The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 33



Only Krnovel

Episode 33. Research Institute (3)

The reason Taewo Group collapsed due to the foreign exchange crisis was because of massive borrowings.

I know this because I have seen the future, but Advisor Fukuda predicted the situation solely with his own analytical skills.

“Are you the grandson of Chairman Kim, who is said to have come as general manager this time?”

“I would like to formally greet you. My name is Minjae Kim, and I am now in charge of the research center. He is also the grandson of Chairman Kim Tae-jung.”

“By the way, have you seen the report I made?”

“I haven’t seen the report, but I heard about it through word of mouth. “I agree with the statement that massive borrowings put Taewo Group at risk.”

Advisor Fukuda sneered.

He looked like he couldn’t believe that I sympathized with his wishes.

“You sympathize with the report without even reading it? Okay, so what are you going to do if you sympathize with it? “The report I made went into the trash can without being reported to the group.”

“Because there is no one in the group who can see the value of the report. And there are people sitting in higher positions who don’t want the report to reach the chairman.”

“So you’re asking me to give the report to the chairman? Even so, Taewo Group will never change. “The Taewo Group is the most closed group despite calling for globalization.”

There is someone who knows my grandfather as well as I do.

I am probably the only person who strongly agrees with what Advisor Fukuda says.

“That’s why I’m trying to reform Taewoo Group’s closed structure.”

“How? “It would be better to cut Taewoo Group into pieces and sell it off.”

“I think so too. “More than 50 percent of Taewo Group’s affiliates will be sold to other companies.”

“… … “The chairman will never agree.”

“Wouldn’t it be better than the group going bankrupt? And all you have to do is create a situation where you have no choice but to sell. “Can I use the blackboard for a moment?”

I held up the chalk before even getting consent.

Then, he wrote down 40 affiliates on the blackboard and marked over 30 affiliates with an X.

Advisor Fukuda immediately understood the meaning written on the blackboard.

“Are you going to cut off the affiliates that marked the X? Hehe, I thought I was the craziest person in Taewo Group, but you are even worse than me. “I’m going to sell Taewo Shipbuilding, Heavy Industries, and even Electronics.”

“I will sell everything that can make money. I think the only things that can be of use to the Taewo Group right now are Taewo Motors and construction. Taewoo Shipbuilding is a bit of a waste, but if you think about the future, wouldn’t it be beneficial to use the money from selling Taewoo Shipbuilding to start a new business?”

For the first time, I brought out the things I had only thought about in my heart.

He is selling most of the affiliates that his grandfather worked hard to build.

It was the only rehabilitation plan for the Taewoo Group that had been thought of since its previous life.

The sword dance I do is not just about cutting off people like Director Lee.

It was a true dance of swords when even all of Taewoo Group’s vast affiliates had to be cut off.

“You’re much more radical than me. “I tried to improve the Taewo Group by stopping expansion of power and repaying loans.”

“Your method is the most stable and best method. But it takes too much time. “With Taewoo Group’s sales, it will take at least 10 years to repay all the loans.”

“Ten years isn’t that long of a time.”

Advisor Fukuda is approximately 70 years old.

For him, 10 years may not be a long time.

However, there are only two years left until the foreign exchange crisis.

“Japan’s economic bubble burst five years ago. And early this year, another economic crisis occurred. “There is no law preventing such an economic crisis from coming to Korea.”

“Do you think an economic crisis will come to Korea in the near future?”

“Korea’s large corporations are no different from glass castles. The debt ratio is over 400 percent, but no one takes issue with this. “It’s in a situation where it would collapse if someone just tapped it with their hand.”

The signs of a foreign exchange crisis have already begun.

The Quantum Fund has already begun to touch Mexico, followed by Southeast Asia.

If Southeast Asia collapses, Korea will be next.

“So, do we need to sell off all of our affiliates to lower our debt ratio and increase our cash holding ratio? “I agree with you, but Taewoo Group’s ranking in the business world will plummet.”

“It’s one step back to take two steps forward. “When an economic crisis occurs, Taewoo Group’s ranking in the business world can rise again if it purchases good companies with the funds it has accumulated in its coffers.”

“You are convinced that an economic crisis will inevitably come. “Confidence is very dangerous for an economist.”

It was the same thing I heard from my professor in college.

However, since I had seen the future, I could be certain, not just predict.

“Even if there is no economic crisis, if things continue like this, the Taewo Group will collapse on its own.”

“Then isn’t the best way to dispose of Taewoo Motors? “Just by disposing of Taewo Motors, Taewo Group’s debt ratio can be dramatically lowered.”

“Taewoo Motors is a company that is like a child to my grandfather. So, I plan to reorganize the Taewo Group with Taewo Motors as the center.”

“Aren’t other affiliates like children to the chairman?”

“It’s my grandfather’s vanity. This is a company created and acquired simply to increase the ranking of the business world. “Well, Grandpa, you probably don’t think so.”

Taewoo Group has over 40 affiliates.

Who has 40 children?

It’s just a decoration to fill vanity.

