Addendum
Korean Air’s Cho takes on local media
June 1st 2019
June has been a memorable month for Korean Air’s (KAL) Walter Cho. Read More » His airline group hosted the biggest International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) annual general meeting in the association’s history in Seoul and he was invited to join the prestigious Board of Governors (BoG) of the airline association.
The IATA gathering also presented local and international media with their first opportunity to directly question Cho since the death of his father, Y. H. Cho, in Los Angeles on April 7. It has been reported 70-year-old Cho, the chairman and CEO of KAL, died without a will.
It was a challenging occasion for the younger Cho, (43) who was faced with a barrage of questions, particularly from local reporters about his new role at Korean Air parent Hanjin and how he intended to deal with activist shareholders critical of the strategy and governance of one of Korea’s most famous chaebols.
Cho said his father had emphasized the “harmony of the family”, and added he was “engaging in discussions about succession at the group by following his father’s words.
“Due to the former chairman’s sudden death, he did not leave much to say to the family. Based on when he was alive, he told us harmony among family members is of the utmost importance and what we must achieve through harmony is to protect the company. Discussions between family members are still underway,” he said.
Cho admitted he still was adjusting to his role as chairman of Hanjin Group. “I accepted the chairman’s position for the sake of the company’s future, but it still feels unfamiliar when someone calls me chairman.
“I will continue to run the business based on the business philosophy of the former chairman and the founder, which is to focus on transportation. If needed, amid rapidly changing industry trends, I will seek business change by discussing [the issues] with board members.”
