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Newspaper Article
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Expectations for President-elect
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By Tom Coyner
Korea Times
January 11, 2008
The presidential election of Lee Myung-bak has placed
South Korea in the positive limelight. No Korean political development has
generated more interest within the international business community since
the North tested what was presumed to be an atomic weapon. And if one
disregards Pyongyang's ongoing, attention-grabbing antics, Lee's election is
probably the biggest event for us doing business in Korea since the IMF
crisis.
These are heady times for those expatriates whose livelihood depends on how
well they and their companies perform in South Korea. Daily we read of what
comes across as very sensible, long overdue intended changes in the national
government once MB Lee takes office next month. Nonetheless, as I talked
with various business professionals and journalists, some interesting issues
surfaced ― as well as some interesting reflections on doing what business
pros need to contend when working in Korea.
For example, there has been a great deal of discussion about educational
reform ― most particularly at the secondary level. From what I can gather,
the two primary concerns are overall improvement of the education system and
the need to find a way so that children may have some kind of a reasonable
childhood, rather than the current purgatory of forced education, often in
the regimen of 18 or more hours a day.
Some of Korea's top minds are looking at ways to give Korean universities
and high schools more independence and to create more magnet schools for
gifted children, etc. There is also a reexamination of why the hagwon
cram schools are so necessary for children to attain the necessary
(competitive) knowledge to pass university examinations. Many of these
proposals are good to excellent in intent and feasibility. But they are at
best band aids that fail to address the root cause: the lack of career
opportunities for women.
Based on some thirty plus years of observations and conversations on this
topic, I see the problem getting worse rather than better. Today,
with eighty percent of high school graduates going to college and many
bright to brilliant woman being effectively denied long-term employment as
they enter their motherhood years, Korea is fostering a very large pool of
extremely intelligent and highly educated women who are effectively forced
to live vicariously through their children's forced march toward their goal
of maintaining ― or bringing ― the family along to the top of Korea society
via admission to top-ranked universities. It really doesn't even matter that
the actual educational quality at even the best of Korean universities ranks
about slightly above average worldwide. Degrees from Seoul National, Yonsei
or Korea University, etc. are the admission tickets to working in Korea's
best companies and/or introductions to the best of potential marriage
partners.
Given this, these highly educated housewives often meet over tea to
essentially brag about how their little darlings are progressing in life (on
behalf of their families) and what genuinely incredible sacrifices the
mothers are making to give their children whatever competitive advantage
their offspring may have in Korea's cradle-to-grave rat race. As such, it
really doesn't matter what kind of education reform the next government may
put into place. These frustrated women will find ways to work with or around
whatever system any administration constructs to give their children the
competitive edge.
So, my conclusion to all of this is that employers need to find ways to
provide women with childcare and rearing support so as to retain some of
their best employees as they enter the prime productivity periods of their
potential, long-term careers. Having an artificial turnover created by women
being forced out of work in their mid 30s may be good for giving younger
college graduates employment opportunities, but the costs of excessive
recruitment and training of employees probably outweigh the costs of
child-rearing related benefits. Actually, many multinational firms have long
ago figured this out. But if most Korean companies did the same, there would
be less need for hagwon, forced family break-ups as mother and
children study English abroad, etc. Quite possibly, over some time, Korea
could become a more normal society with women more actively contributing to
the overall prosperity of society while allowing their children to live
normal childhoods. But that will only happen when most working mothers are
genuinely given full career opportunities.
Let's now consider something completely different. There is some minor
anxiety about Lee Myung-bak and his transitional team potentially pushing
back the clock a bit to the days of authoritarianism. One of the undeniable
achievements of President Roh Moo-hyun has been making the government less
authoritarian and the strengthening of civil liberties. While many people
have benefited from these changes, President Roh inadvertently diminished
the authority of his government and himself. This lack of authority is part
of the reason why he was not more successful and why is ideological
opposite, Lee Myung-bak, did so well in December's election.
Like most people, Koreans dislike authoritarianism but respect authority.
More than most people, those of a Confucian tradition feel even more so,
since authority in East Asia also encompasses responsibility to one's minors
as well as to one's superiors. Be the person a teacher, a president or a
department manager, if there is a loss of authority, those below him or her
lose respect and the group loses its potential.
In many ways, during the past decade, the South Korean government has lost
much of its hard-earned respect both at home and abroad. Authority was
widely divested without sufficient monitoring and consistency of long-term
purpose. Both Koreans and foreigners were regularly surprised and confused
by the government's initiatives ― and many initiatives essentially
dissipated over time due to a lack of coherent administration. Eventually,
much of the citizenry lost its respect for the Blue House. Roh Moo-hyun
probably had his heart in the right place, but his experience may be a good
case study for expatriate executives to consider when managing Korean
employees.
For example, some concepts of "enlightened management'' can go afoul in East
Asia. Generous delegation of authority to subordinates can be easily
misinterpreted by one's staff as one's dereliction of one's
responsibilities. Sometimes foreign managers need to change their style to
be truly effective here. Again, that means being authoritarian in a
Confucian sense that encompasses being much more directive, but also being
much more concerned about one's employees' lives, than how one may manage
under similar experiences in the West.
Furthermore, the laid back foreign manager's minor quirks can easily be
exaggerated in his subordinates' eyes as being managerial or personal
weaknesses or faults. Once that happens, it can be almost impossible to
reverse the trend and repair the damage. I have seen this happen to foreign
managers in both Japan and Korea ranging from mid level to senior executive
ranks. So, if one is not careful, one could be replaced by a more
"authoritarian'' individual. Or, in the very least, face major employee
turnover.
In this column, I have focused on just two sets of expectations with their
implications from which one can possibly learn. As we move through this
transitional time when many new ideas are being advocated, please try taking
a few moments to consider how these macro changes may impact your immediate
environment. Then consider why these changes are being made and what
lessons may be learned as you manage your business in Korea.
Tom Coyner is president of Soft Landing Korea, a consulting group
focusing on sales and human resources issues. He is
co-author of Mastering Business in Korea: A
Practical Guide.
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