“If the Chairman finds out, he might try to cut ties with you.”

“So it has to be done in secret. “First, we will sell Taewoo Electronics first.”

“Taewoo Electronics accounts for a very large portion of the Taewoo Group. “We have many types of technologies and products, and we have over 100 overseas subsidiaries.”

“So aren’t there a lot of people who want to buy it? And I’m not just going to sell it. “We have to pack it as hard as possible and sell it at a high price.”

A manager should not be a businessman.

I heard this somewhere, but I plan to become a business manager and merchant.

Treat core affiliates like a manager and treat the rest of the affiliates like a businessman.

“Chairman, you will never sell Taewoo Electronics.”

“So, I should have Taewoo Electronics first. If that happens, I can sell Taewoo Electronics without my grandfather’s permission.”

“Do you want to inherit the shares of Taewoo Electronics? “As time passes, it will naturally become yours, but right now it will be impossible.”

“I just need to achieve a level of performance that makes my grandfather want to inherit Taewoo Electronics to me at an early age.”

“Then what should I do?”

Advisor Fukuda’s tone has changed a lot.

The eccentricity disappeared and I was excited like a child receiving a toy for the first time.

“Please research promising industries for the future. “We need supporting data when selling off affiliates.”

“I can create data, but can the data I create serve as a basis? “The report I just made is also going into the trash can.”

“Negative reports like they are now never rise above the group. So we need a report with hope. “If it were a report that guides the Taewo Group to the top of the business hierarchy, wouldn’t your grandfather be interested too?”

I looked at Advisor Fukuda’s face again.

To be precise, I checked the detailed information next to his face.

He possessed S-level work ability, one of the few in Taewoo Group.

If his report has S-level predictive power, it would be of great help to me.

Although I know the future.

Since I don’t know everything, I needed Advisor Fukuda’s predictive skills.

“Hehe, I guess I’ll have to write a very interesting report.”

“I will send you the information I have researched. This data was obtained with great difficulty from Wall Street in the United States, so it will be of great help. “This is top secret information, so please make sure it is not leaked.”

“What could possibly be leaked? “No one visits my office.”

The data I would give you was not data received from Wall Street.

I planned to give him general information about the future industry that I have personally experienced.

“Then please take care of me.”

“I haven’t been able to sleep well these days, but I won’t be bored at night.”

* * *

After finishing my conversation with Advisor Fukuda, I went to the technology research center.

I have already looked up the faces of all 100 researchers affiliated with the Technology Research Institute.

Their work capabilities were also confirmed in detail.

“Vice Director Joo Kwang-il, I am planning to create a new team in the technology research institute.”

“Which team are you talking about?”

“It looks like we need a dedicated patent registration team.”

The importance of patents cannot be stressed enough.

In order to prepare for the coming patent war, we had to own a large number of patents now.

Patents were a kind of weapon.

Possessing a variety of weapons gives us an advantage in negotiations, and also provides a deterrent that prevents other companies from attacking us without permission.

“The technology lab also holds various patents. We also register patents quarterly.”

“The patent team must produce patents in large quantities, not quarterly.”

“Patents are not something that can be created that easily.”

“It’s because you think it’s too difficult. Is there anything special about patents? “A patent is something that anyone can register if it’s something that no one has thought of before.”

“That said, those patents don’t help anything.”

When you think of a patent, people react like that because they think it is just a technology patent.

When we first make the corners of a product into a circle shape, that also becomes a patent.

“A world is coming where patents will soon become power. So, you need to prepare in advance. “We will assign 20 of the technology lab researchers to the patent team, and the 20 people we will recruit will also be part of the patent team.”

“It’s too many numbers. The project you are currently working on will not work properly. “Most of the projects are being commissioned by Taewoo Electronics.”

“Don’t worry, I will take care of Taewoo Electronics.”

For the time being, Taewoo Electronics CEO Park Jin-hoon has no choice but to accommodate my convenience.

The audit team had a hard time kicking me out, but I guess they will do whatever I want.

In fact, I might have liked it. They may blame me for not being able to develop the technology properly.

“And the recruitment list has already been drawn up. “I think I should show it to the deputy director before recruiting him.”

“You thought about it in advance.”

I showed the recruitment list to the deputy director.

As a technology research center that has always suffered from a manpower shortage, the addition of staff was great news.

But the smile quickly disappeared from his face as he looked at the list.

“Most of them are foreigners. And why are you recruiting a lawyer and a designer?”

“I am a patent lawyer. “This is because legal knowledge is necessary to register a patent.”

“There are many excellent lawyers in Taewoo Group’s legal team. Well, even if a lawyer says that, why a designer?”

“In the future, the day will come when design will become as important as the technology of the product.”

“But even so, we are a technology laboratory. “The product design team exists separately for each affiliate.”

He was a deputy director who still couldn’t see the big picture I had drawn.

Well, we’ll find out as time goes by.

Anyway, since I now hold full authority over the institute, I did not need the consent of the deputy director.

“Please continue the detailed discussion after recruitment is completed. First, please assign 20 people to the patent team.”