Seoul: Samsung said on Monday the head of its faltering mobile business would keep his job despite an alarming decline in profits, as the electronics giant announced a year-end personnel reshuffle.
A number of leading executives were moved or promoted, but the three co-CEOs of Samsung Electronics all retained their posts, including J.K. Shin, components unit chief Kwon Oh-Hyun and the head of the consumer electronics division B.K. Yoon.
Shin`s position had been seen as particularly vulnerable, as the mobile unit that was responsible for Samsung`s extraordinary run of record profits in recent years was also behind the slump in the past two quarters.
Shin "made many contributions in making Samsung Electronics the world`s top mobile handset maker", Samsung Group spokesman Lee June told reporters.
"We believe he would have a chance to help (Samsung) make another jump in this changing environment in the future," Lee said.
Shin, 58, has led Samsung Electronics` mobile unit since 2012 and played a key role in the South Korean giant`s rise to become the world`s top smartphone maker.
But the firm recently saw profits squeezed by escalating competition with Apple`s iPhones in the high-end market and cheap handsets of Chinese rivals like Xiaomi in the low-end segment.
Samsung posted a 50-percent drop in third-quarter net profit, following a 20 percent drop in the previous quarter.
The net profit for the July-September period was the lowest for nearly three years.
Samsung produces a range of products from handsets to memory chips and TVs but the mobile business comprises the lion`s share of its overall sales.
The family-run company is currently embarking on a major restructuring programme ahead of a generational ownership succession.
Last week it announced the $1.7 billion sale of stakes in four affiliates and a $2.0 billion share buyback.
Samsung`s share price has tumbled more than 10 percent this year as growth in the key smartphone business begins to lose steam.