Samsung heir-apparent Lee Jay-yong has been the man of the hour in the nation’s business circles since he was appointed vice chairman of Samsung Electronics last Wednesday.

Although the Lee’s promotion was widely predicted as he is the only son of Samsung Electronics chairman Lee Kun-hee, the timing took observers by surprise as the country is getting ready for the Dec. 19 presidential election.

Korean businesses have tended to stay low key during the election period, especially since candidates from the ruling and opposition political parties are making pledges for economic democratization and drastic chaebol reform.

Role of younger Lee

Considering that Samsung is Korea’s No. 1 conglomerate, many industry insiders thought that the younger Lee would not be promoted this year.

That projection was proven wrong as the heir apparent was named vice chairman during the group’s year-end reshuffle last week, enabling him to take the next crucial step toward inheriting the country’s top business empire.

Lee Jay-yong has taken his business management lessons step-by-step during his 21 years at the world’s top smartphone maker. After being positioned as a senior manager at Samsung Electronics in 1991, he moved on to take a bigger role at the business planning department within the firm in 2001. He was later seated executive vice president at the company in 2010.

After most recently taking the post of chief operating officer at Samsung’s flagship arm, Jay-yong attempted to expand his business network as well as his influence at the firm by actively engaging in talks with global industrial leaders.

He was the central figure credited with bringing Samsung and Hong Kong’s Cheung Kong Holdings together for a strategic partnership earlier in September.

The heir apparent also practiced his leadership on a deal with H3G, when the Hutchinson Whampoa subsidiary chose Samsung as its exclusive supplier of base stations for fourth-generation communications networks in Britain.

In another event, the 44-year-old Lee met with Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, chief of Latin America’s top mobile carrier American Movil, during the nation’s Chuseok holidays in September, as well as chief executives of global auto firms General Motors, Toyota and BMW.

The new vice chairman of the country’s biggest firm has so far taken credit for solidifying its global leadership as an IT component supplier and for creating shareholder value.

The electronics firm also posted record-high profit of 8.12 trillion won ($7.55 billion) and 52.18 trillion won in sales in the third quarter of this year, boosted by its hot-selling smartphones.

Challenges faced by new vice chairman

However, the ongoing family discord between his father and CJ Group family members is a subject that must be sorted out during Jay-yong’s term.

This indicates that Lee Jay-yong and CJ Group chairman Lee Jay-hyun ― son of Samsung founder’s eldest son Lee Maeng-hee ― will now be in charge of solving the issue, according to industry sources.

The family dispute over an inheritance lawsuit reached a new high last month during the late Samsung founder Lee Byung-chull’s 25th commemoration ceremony held in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province.

While fighting over the use of main gate, CJ Group chairman Jay-hyun, who is the eldest grandson of the late founder Lee, decided for the first time not to take part in the ceremony organized at the family burial ground.

Instead, CJ Group held its own memorial event at the CJ Human Resources Development Institute on the same day.

Lee Maeng-hee has asked the Seoul Central District Court to order his younger brother to return 8.24 million shares in Samsung Life Insurance and 20 preferred and common stocks in Samsung Electronics, along with 100 million won. The Samsung Electronics chairman has accused his older brother of being a figure already ousted from his family.

Samsung’s future direction

As Samsung Group has announced that Jay-yong will be newly in-charge of the global IT giant, together with vice chairman Kwon Oh-hyun, the younger Lee’s leadership will be officially tested, industry watchers said.

Samsung’s handling of the global patent battle staged against U.S.-based Apple Inc., especially in San Jose, will be much of Jay-yong’s responsibility as the two firms are waiting for the court’s final verdict, along with the U.S. International Trade Commission’s decision involving their patent fight.

Considering that the flagship electronics arm has not named a figure to lead the finished products division, Jay-yong is expected to impact the decision.

Samsung Electronics on Wednesday divided its business units into three ― consumer electronics, IT and mobile, and device solutions ― with vice chairman Kwon spearheading the firm’s DS sector.

Although the CE and IM units are led by presidents Yoon Boo-keun and Shin Jong-kyun, respectively, the younger Lee as the company’s vice chairman will have room to flex his muscles within the two divisions.

Under the new leadership, the company will organize a global strategy meeting attended by about 400 executives, which include those from overseas headquarters and offices, and fix the company’s plan for next year from Dec. 17-18.

By Cho Ji-hyun (sharon@heraldcorp.com)