LG Display has appointed Cheoldong Jeong , currently CEO of LG Innotek, as its new chief executive officer. Jeong takes over amid a crisis at LG Display, which has suffered operating losses for six straight quarters. During his five years as LG Innotek’s CEO, Jeong more than doubled the company’s sales. He drove significant growth in the Apple business and is said to be highly respected within the LG Group.
LG Display made the appointment as part of its 2024 executive reshuffle announced on November 23rd. Jeong will officially assume the CEO role on December 1st and be formally appointed at the March shareholders meeting. A key reason for Jeong’s appointment is his outstanding performance expanding LG Innotek’s Apple business. Under his leadership, LG Innotek’s annual sales surged from 8.3 trillion won ($6.4 billion) in 2019 to 19.6 trillion won ($15 billion) in 2022. Operating profit also rose sharply from 400 billion won ($307 milllion) to 1.27 trillion won ($974 million). Jeong also improved profitability by exiting loss-making businesses like smartphone substrates and LEDs.
As LG Display CEO, Jeong faces the task of replicating this success and leading a turnaround. LG Display posted a 2 trillion won ($1.5 billion) operating loss last year and is expected to report a similar loss this year. Priorities include boosting profitability in OLEDs for smartphones and autos, improving utilization rates for large OLED TV panels, and reducing the low-margin LCD business. The former CEO of LG Display, Hoyoung Jeong , stepped down before completing business restructuring initiatives that he was put in place to progress.
LG Electronics has also made some significant organizational changes to its sales and marketing that hint at future expectations for the display business:
New Overseas Sales and Marketing Company
- Headed by former LG North America CEO Thomas Yoon
- Will manage all overseas subsidiaries and sales/marketing
- Aims to strengthen overseas operations, develop new business models and e-commerce capabilities
Home Appliance & Air Solution (H&A) Company
- Adding engineering sales division for HVAC business synergy
- Moving Home Beauty business from Home Entertainment to H&A for product synergy
Home Entertainment (HE) Company
- Establishing new webOS software group for smart TVs
- Forming extended reality (XR) business division
Vehicle Component Solutions (VS) Company
- Creating global customer strategy division for sales/marketing integration
Business Solutions (BS) Company
- Expanding sales and operations in major overseas markets
- Upgrading India business to divisional status for continued growth
The appointments and promotions are effective December 1st and January 1st respectively. Overall the changes aim to strengthen organizational capabilities, overseas business, and transformation efforts to achieve LG’s Future Vision 2030 strategy.
