Samsung Electronics announced on Friday that TM Roh, the company's mobile boss, has been appointed as a new co-CEO and head of its device experience division, which is in charge of the company's home appliance, TV, and mobile phone divisions.
After co-CEO Han Jong Hee's unexpected death in March, Samsung had been running under a sole-CEO structure. With this appointment, the company is returning to its regular co-CEO structure, which splits management of its chip and consumer divisions.
Since Han's passing in April, Roh has been functioning as the leader of the consumer business. Senior analyst Ryu Young-ho of NH Investment & Securities stated that Samsung had made a "safe and predictable" decision and that the appointment seemed to be intended to increase competitiveness.
Memory chips and mobile have been Samsung's best performing businesses so far this year, according to Ryu, and the company is indicating that it wants to give both divisions more weight by appointing TM Roh as co-CEO.
He claimed that while the market is favorable, the memory division is also making headway as Samsung strives to close the gap with competitors in the battle for AI chips under the direction of co-CEO Jun Young-hyun.
The reorganization follows the hiring earlier this month of a new head of Samsung's business support office, which serves chairman Jay Y. Lee and is a crucial decision making body at the tech giant.
Within Samsung Group, the largest conglomerate in South Korea with operations ranging from chips to cellphones, ships, and pharmaceuticals, the body serves as a strategy unit that acts as a mini control tower and coordinates between business units and affiliates, according to analysts.
As of 0105 GMT, Samsung Electronics shares had down 4.2%, while the benchmark KOSPI had dropped 3.2%. Analysts noted that Asian equities generally declined after U.S. tech shares plummeted due to worries over AI valuations and as U.S. jobs data failed to provide clarity on the interest rate outlook. They said the move was unrelated to the leadership changes.
