LG Electronics keeps Nam as CEO for another term

(ATTN: UPDATES throughout; ADDS details)
By Lee Youkyung
SEOUL, Dec. 18 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's LG Electronics Inc. said Friday the
company's chief executive officer will remain for a second term, as the firm eyes
a larger share of the global handset market and moves to find new growth engines.
Nam Yong, 61, who was tapped to head the world's third-largest mobile handset
maker in January 2007, will remain in his current position, according to the
company.
Nam's major goal during his initial three-year tenure was to increase the
company's efficiency by allocating investment capital profitably, which is likely
to have been a key factor in LG's decision to keep him for another term, industry
observers said.
"Since Nam took the helm, LG has gained a larger share of the handset market and
its brand gained more recognition," said Kim Woon-ho, an analyst at Prudential
Investment & Securities in Seoul. "Though Nam cannot take all the credit, it has
certainly fared well under his management."
Also Friday, LG released an annual management reshuffle and reorganization plan,
promoting 38 executives and creating a Customer Relationship division reporting
directly to the CEO, to better manage its relations with corporate clients.
Other subsidiaries of LG Group, a major family-run conglomerate in South Korea,
announced their annual reshuffle on Friday.
LG Display Co., the world's second-largest maker of display panels, kept its
chief executive Kwon Young-soo for another term.
LG Innotek Co., a subsidiary of South Korea's LG Group manufacturing electronics
components for mobile phones and computers, promoted Ryu Si-gwan, a head of the
company's light emitting diode (LED) division to executive vice president. Ryu
will oversee the company's affairs as it ramps up its LED business, analysts
said.
ylee@yna.co.kr
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