions, even if it was somewhat inefficient.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, I think it’s a matter to decide after we go public.”
“After going public…”
Although issues might arise then, Lee Hyun-woo nodded as Woo Sang-won, Jungle’s second-in-command, expressed opposition.
“Alright, then. We’ll discuss it after we go public.”
Honestly, at this point, dispersing leadership was what Lee Hyun-woo wanted the most.
Seeing Kim Tae-hyun he just met made it clearer.
‘That brother is going on a 14-day honeymoon.’
He was really envious.
Lee Hyun-woo also took vacations occasionally, but taking so many days off was nearly impossible.
This was because complete leadership dispersion had not yet been achieved.
On the other hand, Guseong Electronics seemed well-divided in leadership, allowing long absences despite having a piled-up workload.
‘I don’t need to feel guilty towards that brother.’
He had worried that he was overloading Kim Tae-hyun with work, but it was just a needless concern.
The next day, news came that the completion date for the data center was confirmed, and Lee Hyun-woo immediately called Jamie Wang.
“It seems the data center will be completed next Wednesday.”
(That’s great. I was planning to visit Korea to check anyway.)
So that was why he called the previous day.
Thinking this inwardly, Lee Hyun-woo said.
“Oh, you have a schedule in Korea.”
(Yes, I do.)
Quickly, Lee Hyun-woo pieced together Jamie Wang’s plan like a puzzle in his mind.
‘He’s probably not coming to Korea just for the data center.’
Recently, Billy Kates and Steven Jobs, who visited Korea, also visited multiple places.
Since it was a long trip, Jamie Wang would likely do the same.
So he asked subtly.
“Are you only going to see the data center? If you have time, I’d like to show you around.”
(Ah… haha, that’s not the case. Thank you for your consideration, but I have other places to visit as well.)
“Oh, I see…”
(Actually, I’m also working on entering the Chinese market, and I need to visit Japan as well. Plus, I plan to check on Taiwan and Hong Kong too.)
“Wow, visiting five places in one go?”
(That’s how it turned out. So, I’ll be away for a long time.)
Jamie Wang’s voice also conveyed a sense of regret.
Perhaps he wanted to go around with Lee Hyun-woo like last time at Gyeongbokgung Palace.
On the other hand, Lee Hyun-woo started to feel envious again.
‘Even if it’s for work, visiting five places would take at least ten days. Being able to be away for that long…’
After hanging up, he decided.
Lee Hyun-woo would also attempt combining a business trip with an extended vacation.
The process of rationalization in his mind was complete.
‘Leadership dispersion doesn’t happen just anytime.’
When there’s urgency, it’s best to learn through trial and error.
Therefore, if Lee Hyun-woo leaves, the remaining people will handle things well on their own.
