SK Hynix's Five-President Team Set to Usher in KRW 100 Trillion Profit Era

[Korea Financial Times, Gwak Horyung] In times of recession, CFOs (Chief Financial Officers) lead companies. Strategic investment and cost efficiency are important weapons. This is the so-called 'CFO heyday.'

However, this expression does not apply to SK Hynix as it races toward 2026. This monster-like company, expecting next year's operating profit forecast of KRW 100 trillion, places 'technology' as the top priority.

SK Hynix has established a 'technology-centered one-team' system with a responsible management structure where heads of each division—development, future technology, production, sales, and management support—operate under technology expert CEO (President) Kwak Noh-jung.

This is interpreted as a strategic choice to have the CEO focus on securing technology leadership in the rapidly changing AI semiconductor market, while the presidential team of each specialized field maximizes management efficiency and execution through rapid and professional decision-making.

President Kwak Noh-jung is a CEO from a genuine semiconductor engineer background. He joined Hyundai Electronics, SK Hynix's predecessor, as a researcher in the Process Technology Division in 1994 and has experienced both crises and successes in memory semiconductors for over 30 years. He was appointed CEO in March 2022, when the 'semiconductor winter' began. While experiencing a massive operating loss of KRW 7.7 trillion the following year, he encouraged investment in HBM (High Bandwidth Memory), which was considered low profitability, achieving a dramatic rebound.

In November, President Kwak unveiled a new vision called 'Full Stack AI Memory Creator.' This is an ambition to go beyond being a simple component supplier to become a creator who designs and innovates the AI ecosystem together with customized products for customers. Major collaboration partners and areas include NVIDIA (HBM, AI Factory), SanDisk (HBF), and Naver Cloud (data center infrastructure).

President Ahn Hyun (CDO, Chief Development Officer) leads development organizations for DRAM and NAND flash. President Ahn graduated from Seoul National University's Nuclear Engineering department and joined Hyundai Electronics as a process engineer in 2000. After executive promotion, he was mainly involved in NAND flash development. He has developed 'strategist' qualities by serving as Head of Management Strategy Office and Head of Future Research Promotion Team. Along with President Kwak, he is the only inside director and plays a role in communicating with outside directors.

President Ahn was appointed head of the newly established 'Global AI Research Center' through the 2026 organizational restructuring. This organization researches how memory semiconductors should operate within AI systems to be efficient, beyond existing design-centered development. It plans to establish major bases in the U.S., China, and Japan to work closely with AI key players. He has been entrusted with the important task of realizing the 'Full Stack AI Memory Creator' vision.

President Cha Seon-yong (CTO, Chief Technology Officer), who leads SK Hynix's R&D organization, was promoted to president in this year's personnel appointments. President Cha graduated from KAIST's Electrical and Electronic Engineering department and served as Head of DRAM Development at SK Hynix.

The company introduces him as "the protagonist who introduced the 10-nanometer DRAM tech platform" and "completely changed the DRAM development method." A tech platform is a technical framework that can be applied across multiple generations. It explains that it was first applied to the 1st generation (1x) and continues to be applied to the 2nd generation (1y), 3rd generation (1z), 4th generation (1a), and beyond.

SK Hynix's sales organization has the unique name 'AI Infrastructure.'

The company expanded and reorganized the existing GSM (Global Sales and Marketing) organization in 2024 to focus on AI customers centered on HBM. This organization is led by President Kim Ju-sun (CMO, Chief Marketing Officer).

President Kim graduated from Sungkyunkwan University's Industrial Engineering department and joined Hyundai Electronics' semiconductor FAB production team in 1991, experiencing various departments.

He subsequently worked at the forefront with customers, serving as Head of Marketing Strategy Group, Head of Sales Planning Team, Head of GSM Sales Division, and Head of Americas Corporation.

President Kim is also credited with SK Hynix's quick detection of HBM demand. In an interview published in the company's newsroom last year, he stated, "We were able to secure information more than six months ahead and establish friendly relationships with AI companies to secure stable HBM supply sources."

President Song Hyun-jong oversees the support organization 'Corporate Center' encompassing finance, procurement, human resources, external cooperation, and future strategy. This organization was newly established last year by taking over some tasks that were directly under the CEO. Although it does not appear as outwardly glamorous as other corporate support organizations, it supports the company through role division with the CEO who focuses on technology leadership.

President Song graduated from Seoul National University's Economics department and joined SK Telecom, rising to Head of Management Support. He moved to SK Hynix in 2012 and served as Head of Future Strategy Division and Head of Marketing Division. He simultaneously worked at the holding company SK's Business Support Office, serving as a bridge between SK Hynix and semiconductor-related affiliates. Compared to other technology-background C-level executives, he has finance and strategy expert qualities specialized in risk management.

This presidential responsible management system is supporting the company's steep performance improvement. SK Hynix is already evaluated as having entered an 'AI super cycle' thanks to exploding AI memory demand and rising memory prices.

SK Hynix has already recorded the largest performance ever with cumulative operating profit of KRW 28 trillion (47% operating profit margin) in Q1-3 this year, surpassing last year's operating profit of KRW 23 trillion. Forecasts suggest next year's operating profit could reach KRW 100 trillion (Citi, UBS projections) due to favorable HBM conditions and surging general DRAM prices.

A business expert said, "While the global semiconductor market in 2026 still has risk factors such as global demand volatility, supply chain risks, and intensifying competition, SK Hynix has completed a structure combining CEO technology leadership with professional presidential responsible management," and "It will achieve surprising results in 2026 as well through rapid decision-making and technology-centered strategy."

Gwak Horyung (horr@fntimes.com)