“Fill up your canvas of life”…Global CEO Talk with CEO of Energizer Korea  

Global CEO Talk hosted by Korea University Business School (Dean=Sang Yong Kim) was held at Room 303, Hyundai Motor Hall last April 13th. Global CEO Talk  invites CEOs currently working in various fields every week, and they give lectures to students on topics such as business strategy or entrepreneurship. The lecture on the day was given by CEO Hwang, Hyun Seong from Energizer Korea which is the Korean branch of the world’s biggest battery company, Energizer. Energizer has the highest occupation rate in the current battery market. CEO Hwang gave lectures on the theme of △Dream △Ownership △Curiosity which are the key values for success along with business stories. 

“Career choices were limited back then, not like today.” CEO Hwang started his first career at CJ Cheiljedang in 1994. After working in sales and marketing and serving as a brand manager, he was offered a marketing manager position at Unilever and moved his office in 2002. In 2007, he worked as a manager for the Cass Group at AB InBev, a global alcoholic beverage company, and then moved to his current position as a director at Energizer Korea in 2008. CEO Hwang who has nurtured more than 30 brands since 1994, said “I think I was able to reach my current position by constantly building my career and receiving recognition for my abilities.” 

CEO Hwang introduced three values of ‘DNA that leads to success': △Dream △Ownership △Curiosity. For ‘Dream’, he said “I always had a dream of exploring overseas markets and global operations.” Therefore, he felt the importance of language, so  he woke up at 5 AM to go to a private academy and then went to work for years in order to improve his English skills. He also went to a graduate school because of his ambition in marketing. CEO Hwang who built his career by setting his goal and achieving it step by step, advised “keep your dream as a constant and level up gradually”. 

He then explained ‘Ownership’ as “having a sense of ownership over one’s life”. Referring to his experience of changing the logistics system to solve problems while managing the tea brand at Unilever, he emphasized that “It is important to take your initiative rather than relying on others.” 

For ‘Curiosity’ as a driving force of development, he said, “Curiosity makes me experience things and acquire knowledge,” and added, “A great curiosity is necessary to change the world.” 

Finally, CEO Hwang displayed his ‘life canvas’ filled with his various experiences and asked the students, “What do you want to draw on your life canvas?” His life canvas depicted the decades he had lived with dreams, ownership, and curiosity, as well as his future goals. In other words, the lecture concluded with  his advice “Don’t be afraid and fill your life with experiences and continue to develop.”