In 2009, a global consulting firm raised serious concerns about Hyosung Heavy Industries' ESS (Energy Storage System), leading them to recommend its discontinuation. However, Hyosung Heavy Industries shocked the world by triumphantly securing a substantial package deal for the providing, installing, and constructing comprehensive ESS products abroad in 2022. Hyosung Heavy Industries accomplishment not only set the company apart as the first domestic company to achieve such an accomplishment but also necessitated outdoing 18 global companies, including Tesla. The ESS (Energy Storage System), a vital component for storing renewable energy, has undeniably become an essential device.

Hyosung's exceptional competitiveness astonished the world in business arenas that even prestigious global consulting firms thought challenging. What is the key to our remarkable success? Hyosung’s success is derived from its unwavering commitment to 'Customer-centric Management.' Hyosung has succeeded by prioritizing customer satisfaction as our core business objective. Hyosung’s relentless dedication to understanding and meeting customer needs has enabled us to achieve success. However, the current downturn in the global economy calls for a broader perspective. Hyosung acknowledges that more than focusing solely on customer satisfaction is required. The crisis is becoming increasingly frequent as the world undergoes rapid transformations due to climate change, viral pandemics, and declining birth rates.

Hyosung is taking its management policy to the next level by listening not only to the voice of the customer (VOC), which they've always emphasized but also to the voice of the customer's customer (VOCC). The key to Hyosung's own competitiveness is improving its customers' competitiveness.

Listening to the Voice of Customers' Customers

VOCC (Voice of Customer's Customer), a management approach that encompasses listening to the voice of customers' customers, has emerged with the primary objective of delivering the utmost level of customer satisfaction. By identifying what customers' customers desire and proposing solutions that meet their needs, it paves the way for superior outcomes.

Hyosung practices VOCC management by utilizing a big data platform through its IT subsidiary, Hyosung ITX. Leveraging big data technology, it categorizes and analyzes consulting customers in real time based on keywords extracted from their discussions. Hyosung has experienced remarkable improvements in its consulting services by integrating big data technology. Thanks to big data technology, we were able to respond quickly and resolve complaints, thereby improving our counseling services. By diligently listening to the voice of the end customers and ensuring that feedback is easily and swiftly understood, Hyosung's efforts ultimately culminate in the highest levels of satisfaction, benefiting both our valued customers and their own clientele.

In this manner, Hyosung strives wholeheartedly to meet not only the current needs of customers but also the unpredictable future demands, placing customer value enhancement at the forefront of all management activities, ranging from strategic planning and management systems to organizational culture and leadership. As the first company in the domestic industry to declare customer-centricity and customer-centric management, Hyosung is dedicated to satisfying customers' ever-evolving needs. Striving for the integration of businesses and customers, Hyosung endeavors to achieve growth as a global leader by fostering customer happiness and pursuing exceptional Customer Experiences.

Moving beyond VOC to VOCC, Hyosung Practices Customer-centric Management

To achieve all of this, keeping a close eye on customers' current situations and aspirations is crucial. Hyosung establishes strategies throughout the production cycles of its subsidiaries to secure customer competitiveness and strives to provide meaningful products and services that enhance customers' lives and businesses. The customer-centric management policy prioritizes products and services that satisfy customers over immediate profits. Despite challenging economic conditions, Hyosung continues to invest in facilities across all its subsidiaries, such as Hyosung TNC, Hyosung Chemical, and Hyosung Advanced Materials, to predict the timing of economic recovery and provide the products and services that customers desire.

Firstly, Hyosung TNC's CREORA® Spandex has maintained its position as the global leader with a market share of over 30% for the past 12 years. It is a high-value-added functional fiber known as the "semiconductor of textiles." In 2023, Hyosung TNC introduced a comprehensive high-performance fiber-integrated brand named 'CREORA,' which includes not only spandex but also functional nylon and polyester materials.

Hyosung TNC demonstrates its commitment to VOCC by investing in eco-friendly materials. In an era where social demands for sustainability are on the rise, ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) management strategies have a profoundly impact corporate competitiveness. ESG management encompasses the pursuit of sustainable development through environmentally friendly practices, social responsibility, and transparent governance from a long-term perspective. Recognizing the growing demand for eco-friendly materials, Hyosung TNC proactively anticipates, invests in, develops, and commercializes in this field. Our dedication to these endeavors remains unwavering as we strive to make progress continuously.

