Story of a Big Player from Gangnam

Chapter 673: External Audit Report (2) - Part 2

After lunch, GH Mobile's management people started congregating in the meeting room. They were all carrying a note under their arms. There were seventy of them including the executive officers.

Once they all settled into their seats at the table, they all looked at President Song.

"I called for this meeting because we are expecting to receive a large volume of new product orders from A Electronics and H Group. It is certainly one of the best things that could happen to a company, to have more product orders from our client companies; however, if we don't make profits out of it by producing more products, what would be the point of working hard and trying hard to procure more clients and work?"

Everyone was quietly listening to President Song.

"Manager Kim who is sitting in the front row! Do you know our cost of sales to revenue ratio for last year?"

"…"

"You don't know? What about Manager Lee who is sitting next to Manager Kim? Can you give me the number?"

"…"

President Song then started yelling at the executive officers who were sitting on the same side as his, once he realized that he couldn't hear the answer from those two managers, "You are all responsible for these workers' inability to answer my question. You are supposed to educate them and lead them."

Director Jong-Suk Park lowered his head trying to avoid eye contact with President Song. He pretended that he was looking at his note. He didn't want to be humiliated in front of all these people by being asked some questions that he wouldn't be able to respond to. Fortunately, President Song didn't call on anyone among the executive officers.

President Song continued, "Our cost of sales to revenue ratio is currently exceeding 80%! Mr. President Gun-Ho Goo pointed it out to me earlier today, and I felt so embarrassed!"

President Song raised his voice from time to time while continuously speaking, and the other workers were listening to him quietly while keeping their heads low.

"All of our competitor companies such as Egnopak and Mandong Company are successfully keeping their cost of sales to revenue ratio below 80%! We don't have to look further. One of our GH companies— Dyeon Korea— always keeps their cost of sales to revenue ratio of 70%. What does it tell us? It's telling that some of our money is obviously leaking somewhere in the process without our knowledge."

The meeting room was dead quiet. Everyone was keeping their heads low.

"First of all, I want to know why we have a high product cost. Manager Kim in the back, tell me why."

"…"

"You don't know why? Well, why don't you give me the reason?"

President Song said to another manager sitting in the back.

"You have been recently promoted to the manager position at the production team 2. Can you tell me why our product cost has to be high?"

"I will make my analysis and will give you a report, sir."

"Do you think your analysis will give the answer?"

"…"

"You are supposed to be aware of all these as a manager in this company. Do you think you are qualified enough to hold a managerial position as it is now?"

"…"

"Don't just sit there like a planted pot, but give me something?"

"…"

"I want you to come up with a plan about how to save our product cost and give me a report by the end of this week. I want one report per department. Okay?"

"Yes, sir."

The workers in the meeting room replied all at once.

When Gun-Ho arrived at Dyeon Korea, he noticed that all of the managers were heading to a meeting room.

When Gun-Ho entered his office on the second floor, Secretary Seon-Hye Yee brought a cup of jujube tea to Gun-Ho.

He asked her, "Do we have a meeting today?"

"It's not a meeting, but they are having a training today, sir."

"A training?"

"Yes, I was told that it's about managing and maintaining the environmental management system. We have invited a consultant from outside for the training."

"Hmm, I see. Can you ask the accounting manager— Ms. Myeong-Sook Jo— to come to my office?"

"Yes, sir."

Manager Myeong-Sook Jo entered Gun-Ho's office after a moment.

"When are we expecting to receive the external audit report?"

"We will have to wait another twenty days, sir. I believe that there will be no changes in our internal year-end financial report."

"Have you received an email from Manager Hong in GH Development requesting to send the external audit report to their office in Seoul?"

"Yes, I have received it, sir."

"Once the external audit is completed, the CPA office will send us about twenty certified copies of the external audit report to our office, right?"

"Yes, sir. We can ask them for more copies if necessary."

"Okay. Please send two copies to the office in Seoul for now when they are available."

"Yes, sir."

Gun-Ho was enjoying his jujube tea when he received a call from Min-Hyeok Kim in China.

"You are having your tea time, aren't you? I guess it's about that time."

"Yeah, I was actually sipping my tea. How did you know that I was having a cup of tea?"

"I know. I know your every move from when you have your lunch to your nap time to your newspaper reading time. I know everything about your schedule."

"You are not even in Korea. How do you know all that from China?"

"We've been friends for twenty years. Of course, I know everything about you. Haha."

"That's weird, and creepy, man."

"I talked with Suk-Ho Lee on the phone. His stores are finally sold."

"Really? That's very nice."

"He sold them for half price of what he initially paid for. After he spent some time in Public Security Bureau's jail, he rushed into selling those stores."

"Public Security Bureau's jail? What are you talking about?"

"He got into an altercation with the previous store owner."

"Was it serious enough to be sent to jail?"

"When he was having an altercation with the previous store owner, someone called the Public Security Bureau. And a public security officer came to the scene and tried to stop them. The thing is that Suk-Ho Lee was so upset at that time, and he pushed one of the public security officers telling him to stay out of it, just like he used to do to us in the old days."

"Well those public security officers were performing their official duties, and he shouldn't do that to them."

"I know. That's why he was placed in jail for an unlawful interference with an officer who was in the execution of his duty."

"I see. I hope that he learned his lesson by now."

"After spending some time in jail, he must have felt like he didn't want to stay there anymore, so he sold his stores as quickly as he could, bearing his loss from the transaction. Someone who is running a motorcycle repair shop bought one of his stores, and another person who is selling agricultural pesticides bought the other one."

"Does he have a plan? What is he going to do now?"

"He told me that he is thinking about opening a karaoke business. Remember his friend who came with him? I think that his friend suggested Suk-Ho Lee to run a karaoke."

"Is he going to do that in Shenyang City?"

"He asked me about the karaoke market in Suzhou City where I am. I told him that there are too many karaokes here in Suzhou City, and it would be very stupid to add one more to the already saturated market."

"Haha, is it true?"