Not long after, the process of separating the subsidiaries began.
Although the administrative procedures would take more time, Lee Hyun-woo wanted to start by artificially dividing the workspace and personnel.
“CEO Woo, please move into the building just before this one for 【Jungle Communication】.”
He first mentioned 【Jungle Communication】, which included the portal site 【Jungle】. This division contained Woo Sang-won’s direct development team and naturally included the portal site part and the online shopping part.
Additionally, some teams from the external cooperation, financial, and design parts would be relocated.
In fact, these divisions would also move to Lee Jung-woo’s subsidiary centered around the game part, be partially included in Jang Yoo-chul’s subsidiary focused on content, and be split and taken to Oh Min-woo’s subsidiary centered on big data.
While each part would be reduced immediately, there was a new employee recruitment in the second half of the year anyway.
“The concept this time is ‘young Kkondae.’”
Lee Hyun-woo, of the future holding company 【Jungle Holdings】, housed the talent development part and briefly tilted his head listening to the part leader Goo Man-ho’s explanation.
“Young Kkondae?”
“Yes, that’s right. Although the term Kkondae may sound somewhat negative, I see it as a necessary complementary element for our company.”
“Let’s hear the reason.”
“From the chairman to each subsidiary’s CEO, none of them are Kkondae.”
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“It means they don’t try to control individual freedom. Regardless of position, anyone can present any idea and it’s all ‘okay.’ Because of this, our company’s parts and teams are very creative, but there is also considerable instability. Individual outbursts could harm the company’s image.”
“Ah… So, the concept of a young Kkondae means hiring talents with some FM elements.”
“Yes, exactly. If we fill each division with unique talents again, the instability I mentioned could arise.”
Now understanding, Lee Hyun-woo nodded.
“I like it. Unlimited freedom could lead to recklessness, so having ‘young Kkondae’ who follow the manual is necessary.”
“I thought that mixing it would be most desirable, so I set it up that way. I’m glad you like it. Although I’m not sure if you genuinely like it.”
This time, he couldn’t help but smile bitterly.
It was because it was hard to judge whether Lee Hyun-woo, who responded ‘okay’ to anything said earlier, genuinely liked it.
‘We’ll only know once we try…’
Everything can only be known once the lid is opened.
If you’re afraid of it, you won’t nod, and if you’re curious and want to check, you’ll listen to opinions.
Currently, all the executives of 【Jungle】 are closer to the latter.
Was it because of that?
Reading the business plans of the subsidiaries to be separated was quite enjoyable later on.
【Jungle Communication】’s 1999 Project
Continuous Upgrade of PDA Operating System
Continuous Upgrade of E-Book Reader Operating System
Implementing Real-Time Search Keywords on the Portal Site Main Page by the Minute
…(continued)…
Woo Sang-won had sat in the second-highest position in the group for quite a long time.
Hence, he seemed to realize how hard it was to initiate new works.
The business plan only contained upgrades of the current ongoing projects.
On the other hand, people who hadn’t experienced it yet had quite a few new projects.
First, his younger brother Lee Jung-woo aimed to incorporate numerous games into the platform 【Jungle Game】.
‘Even just 【Space War】 would be no joke, right?’
【Jungle Game】, which serviced strategy simulation games as well as Go, Janggi, and Omok, planned to venture into RPG, sports, and FPS next year.
‘Are they really planning to develop all of this?’
If so, he could already see Lee Jung-woo overworking.
“Sigh…”
A sigh escaped, but he had no intention of getting involved.
When he decided to separate the subsidiaries, he intended to respect each CEO’s independence as much as possible.
‘What will Yoo-chul do?’
Jang Yoo-chul took charge of the subsidiary 【Jungle Content】.
And looking at the next year’s plan centered on 【Jungle Music】, which is almost synonymous with content, he seemed similar to Woo Sang-won in style.
There was one difference, though.
- Plan to acquire a cable channel depending on the financial situation.
This idea wasn’t bad, and there was a reason for it.
- Observing the success of the 【Space War】 league, we confirmed the demand for a game-specific broadcast. Additionally, we plan to acquire an existing music-specific broadcast to operate two channels.
It was a rational plan, deserving a round of applause.
Lee Hyun-woo’s expression, which had naturally turned into a smile, hardened as he looked at Oh Min-woo’s report.
- Plan to create digital currency by processing 【Jungle】’s coin concept. This plan is not just for next year but is a long-term project, designed with the thought that our company needs to lead the electronic currency era that will arrive someday.
No matter how he looked at it, it seemed to mean cryptocurrency.
‘Could it be that art coin would come from this guy?’
Art coin, which stirred up the younger generation in South Korea.
Lee Hyun-woo had never invested in it himself, but he had paid attention to it as a significant social controversy at one time.
The concept of cryptocurrency originally appeared in the 20th century, but it was actually created in 2008.
‘If Oh Min-woo pulls this forward, I might bet my entire fortune on it.’
Curiously, he wondered when the cryptocurrency plan would start and where it would end.
Oh Min-woo also listed the most short and long-term projects, making him deeply worried.