One of Hyosung TNC's prominent environmentally friendly material brands is 'regen.' Recently, we succeeded in the developing and commercializing "regen Bio-Based Spandex," making Hyosung TNC the world's first to do so. This spandex is produced by processing corn-derived raw materials. Starting with domestic production, we plan to expand production quantities by extending to our global production base in Vietnam.

Hyosung TNC conducts personalized one-on-one consultations with customer businesses on an annually as part of its customer-centric management approach. This includes sharing insights on global fashion trends, industry developments and even conveying the voice of end customers that customers may not be aware of. Based on these consultations, Hyosung TNC also suggests new product ideas.

Moreover, Hyosung's endeavors to proactively anticipate and invest in the future demands of customers, particularly in the realm of hydrogen, serve as a remarkable testament to its customer-centric management approach. Hyosung's commitment extends beyond mere facility investments, considering ESG management and future value considerations. By embracing sustainability and gaining a deep understanding of the aspirations of both customers and their clients, Hyosung is dedicated to green management and customer-centric practices within its hydrogen business. Led by Hyosung Heavy Industries, which holds the top market share in the domestic market with a total of 28 hydrogen refueling stations established through its hydrogen refueling station business, Hyosung Group has been actively building a value chain that extends from Hyosung Chemical (raw materials) to Hyosung Advanced Materials and Hyosung TNC (internal tank materials for hydrogen tanks and carbon fibers used in hydrogen electric vehicles). This value chain aims to strengthen the business in both hydrogen production and distribution and storage and utilization.

Hyosung TNS exemplifies customer-centric management by prioritizing the convenience and satisfaction of its main customers, major financial institutions, and the end customers who utilize its services. Rather than offering generic ATMs and kiosks universally, Hyosung TNS goes the extra mile by designing and supplying products tailored to meet the specific requirements of each country's clientele. The company has recently developed solutions to ensure financial services are accessible to rural populations and elderly individuals in Spain. Despite operating as a B2B enterprise, Hyosung's global success can be attributed to its proactive approach of actively addressing the concerns faced by its customers and fostering trust through effective communication. By continuously considering the evolving needs of its customers and engaging in meaningful dialogue, Hyosung has cemented its position as a trusted global leader.

Hyosung is committed to the concrete implementation of customer-centric management through the following five innovative declarations:

First, proactively identify the root causes of customer issues. This includes not only meeting with direct customers but also understanding the needs of customers' clients, end consumers and the general public.

Second, consider customer complaints as sources of ideas and inspiration. By doing so, it becomes possible to create enhanced customer experiences and value.

Third, prioritize customers throughout all stages, from product planning to R&D and production operations. This requires internal process innovation.

Fourth, empower all frontline employees with expertise and corresponding authority to represent Hyosung. They are encouraged to challenge existing procedures, technologies, quality standards, and company practices while exploring new possibilities. In this process, failures should be willingly accepted, turning them into opportunities for learning and growth within the organizational culture.

Fifth, establish a smart monitoring and IT infrastructure system that enables real-time responsiveness to customer demands.

Hyosung is not just a product supplier but a solution provider that closely communicates with customers, shares the vision, and resolves challenges. When the company goes beyond meeting customers' expected delivery and quality satisfaction levels to fulfill unforeseen future value, it enables an innovation where the enterprise and customers integrate, leading to growth as a global leading company. This belief is firmly entrenched within Hyosung, and it is a shared management value among all Hyosung employees.

There is no doubt that we are living in an era where discerning customers are taking the lead. Therefore, Hyosung strives to comprehensively and multidimensionally understand its customers, staying ahead in identifying their future needs. Development and investments aimed at not only satisfying customers but also providing them with happiness are geared toward the next generation and all generations to come. This is the driving force that compels customers to choose Hyosung first, and it is the unique keyword that transforms challenges into opportunities—Hyosung's special approach of "customer-centric management.