Lee Hyun-woo asked Kim Ah-young once more, just to be sure, as the answer came too easily.
“You’re not just saying it’s a friend’s business, right? Is this business really worth it?”
“Absolutely not. I only heard for a bit, but it seems really impressive.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s not like 【Seorabeol Hotel】 is the only customer, right? To be precise, it seems like the hotel industry and other industries could use this storage technology as well.”
“Yeah, exactly. For now, you’re the only close executive friend I have, so I tested it out on you. Why wouldn’t other industries need this apart from the hotel industry?”
Kim Ah-young nodded with a brighter expression, though it was unclear why she was feeling good.
“Yeah, I thought the same as you. And as you said, if the movement of graphics becomes frequent due to high-speed internet, this could be a gold mine.”
Lee Hyun-woo laughed at Kim Ah-young’s answer.
At the same time, he looked at Lee Jung-woo and Oh Min-woo, who had been listening to the conversation until now.
They were momentarily at a loss for words.
Why were Lee Jung-woo and Oh Min-woo suddenly speechless?
Perhaps it was because they were impressed by Lee Hyun-woo’s plan to commercially utilize this cloud concept.
After a few seconds of silence, Oh Min-woo quickly spoke up.
“So you came here to inform us about this business potential.”
“Wow, seriously, even though you’re my brother, I want to respect you.”
“Right. I didn’t understand the intention of forming the team into four and making them compete, but it was to make money.”
“Oh Min-woo, if you put it that way, what would my brother become?”
“But it’s the truth, isn’t it?”
“You’re just being too blunt.”
“Was I? Was I really?”
Lee Hyun-woo just smiled without answering Oh Min-woo’s question, and Kim Ah-young was once again surprised.
“Oh? Wait a minute. This idea came from these people?”
“That’s right. Oh, now that I think about it, I forgot to introduce them. These are our team leaders.”
“Oh… Hello.”
“I didn’t introduce them, did I? You met Team Leader Oh Min-woo last time at the nightclub, right? And this is Team Leader Lee Jung-woo. He’s also my younger brother.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“I met you at the nightclub last time, right?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Greetings were exchanged in a hurry.
In the midst of this, Kim Ah-young closely observed one person.
“He’s Hyun-woo’s younger brother?”
It was Lee Jung-woo.
Kim Ah-young unknowingly decided to get closer to him.
As if she was trying to imprint Lee Jung-woo’s face in her mind, she fixed her gaze on him before speaking again.
“But is it okay to tell an outsider like me about this internal idea?”
“Why not? It’s not like you’d sell our idea.”
“Of course not. What I mean is, shouldn’t you not tell other people this way, unlike me?”
It’s okay for me but not for others.
The conversation flowed somewhat illogically, but Lee Hyun-woo cheerfully responded to Kim Ah-young’s words.
“It’s just an idea stage right now. We don’t know if it will be commercially successful. Of course, I believe it will, but it seemed quite difficult to explain it to these two team leaders?”
“So that’s why you called me.”
“Exactly. That’s why I asked for your help. As a key executive of 【Seorabeol Hotel】, I wanted to show that you’re willing to invest in the technology we just mentioned.”
“Of course. So, did it succeed?”
“As long as you didn’t choose it out of loyalty.”
“Loyalty? Oh… I told you, it’s not like that. As soon as I heard it, I thought it was essential for us. But I found something more important than this technology.”
“What is it?”
“Your management style, or should I call it management philosophy, that I saw today? Anyway, the way you enjoy communicating with your employees and make horizontal decisions is really refreshing. People have been curious about the phenomenal growth of 【Jungle】, and now I see the secret.”
“That’s just you seeing it in a good light. Honestly, there’s still a long way to go.”
Am I starting to see Lee Hyun-woo through rose-tinted glasses?
From his recent words, humility and grand dreams were evident.
That’s why sometimes she would utter random things in front of Lee Hyun-woo, and once again, words slipped out of Kim Ah-young’s mouth without passing through her brain.
“I should be nicer to my employees from tomorrow. You have to apply what you learn right away.”
“Why not write a handwritten letter?”
“What? A handwritten letter?”
“Think about it. If the daughter of the group chief remembers each person’s name and actions and writes them a letter, how moved would they be?”
“True. Wow, I’ve got another great idea. How can you think of such things? I should start writing it as soon as I get home. I’ll leave now before I forget. Is that okay?”
“Sure, I’ll contact you later.”
Kim Ah-young’s smile widened at the words that Lee Hyun-woo would contact her first.
Until now, she had always been the one to contact him first.
On the other hand, Lee Hyun-woo felt a growing desire to get closer after seeing various aspects of Kim Ah-young recently.
“I thought she was just aloof and cold, but the more I get to know her, the more I see her pure side.”
For this reason, he unknowingly said he would contact her first.
However, just as Kim Ah-young left, Oh Min-woo’s sarcastic remark reached his ears,
“Handwritten letter? You’re recommending something you haven’t done yourself.”
He couldn’t help but laugh.
“Why? Should I write you a handwritten letter too?”
“Stop it, just hearing it makes me cringe. I meant you should be nice to me too.”
“Aren’t I nice to you? I often go to the nightclub with you.”
