LG

■ In his annual New Year's letter to employees, Chairman and CEO Kwang Mo Koo highlighted his vision for putting customers first and enhancing customer value, laying out five key principles for all LG staff. 
 
Above all, he asked staff to:
 
   1. Start with customer pain point
Understanding customer needs and efficiently addressing their ‘pain points’ using digital tools.
 
   2. Analyze less, show more initiative 
Proactively pursuing solutions and taking action rather than dwelling on reasons not to act.
 
   3. Find joy in customer satisfaction and happiness
Prioritizing customer happiness during performance evaluations and valuing input from people who understand customers best.
 
   4. Build a lasting customer impression 
Recognizing that delivering good service is an ongoing journey rather than a destination.
 
   5. Embrace a truly customer-centric mindset
Cultivating a company culture that puts customers first helps refine LG's unique approach in today’s challenging business environment. 
 
■ Mr. Koo’s New Year's message also aligned with LG’s commitment to creating a brighter future for the world by emphasizing the importance of creating a warm corporate culture that goes beyond customer satisfaction. 
 
 
LG’s 2020 New Year’s Letter was delivered digitally this year and featured a video keynote address by LG Group Chairman and CEO Kwang Mo Koo. Reaching employees around the world, it also marked a departure from LG's traditional New Year's Day ceremony by opting for a digital format accessible via mobile phones and PCs for the first time instead of gathering hundreds of employees in an auditorium for the address. The video message carried English and Chinese subtitles and clearly demonstrated LG's commitment to enhanced global communication under Mr. Koo's pragmatic leadership.
 
The video opened with a customer testimonial about LG products and services, setting the stage for Mr. Koo’s emphasis on customer-centric mindset and the paramount importance of ensuring customer satisfaction. He urged employees to understand and promptly respond to customer needs, setting the tone for LG's approach in the New Year. 
 
"To the LG family around the world, Happy New Year! We're doing something different this year. As I listened to each message from our valued customers, I realized that we have a lot of work to do. One year ago today, I asked that we all value the ability to make a difference in our customers’ lives, and to do so consistently and before anyone else. Today, as we enter 2020, my purpose is to address some ways that we can raise customer value even higher.”
 
Targeting five critical questions, the chairman elaborated on LG’s approach towards putting customers first in the year ahead.
 
1. How do we put customer value into action?
It all starts with understanding customer pain points, and knowing what they want from us. We need the wisdom to utilize digital technology to read their minds quickly and accurately.
 
2. Once we understand our customers, what do we do next?
Instead of sitting back and reviewing endlessly what we’ve learned, we must seize the initiative and act. It's about focusing on why we should do something and finding that one reason, rather than dwelling on hundred other reasons why we should not do something.
 
3. How do we immerse ourselves in delivering customer value?
We want our employees to enjoy making customers happy. We value the opinions of those who know our customers best and prioritize customer satisfaction when evaluating our performance.
 
4. What’s the ultimate goal of all this focus on customer value?
Fundamentally, it’s about making customers happy. We do not stop once we've satisfied their needs. We take care of them right through to the end. And even then, the end is seen as the beginning of something that takes the relationship even further. 
 
5. What would you most like to emphasize this year?
Above all, my most important message is to win our customers’ hearts by understanding them. Always place your issues in the context of the customer’s perspective and ensure that what you are doing meet their needs.
 
Looking ahead, Mr. Koo acknowledged the anticipated challenges of the coming year and stressed LG’s commitment to developing unique ideas and actions to refine the customer-centric ethic he outlined. He envisioned LG as a pioneering force in customer satisfaction, fostering a warm corporate culture that contributes to a better future and a better world. He concluded his New Year's message by declaring once again that 2020 will be a year of “winning customers’ hearts by acting in their interest.”
 
An LG spokesperson further underlined the chairman’s intention this year, saying that "Last year's New Year's speech highlighted LG's unique concept of customer value and reminded us of its importance. This year, we emphasized the importance of implementing customer-centric strategies quickly and effectively, which requires a change in working methods and organizational culture by going beyond existing practices."