Carrying on the challenge and humanism emphasized by their grandfathers, Chung Eui-sun and Chung Ju-young.

Euisun Chung, Chairman of Hyundai, Gains Attention for His Entrepreneurial Spirit Similar to Chung Ju-yung
Expanding Business Domain through ‘Bold Challenges’
Emphasizing ‘People’ with Worker-Friendly Factories and Informal Communication

Chairman Euisun Chung of Hyundai Motor Group is drawing attention for his entrepreneurial spirit, similar to his grandfather, the late Chairman Chung Ju-yung. Industry insiders predict that, like his grandfather, Chairman Chung will take Hyundai Motor Group to the next level.

‘There are trials, but no failures’…Continuing Bold Challenges

The first managerial DNA that Chairman Chung inherited is ‘challenge’.

The one word that encapsulates the late Chairman Chung’s management history is ‘challenge’. The late Chairman Chung established ‘Ado Service’, an auto repair shop that can be considered the predecessor of Hyundai Motor Group, as his first challenge. Five years later, the company changed its name to Hyundai Motor Industrial Company, using ‘Hyundai’ in its mission for the first time. In 1975, it developed its first proprietary model, the ‘Pony’. The Pony, produced in 1975, earned the title of Hyundai’s first independently produced model and South Korea’s first domestic car.

The late Chairman Chung ventured into various business sectors, starting from automobile manufacturing to construction and shipbuilding. In particular, in the 1970s, he made daring challenges, such as securing a loan from Barclays Bank with a 500-won bill featuring a turtle ship, and receiving a ship order with only a photo of a sandy beach in Ulsan, where there was no shipyard.

Chairman Euisun Chung is also continuing the bold challenges, no less than his grandfather. After taking office as the Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group in 2020, Chung emphasized a ‘major transition to new growth engines’ in his New Year’s message in 2021. He declared expansion into various industries beyond the existing mainstay business of automobile manufacturing.

In fact, since Chung took office, Hyundai Motor has been changing the concept of cars through Software-Centric Vehicles (SDV). Also, it quickly expanded its business domain by establishing Supernal (an independent U.S. AAM corporation) for businesses it had not previously pursued, such as Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) and lunar exploration robots, and recruiting talents related to lunar exploration robots. While its growth trend as the ‘third largest car group in terms of sales volume’ is important, it is also accelerating the securing of future growth engines without settling for the status quo.

People Come First… ‘Humanism’ Backing Management Philosophy

Another value that Chairman Euisun Chung emphasizes in management is ‘humanism’.

At the groundbreaking ceremony for the new Ulsan Electric Vehicle (EV) factory held on the 13th, Chairman Chung said, “The grand dream of half a century ago could be realized because of the passion and dedication of numerous technicians in the field who worked silently for a long time,” and thanked the employees, saying, “I would like to express my gratitude to the senior technicians of the past and the employees of today.” During his approximately nine-minute speech, he spent about a minute emphasizing ‘people’. Furthermore, Chung revealed his plan to make the new EV factory a worker-friendly space.

On the same day, Hyundai also released an audio message containing the humanist philosophy of the late Chairman Chung, restored through artificial intelligence (AI).

In the restored message, the late Chairman Chung said, “We have the world’s best weapon, which is the world’s most excellent skilled workers,” and “I am confident that the day will come soon when our cars, Korean cars, will sweep the global market, thanks to the abilities and dedication of these excellent and wonderful people.” The message contained his will to leap forward as a global automobile company while showing the spirit of humanism.

Moreover, Chairman Euisun Chung suggested and implemented a ‘town hall-style’ New Year’s meeting early this year, allowing employees to communicate without formality. After the New Year’s meeting, he also visited the company cafeteria to have lunch with employees and casually chat about various topics, including their New Year’s resolutions.