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Samsung eager to recruit talent from rivals

Korea’s electronics giant hires former senior Apple designer

By Kim Young-won 

Samsung Electronics has recruited Tim Gudgel, who used to work for its archrival Apple Inc., as a retail store designer, as part of its strategy to hire talented personnel worldwide.

Gudgel is well-known for having designed an Apple store with a curved glass roof on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. He was named a vice president and general manager of retail-sales operations in the United States, according to news reports. 

Industry watchers said his tasks at Samsung will include managing retail stores, especially the 1,500 mini-stores at Best Buy locations across the United States. 

The recruitment is the latest in Samsung’s efforts to hire foreign talent to gain an upper hand in its overseas competition with global rivals.    

Samsung recruited a batch of personnel from BlackBerry, including Ryan Bidan, a former product manager for the Canadian firm, and Brian Wallace, BlackBerry’s former vice president of digital marketing and media.

The Korean firm also recruited Rob Orr, BlackBerry’s former managing director for the U.K. and Ireland. 

Orr took on the post of vice president of business-to-business for Samsung European Telecommunications Operations.

Hiring personnel who have work experience, especially in managerial positions, in other companies is surely nothing new for the Korean tech giant, which aims to retain its leading position in the global market. 

“It is natural for a firm to want to hire an expert in a certain field,” said a Samsung official, adding “And employing officials from other players in the same business field is nothing new.”
(wone0102@heraldcorp.com)