He feared Oh Min-woo might collapse from overwork.
Still, by dividing things like this, the workload that had been concentrated on Lee Hyun-woo began to disperse gradually.
With the busy October gone and November arriving, he started to have evenings to himself, and by December, he could even leave work on time.
‘Wow… Finally, it feels like things are back to the way they were.’
This year really felt like living a past life.
There were many things he started, and sometimes the seeds he planted sprouted, and while dealing with those, it was already the end of the year!
‘Last year around this time, I was in Jeju Island.’
It had been a year since the 【Jungle】 headquarters relocation project to Jeju Island began.
In the meantime, they had garnered the cooperation of the government and local governments and had only completed the preparation of basic infrastructure.
In short, it meant that it was still far from over.
He thought the desk administration was slow, but it was slower than expected.
They planned for 2 to 5 years at the earliest, but it could take even longer.
‘At this rate, my early retirement might come sooner.’
It wasn’t just Lee Hyun-woo who thought so.
After two weeks, with some free time, he had a drinking session with the CEOs of the subsidiaries, including Woo Sang-won, and the topic of the Jeju Island headquarters came up.
“Hey, we haven’t even broken ground yet. Why is progress so slow?”
“Exactly. I’m frustrated too. Sometimes I think it would be better if I were a public official.”
“Why don’t you go ahead and become the president?”
“What a terrible thing to say!”
At Oh Min-woo’s absurd remark, Lee Hyun-woo’s expression turned serious.
Not just anyone could become the president, and the fate of South Korean presidents usually wasn’t pleasant, so he couldn’t take it as a compliment.
“I’m joking. I’m joking. Why are you taking it so seriously? Anyway, with the progress so slow, I have no choice but to stay with hyung for a while.”
【Jungle】 had three buildings.
One was a 23-story building they moved into last, another was a 10-story building they moved into in the middle, and the last was a 7-story building they moved into first.
With four subsidiaries apart from the headquarters, it would be nice to have four buildings, but circumstances weren’t favorable, so they housed three subsidiaries in the 23-story building.
Naturally, Lee Hyun-woo’s 【Jungle Holdings】, Lee Jung-woo’s 【Jungle Game】, and finally Oh Min-woo’s 【Jungle Data】 were together.
For reference, Woo Sang-won’s 【Jungle Communication】 was in the 10-story building, and Jang Yoo-chul’s 【Jungle Content】 was in the 7-story building.
“But it’s not just desk administration that’s slow; we also aren’t as fast as we used to be when doing something.”
“You feel that way too?”
“Oh? You too?”
“Everyone thinks the same.”
“There are so many procedures to go through, so it seems dangerous to simplify them.”
“Right, right.”
“When you’re in a high position, it becomes a concern.”
Listening to the stories of the rookie CEOs, Lee Hyun-woo and Woo Sang-won looked at each other and laughed.
They had felt this very feeling in the past.
They wanted to proceed quickly, and they could actually push things forward, but skipping procedures made them conscious of the subordinates’ opinions.
“As the one who became a CEO first among us, let me give you some advice: you need to get used to that speed.”
“Did you feel the same way when we were handling things, feeling frustrated and wondering why it was taking so long?”
“I can’t say I didn’t. But there was an opposite feeling too.”
“Opposite?”
“Going too fast could lead to big trouble.”
“Oh…”
“That’s why I told you to get used to the speed.”
Today’s conversation was mainly a back-and-forth between Lee Hyun-woo and Oh Min-woo.
Whenever the conversation paused, they would take a drink and continue.
“Ah, today’s beer is good. Still, since we took some of hyung’s tasks, it feels rewarding. The 14-day, 15-night honeymoon you mentioned won’t be a problem, right?”
“Yes, thanks to you, I can catch my breath. However…”
“…….”
“Never mind.”
“What were you going to say? You know I can’t sleep if you stop mid-sentence.”
“I was just going to say I won’t interfere with the plans you all have made.”
“I’m fine with it. I have a strong mental state, so I can handle whatever you say.”
“Really?”
“Yes, really.”
“Then reduce some of your projects.”
“…….”
“See? Your eyes are shaking side to side, showing your mental state is wavering.”
“Is it too ambitious?”
“Well… I think so, but it depends on how efficiently you can carry it out, showing your capability.”
“Ah, you’re really confusing me.”
Actually, he spoke vaguely like this to minimize his influence.
Maybe because of that, Oh Min-woo made a bold promise.
“I’ll show you. A subsidiary that handles a lot of work but doesn’t neglect work-life balance.”
Lee Hyun-woo laughed.
It seemed like a highly impossible challenge.
‘No, this is just my fixed idea.’
Just because it was hard for Lee Hyun-woo didn’t mean Oh Min-woo couldn’t do it.
The new subsidiaries would vary according to each CEO’s work style and philosophy.
“If that happens, the headquarters will benchmark the subsidiary.”
Hoping for such a day, Lee Hyun-woo raised his glass.
“Well, this year has also passed. Cheers!”
“Cheers!”
“To our success!”
“Let’s do well next year too!”
“Jungle is the best!”
