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Abstract
Samsung, also known as the "three star company", was established in 1938 by Lee Byung-Chul. Samsung's success was the result of two generations of family business. Under the impulse of Lee Byung-Chul and, later, his son, Lee Kun-He, the firm adapted both to changes in worldwide demand and the preferences of Korean society. It achieved a successful fusion of Asian neo-Confucian capitalism and the American model of the multidivisional and managerial firm. It invested in human capital to fill the technological gap between Korea and the USA and Western Europe and went on to assume leadership within the accelerated flow of innovation that characterizes the "digital era".
From 1953 to 1986, despite the pressure of an unpredictable market and growing costs, Samsung grew rapidly, and improved its performance through more productive labor, significant investments to improve the global productivity and a strong desire to obtain new technologies. This strategy proved highly efficient and led to a steady increase of return on equity in the group.