“Well, that’s true. Probably no other company has a boss who goes to nightclubs with a specific employee.”
“Technically, you’re not an employee. Not back then, not now.”
“Still not?”
“I’ll acknowledge you after we move to the new building.”
“Hey, what’s up with your brother? Sometimes it seems like he’d agree to anything, but other times, once he draws a line, he doesn’t erase it.”
Oh Min-woo shook his head and clicked his tongue.
But Lee Jung-woo, whom he called, remained silent for a long time before finally speaking.
“I don’t know, man. I’ve been in shock since I found out our brother is friends with the daughter of【Guseong Group】.”
This was the reason for his silence.
Oh Min-woo, seemingly surprised, asked,
“You didn’t know?”
“No, I didn’t.”
“She even came to the nightclub last time.”
“Exactly. I was shocked again when I heard she saw you at the nightclub. Once again, I realize how amazing our brother is.”
“Alright, you two get to work now. I need to get going too.”
As soon as the conversation shifted to how amazing he was, Lee Hyun-woo cut it off as if there was no need to listen further.
“Going?”
“Hyung, are you leaving?”
“Yeah, today was an exceptional case of doing business after work. Now I need to enjoy my life again.”
After saying this, Lee Hyun-woo turned his back.
As he walked out, he recalled the recent situation in his mind.
“Handwritten letter, huh…”
The reason he mentioned it without thinking was because he had heard about Kim Ah-young’s story in his past life.
It was, of course, the story of her writing handwritten letters to her employees.
It might have been a PR move by 【Guseong Group】 to promote the eldest daughter, but he didn’t think it was entirely fabricated.
Although he didn’t know when this started, if she wasn’t doing it now, and if it was something she would do later, it could be considered bringing it forward a bit.
“If my suggestion helps my female friend gain popularity in her company, that’s even better.”
Moreover, by doing so, couldn’t he gradually change the mindset held by some of Korea’s conglomerates?
In his past life, Lee Hyun-woo had observed and heard about several conglomerates.
Some of them were decent people, but others were utterly oblivious to the circumstances below them.
This gave rise to a new term.
It was “glass floor.”
This term is the opposite of the “glass ceiling” that one can never break through from below.
It meant that no matter what reckless actions they took and ruined their business, they would never fall into the life of a commoner.
In such a situation, they naturally viewed their company as their property and had a strong tendency to run it however they liked.
The 【Deokseong Group】, where Lee Hyun-woo used to work, almost disintegrated due to a sibling rivalry.
“The existence of owner risk is always a burden on the Korean economy.”
Moreover, the outbreak of the foreign exchange crisis was partly due to the reckless borrowing management of the conglomerates.
With that in mind, when he got home, he pulled out a notebook and wrote,
<What if there were no owner risks?>
It was a simple note, but not an easy task.
What power does the current Lee Hyun-woo have to change the structure of Korean companies?
Instead,
This seemed like a more realistic goal.
Or maybe even this was an overreaching goal.
Still, there was a reason he wrote it down.
“It sounds fun.”
After all, it was a life he got to live twice.
If he couldn’t do things he couldn’t in his past life and things he regretted, then so be it.
Then, let’s take it a step further.
<Reform conglomerates through education, foster or enlighten professional managers.>
He could write down a detailed plan step by step.
First, start by reforming the conglomerates I know.
Second, currently, there are Kim Tae-hyun and Kim Ah-young of 【Guseong Group】, and Choi Sun-hwa, the daughter of 【Aejeong Group】.
Third, get close to them and indoctrinate them with the lives of ordinary people and proper management, almost like brainwashing.
Fourth, don’t overdo it. That is, approach it with the mindset that if it doesn’t work out, so be it. Because there’s no need to increase my stress levels.
He wrote this much for now.
Then he started writing about the second part,
This was not difficult.
At the very least, 【Jungle】 could become a training ground for professional managers.
That is, if he could teach his current management philosophy to Woo Sang-won, Jang Yoo-chul, and others, and eventually set them up independently.
Of course, whether they went independent or not was up to them, but looking back at his past life, most of the core members of IT companies eventually started their own businesses.
Moreover, social enlightenment could be sufficiently achieved once the portal site of 【Jungle】 grew.
In the future, the portal site would hold more significant influence than the media.
“At this rate, maybe we can avoid or significantly reduce the impact of the foreign exchange crisis?”
He thought it was possible.
The fundamental problem of the foreign exchange crisis was the reckless borrowing management of the conglomerates, among other issues, but the aftershock was ultimately the withdrawal of foreign capital.
But what if the withdrawal of foreign capital did not happen?
That is, if Korean conglomerates and professional managers could mitigate risks and show resilience during the foreign exchange crisis that hit Southeast Asia?
He could combine this with another model.
“Singapore and Malaysia also experienced the foreign exchange crisis, but they didn’t go through high-intensity restructuring like our country did.”
With that thought, Lee Hyun-woo excitedly wrote down his ideas and realized how ridiculous and lengthy they were.
“What does it matter? If it doesn’t work out, so be it.”
One thing was certain: it seemed interesting.
Isn’t that enough for a second life?
Lee Hyun-woo smiled as he closed his notebook.
“Let’s not rush. I’ll see how it goes while doing my thing.”
