© Samsung Electronics The new president of Samsung Electronics, Lee Young-hee, is the first woman from outside the family to hold the position. Image provided by Samsung ElectronicsSEOUL, Dec. 8 (UPI) -- Samsung Electronics has elected the conglomerate's first female president not related to the owner's family.
Lee Yong-hee has been promoted to vice president in a series of promotions, with six others announced Monday. Samsung Group of Companies is the largest conglomerate in South Korea. Founded in 1938.
Hotel Shilla CEO Lee Boo Jin and former Samsung C&T president Lee Sa Hyun also hold presidential titles, but they are sisters to Samsung president Lee Jae Young.
Lee Young Hee, who is not related to the family, will lead the global marketing arm of the tech giant's hardware division.
Lee joined Samsung Electronics in 2007 after working at L'Oreal. He is credited with successfully promoting the Galaxy smartphone brand.
"By appointing a high-performing female leader to a leadership position, we are demonstrating our commitment to developing talented female employees," Samsung said in a statement.
According to Samsung, two of Lee Jae-young's senior vice presidents, Vice President Han Jeong-hee and President Kyung Ge-hyung, will remain at the helm of the world's largest smartphone and memory chip maker.
Industry watchers say the appointment of Samsung's first female president is overdue, but it's an encouraging sign for South Korea, a country famous for its high glass ceilings.
South Korean consultancy Leaders Index reported that the proportion of female directors in the country's 353 largest companies in terms of revenue was just 6.3% in the first quarter of this year.
This is an improvement from 3.8 percent on 2019, but still ranks lowest among OECD members.
South Korea had the highest pay gap among its members, with women earning a third less than men in 2021, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
By comparison, women in the United States earned 16.9% less, Canada 16.7%, and the United Kingdom 14.3% less. Belgium had the smallest gender pay gap at 3.8%, while the OECD average was 12%.
"The vast majority of the country's top businessmen are men. With that in mind, we appreciate Samsung's decision," Kim Sang-kyung, president of the Korean Women in Finance Network, a high-ranking women's association in the country, told UPI. banking sector. Korean News.
"We hope other companies will follow Samsung's lead and do the same. South Korean companies should increase their gender diversity in line with the global trend."
On Tuesday, LG announced the appointment of Lee Jeong-e as its first female chief executive.
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