FORUM

Frequently Asked Questions

Recruiting Process

GSG Career

  • What is GSG?
    GSG is an acronym for Samsung’s Global Strategy Group. Newly-hired MBA students join GSG as Global Strategists (GS) and engage on critical and high-impact projects across diverse industries, functions, and geographies. The overall goal of GSG is to build a pipeline of tomorrow’s leaders who will lead Samsung and its affiliated companies.
  • What does career progression look like at GSG?
    Each GS has two potential career paths at GSG: (1) transition to a Samsung business unit within Korea (2) stay within GSG and be part of the management team. GS are only eligible to transition after being at GSG for at least a year. On the other hand, selected GS are considered for potential progression to management at GSG around the 1.5-2 year mark.
  • Is knowing the Korean language required to work at Samsung GSG?
    The daily working language in the office and with GSG clients is English. Thus, knowing Korean is not essential, but it is very beneficial. GSG clients do have a strong understanding of English, but the Korean language, for most, remains their first language. Being able to speak Korean allows a GS to develop stronger business bonds with their clients.

    For this reason, GSG offers 1 hour Korean lessons 4 times a week to help develop this language skill.
  • How long do projects last?
    In general, GSG projects will last approximately 12 weeks.
  • How are projects assigned?
    Senior management conducts a project sharing session a few weeks prior to finalizing project staffing. GS that are interested in working on the projects that were shared are encouraged to express their interest directly to the project leaders and the staffing manager. While being staffed on a specific project cannot be guaranteed, the staffing team will try its best to assign projects based on a GS’s preferences and interests, career goals, and skill-set.
  • What are a project’s travel requirements?
    Project travel varies by project. In recent years, the average has been 2-3 weeks of travel throughout the project engagement. Travel requirements are often known prior to the start of the project and are usually communicated to all GS during the project sharing sessions. Thus, a GS can decide if the travel expectations will interfere with personal arrangements or preferences prior to being staffed on a project.
  • How is performance assessed at GSG?
    Performance evaluations consist of two independent components: project and non-project contributions (NPC). For each project that a GS works on, he/she will be assessed on 5 different dimensions of his/her work: (1) project delivery (2) impact and value creation (3) insights development (4) communication and presence (5) people and client management. On the other hand, for non-project contributions, the GS will be measured based on their involvement with internal GSG initiatives, such as training, recruiting, and industry-focused knowledge sharing.
  • How is the compensation paid?
    The GSG salary is pegged to the US dollar (USD). However, the monthly paycheck is paid out in South Korean won (KRW) to a local Korean bank account. The exchange rate between USD and KRW is recalculated each month. GS are responsible for the expenses charged by their banks to send money back to their home country, but banks nearby the office offer preferred discount rates for Samsung employees.
  • Does GSG have any diversity programs in place?
    GSG is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive workplace. GSG has a Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) committee that conducts an annual offsite training for all GSG colleagues.

Transitions

  • How does a GS find and identify transition opportunities?
    Every year, there is a career fair where all the transition opportunities are shared and teams come over to GSG to address any questions people might have around the position. After the period, each member will apply for a position he/she wants. The entire process is standardized and there is a dedicated group of members focusing on the career progression of GSG’ers. So, while there is no guarantee that everyone will end up in their most favored position, it will be an easy process to transition into different teams.
  • What transition roles are available?
    There is a broad and diverse range of potential transition opportunities available. In recent years, GSG alumni have transitioned to roles that focus on strategy, marketing, product development, and new business development.
  • What if a GS realized after the transition that it was a not the right placement?
    A transition is considered a permanent placement and a GS officially leaving GSG. However, people may face unexpected difficulties or situations upon joining a new team. Thus, prior to a permanent transition, a GS is entitled to a trial period known as dispatch. The duration of the dispatch window varies across business units, but if during the dispatch a GS believes the transition is not working, one may be able to return to GSG upon discussion.
  • What and where is Suwon? Are all transition opportunities only in Suwon?
    Suwon is located 13 miles south of Seoul, and it is home to “Samsung Digital City.” It is the main campus for Samsung Electronics (SEC). There are daily company shuttles that leave from various parts of Seoul that employees can utilize to get to and from Suwon. The campus is also easily accessible via public transportation. A one-way journey typically takes about 45 minutes.

    Not all transition opportunities reside in Suwon. Samsung also has other campuses, most notably in Giheung and Hwasong for Samsung’s Device Solutions (DS) semiconductor business. Within Seoul city center, Samsung has offices for Samsung SDS and Samsung Fire and Marine Insurance (SFMI).

Transitions to Subsidiaries Overseas

  • When does a GS become eligible for a transition outside of Korea?
    GS are eligible to transition back to their home country after being in Korea for 4 years. This requirement is in place so that it gives a GS ample time to learn and understand the Samsung culture as well as how to work effectively and achieve great success with corporate after transitioning to an overseas subsidiary.
  • How does a GS find transition opportunities at an overseas subsidiary?
    The process of finding a transition opportunity at an overseas subsidiary is similar to finding a transition opportunity within Korea. A GS can utilize project relations, established contacts GSG has with subsidiary offices, or GSG alumni.
  • What transition roles are available at an overseas subsidiary?
    Samsung has many types of business units and operations overseas. The organization structure outside of Korea is segmented into local and regional offices. Local offices would have transition roles that are focused on sales while regional offices, which act as regional headquarters, would have opportunities centered on marketing and strategy. Additionally, Samsung has Venture Capital offices and R&D centers located in various parts of the North America, Europe, and Asia that also offer potential transition opportunities.

Life in Korea