Samsung's rise under late Lee Kun-hee's leadership

삼성 이건희 회장 별세 그가 남긴 업적Lee Kun-hee played a pivotal role in helping South Korea rise as a global leader in high-tech manufacturing.From a modest beginning, under Lee's leadership, Samsung branched out into numerous sectors, and is now a world-leading, multi-billion dollar player in the global smartphone and semiconductor industries.Min Suk-hyen reports.Samsung Group chairman Lee Kun-hee died early Sunday at the age of 78.He's widely credited as being the driving force behind the tech giant's spectacular global expansion.In 1987, at the age of 45, Lee inherited the Samsung crown after the passing of his father Lee Byung-chul, who founded the company.At that point, Lee vowed to make Samsung strong through innovation."I will develop Samsung into a world-class company through challenging and future-oriented management."In 1993, Lee gathered a group of Samsung executives in Frankfurt to guide them through the corporation's future path.Known as the Frankfurt Declaration, he demanded major reforms, saying everything must change, except for his employees' wives and children.He also stressed the need for quality over quantity.This was one of his key management philosophies pushing Samsung forward... but it wasn't easy.Being chairman for the past five years and so, there should be no defective products. Focus on product quality, not quantity.To ensure Samsung became synonymous with quality, Lee ordered a bonfire be built to burn 20 million dollars' worth of defective goods... to show the company was determined to make quality its over-riding goal.Under Lee Kun-hee's leadership, Samsung blossomed into one of the world's biggest and most well-known tech companies.During his three decades as chairman, Samsung Group gained worldwide brand recognition, becoming the leading global player in industries such as TVs, smartphones, and semiconductors.Min Suk-hyen Arirang News.