Hyundai becomes younger with 1 in 3 new executives in their 40s

South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Group, which owns Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp., has carried out a year-end mid-tier executive reshuffle marked by a growing number of young new faces to breathe fresh air into its aging leadership.

The automotive group said on Tuesday its latest executive shakeup affects 224 employees, a relatively small-scale personnel change given the growing external uncertainties, including a global economic slowdown.

One third of the 176 new executives are employees in their 40s who have performed outstandingly over the past year, the group said.

Three group senior vice presidents were promoted to executive vice president: They are Karim Habib, head of Kia’s global design center; Lee Young-tack, head of Hyundai Motor’s Asia-Pacific region; and Song Min-kyu (Mike Song), chief operating officer of Hyundai’s premium brand Genesis.

Also among Tuesday’s high-profile personnel changes is the appointment of Executive Vice President Kim Heung-soo as Hyundai’s newly established global strategy officer (GSO).

Kim will be responsible for analyzing the latest technology trends, establishing strategies for the group’s mobility, semiconductor and electrification projects, and spearheading smart city initiatives, according to the automotive group.

HYUNDAI ROTEM SAW A RECORD NUMBER OF PROMOTIONS

Hyundai Rotem Co., the group’s heavy industry maker specializing in railway and defense vehicles, saw the highest number of promotions, with nine executives either newly appointed or promoted, after a multi-billion-dollar tank deal with Poland.

The group said seven female employees were promoted to executives, bringing the group’s female executive count to 39.

Earlier this month, Samsung Electronics Co., in its year-end executive reshuffle, saw its first female president since Jay Y. Lee took the helm of Korea's top conglomerate in October.

A generational shift at the executive level is becoming an industry-wide trend in Korea. In recent years, other large business groups including Samsung, LG and SK have increasingly tapped younger people for key promotions.

Write to Il-Gue Kim at Black0419@hankyung.com
In-Soo Nam edited this article.