■ SK Innovation’s corporate-wide relay workshops held since February

■ Through his meetings with employees at the workshops, CEO Park discussed the purposes of portfolio reviews and unfold vision, calling for innovations.

■ CEO Park assured the business related to electric vehicles is a “destined future,” and set goals for petroleum and chemical businesses to be No.1 in the Asia-Pacific region.

■ CEO Park: “We are conducting portfolio reviews for all stakeholders with a perspective of 5 to 10 years ahead.”

Since February, SK Innovation CEO Park Sang-kyu has been meeting with all employees of the company, from executives, team leaders, to team members, advocating that once the portfolio review is completed, it will lead to subsequent achievements.

CEO Park emphasized that “Carbon to Green,” which was set as the strategic direction by SK Innovation and its affiliates in 2021, is a destined future, and therefore, if all employees keep their faith in this and progress, they will undoubtedly achieve greater results.

CEO Park started a relay workshop in February with the Professional Leader (PL) level first, followed by workshops with the communication organization iCON (innovation Communication ON), which consists of junior-level employees, and with the executives as well.

“Since the beginning of this year, we have been reviewing portfolios to enhance the competitiveness of SK Innovation affiliates, and will share certain policies once they are established,” said CEO Park in one of his meetings with employees. “I am confident that we have set the strategic direction correctly, and with the technology and talent at SK Innovation, there is nothing we cannot achieve if all employees unite as one.”

Specifically, at the SK Innovation PL workshop held at Walkerhill Hotel in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, on the 16^th, CEO Park stated, “It is true that the electric vehicle (EV) market conditions are unfavorable due to the recent slowdown in EV demand and the worsening global business environment. However, given the global climate crisis and trends towards electrification, the shift to EV is a destined future that would not change.” “Especially in such times, SK On must build competitiveness in five areas: pricing, technology, quality, customer management, and fostering a good corporate culture and excellent talent,” he added.

In particular, CEO Park noted, “Corporate management should not invest by looking just two to three years ahead but five to ten years ahead.” “Even petroleum and chemicals, which have become the main businesses of the SK Group, went through tough times, and ‘Carbon to Green’ also requires a period of accumulation. Therefore, let us not be too passive about the current difficulties but break through with boldness and courage.”

CEO Park Sang-kyu attended the executive workshops held on the 4^th and 11^th as well and said, “If we were to compare the current situation of SK On and SK IE Technology’s green-tech businesses to a marathon, we are at the 35km mark facing an uphill sprint and running as hard as we can.” He then explained, “In such uphill situations, our competitors face similar challenges, which can become an opportunity for us.” “If we could use this difficult time to complement our shortcomings, we can get ahead of our competitors when the situation eventually gets better.

Regarding the petroleum and chemical businesses, CEO Park Sang-kyu requested to secure comparative advantage through operational optimization.

“The petroleum business has an economic cycle, and the chemical business is experiencing structural difficulties,” he said. “Through competitive pricing and operational optimization, the petroleum and chemical industries must at least become the No.1 company in the Asia-Pacific region.”

During the recent relay workshops, CEO Park emphasized SKMS (SK Management System), a unique corporate culture of SK that has overcome business crises and challenges. He also called for taking the lead through challenges and innovations.

CEO Park noted, “Chey Jong-hyun, the former Chairman of SK Group, struggled for over a decade to achieve ‘From Oil to Fiber,’ a vertical integration goal that was considered unrealistic at the time, and eventually succeeded.” “As SK Group has made quantum leaps in times of crisis based on SKMS, I, as a top executive of SK Innovation, will lead by example to ensure we achieve results,” he pledged.

[Photo 1,2] SK Innovation CEO Park Sang-kyu participating and giving a lecture at the PL (Professional Leader) workshop held at Walkerhill Hotel in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul on the 12^th