Asustek Computer Inc (華碩) chairman Jonney Shih (施崇棠) and president Jonathan Tseng (曾鏘聲) are going to stay on in their current posts, while its board of directors has approved the appointment of Ted Hsu (徐世昌) as vice chairman, the company said yesterday.
Seeking to leverage the experience and expertise of key professionals, the new management lineup would oversee efforts to build a “smart” enterprise that enables new connected services and a retail business model, Shih said in an open letter to employees.
Shih said that he would be focusing on building synergies between Asustek’s business units and establishing a mechanism that would help develop elite managers.
Photo: CNA
The announcement followed a report on Tuesday in the Chinese-language Mirror Media magazine that Shih said he wanted to resign in June for health reasons amid mounting pressure and internal turmoil over a sweeping organizational restructuring launched in June last year.
The magazine said the restructuring, which divided the company into three main groups — PC, mobile and gaming — had upset a number of executives, because the motherboard, laptop and smartphone businesses, which had been independently run, were merged.
A company insider told the magazine that Asustek executive Eric Chen (陳彥政) was irate when he found out that he would no longer be leading the laptop and smartphone business units, and instead was tasked with heading the new retail and connected services units.
Shih’s decision in 2016 to invite former Pegatron Corp (和碩) vice chairman Hsu to serve as chief strategy officer had also rocked the management team’s confidence in the company’s succession plans, Mirror Media said.
Shih had made it known at a recent general meeting of the company that he planned to have Hsu succeed him as chairman in the next two years, which had upset executives such as Chen, who have been groomed for the top job, the magazine said.
In other developments yesterday, Asustek expects its gaming PC sales in Taiwan to rise 30 percent this year and exceed the 20 percent annual growth seen last year, Asustek vice president Jose Liao (廖逸翔) said at the opening ceremony for the firm’s newly renovated Republic of Gamers flagship store in Taipei.
The store, which represents of the company’s new retail business models, not only showcases its latest and greatest gaming products, but is also designed to serve as hub for e-sports fans and competitors, Liao said.
Gaming PC sales could see accelerated growth this quarter, as performance-minded consumers are likely to jump on products equipped with Intel’s eighth generation processors, while those seeking value would take advantage of price cuts on products with older processors, Asustek senior product manager Sally Chen (陳怡君) said.
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