Suwon Mayor Yeom Tae-young: "Public Officials Must Continue to Innovate Like the Late Lee Kun-hee"

[Suwon Ilbo = Reporter Seo Dong-young] Suwon Mayor Yeom Tae-young said, "The greatest enemy of the public sector is the attitude of knowing the need for change but being unwilling to change," and emphasized "We must not settle for familiarity and must continuously innovate."

At an 'Expanded Executive Meeting in November' held on the 29th at the Samsung Academic Information Hall of Sungkyunkwan University's Natural Sciences Campus, Mayor Yeom said, "The late Lee Kun-hee, chairman of Samsung Group, advocated 'new management' in 1993 with the message 'change everything except your wife and children,' and Samsung achieved great success through global management aimed at excellence. The public sector should also not fear change and must transform," he said.

He further stated, "No matter how much 'proactive administration' is emphasized to public officials, those who will transfer to different departments within one to two years tend to rarely change and show a tendency to only perform familiar tasks. To keep pace with society undergoing drastic changes due to COVID-19, the public sector must not stagnate but must continuously change and innovate," he repeatedly emphasized.

Furthermore, he said, "The success or failure of administration depends on the details," and urged, "When implementing policies, carefully examine how much practical help it provides to citizens."