이 기사는 2022년 02월 09일 08시08분 thebell에 표출된 기사입니다

Harman, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, may see changes in the composition of its board of directors after the broader Samsung Group’s latest leadership reshuffle announced late last year.

Harman’s board comprises four members including board chairman Young Sohn, who has been in the role since 2017, the year after Samsung Electronics acquired the maker of connected car and audio systems.

Sohn, former chief strategy officer of Samsung Electronics, was one of the company’s top executives who led the acquisition of Harman in 2016. He stepped down as strategy chief in late 2020 to serve as a senior advisor to the company, but has continued to chair Harman’s board.

The other three board members are Michael Mauser, Harman’s chief executive, James Ahn, Samsung Electronics’ executive vice president and head of mergers and acquisitions, and Choi Yoon-ho, former chief financial officer of the South Korean tech giant.


Fueling speculation about the possible changes to Harman’s board are major executive moves that the broader Samsung Group made at the end of last year. As part of the reshuffle, Choi moved to Samsung SDI as chief executive officer.

Industry observers say it is likely that Choi will cede his board seat to a new finance chief of Samsung Electronics, who is Park Hark-kyu, given the history of changes in Harman’s board composition. Another point to watch is whether Sohn will continue to chair the board.

The four-member board has undergone many changes in the past five years. In 2017, the first post-acquisition year, Harman’s board comprised board chairman Sohn, Dinesh Paliwal, the audio electronics company’s then chief executive, Yoon Boo-Keun, former vice chairman of Samsung Electronics, and Lee Sang-hoon, the tech giant’s then chief financial officer.

After Yoon and Lee resigned from their roles in that year, their board seats at Harman were filled by Roh Hee-chan, Lee’s successor as finance chief, and Roh Tae-moon, then executive vice president of Samsung Electronics and head of product strategy.

In 2019, Roh Tae-moon left Harman’s board, with the vacant seat filled by James Ahn. The following year, Choi Yoon-ho joined the board instead of his predecessor Roh Hee-chan, who was named as chief executive of S-1 Corporation, a joint venture between Samsung Group and Japan's security company Secom. Dinesh Paliwal also stepped down as Harman’s chief executive in 2020, with Michael Mauser succeeding his role.

Many industry experts expect Samsung Electronics’ new finance chief to join Harman’s board, especially because it is time for the car infotainment company to expand its business through acquisitions and investments following its successful integration into the tech giant.

“It has not been decided whether or when the composition of Harman’s board of directors will be changed,” an official at Samsung Electronics said.

“Choi Yoon-ho could remain on Harman’s board as Samsung SDI, where he serves as CEO at present, makes batteries for automotive use,” a source said. “That said, it’s accurate to say that Choi joined Harman’s board as CFO of Samsung Electronics, so it is more likely that the new CFO will replace Choi.” (Reporting by Hye-ran Kim)