Business Boot Camp

"The workplace is not a place to survive. It is a place to grow."

The one and only book for those who want to design their career the right way.

Let go of the illusion that you simply have to hold on—your career exists for 'growth,' not 'survival.'

Business Boot Camp (비즈니스 부트캠프) is a practical, hands-on management book that goes beyond merely 'surviving in the workplace' to offer answers on 'how to learn, grow, and move forward.' The author is a field-tested doctor of business administration who has held a wide range of C-level roles—CFO, COO, CMO, CHRO, and more—at global financial firms and law firms, and through this book he lays out a strategic career roadmap that runs through the entire life cycle of a working professional, from the fundamentals a practitioner needs to the insight of an executive.

The fundamentals every practitioner must possess, the leadership and organizational management every team leader must know, and the essence and breadth of vision every executive must have—the book delivers insights tailored to each position and role.

A career strategy designed in three stages

This book was written for the new employee who 'wants to button up the first button correctly' (Part 1), the leader who 'must guide a team' (Part 2), and the executive who 'must run a growing organization' (Part 3). Spanning from the practitioner to the executive's seat, these stories—holding 40 years of experience and insight—are not the simple theories and dated case studies taught in business school, but are full of vivid insights earned through real workplace struggles and heartfelt advice for those coming up behind.

• "With promotion, what matters is not 'how fast' but 'how high you climb'—like a professional mountaineer."
• "The workplace is a pro sports club and the employee is a pro athlete. Every game is the real thing, and every moment is up for evaluation."
• "Your salary is your worth converted into currency."
• "What an executive is called upon to have is the sharp insight to uncover the story hidden within analysis prepared through the night and connect it to the next story."
• "Persuasion is not coercion; it is the process of steering the other person so that they can change their own mind."

Business Boot Camp will be a precious compass for the junior colleague, the peer, and anyone genuinely wrestling with their career, helping them design a career built for real growth.

Prologue. The field is the finest classroom for business. 04

Part 1. A New Beginning: Let's At Least Know This Much

   01 From Campus to Corporation, From the Soccer Club to the K-League 15

02 The Definition of an Employee: Calculate Your Own Value 22

03 Record and You Adapt; Adapt and You Survive 29

04 Learn from the Basics: A Solid Foundation Lasts 35

05 Work Smart: The ABCDE of Working Smart 41

06 Speak Simply: That's How It Gets Through 49

07 Listening Is a Skill Too: Practice It with CARESS 53

08 The Two Faces of Communication: Giving the Disease and the Cure 59

09 The First Step in Risk Management: If It Feels Off, Open Up 68

10 Do You Know the Way? Do You Know Accounting? 73

11 The Power of Relationships: Practice Putting Yourself in the Other's Shoes 80

12 The Legend of Delivery: The Field Expert They Called 'Lightning' 86

13 The Meaning of Promotion: Lessons from a Block-Stacking Game 92

Part 2. Leadership Beyond the Classroom

   01 Followership Comes First 101

02 The Combat Arms School's Slogan: The Answer Is There 106

03 The Core of Team Leader Leadership: 3C 2S 114

04 The Textbook of Team Leader Leadership: Learning from the 'Foreman' on a Construction Site 122

05 The Team Leader's Communication: From Dialogue to Persuasion and Negotiation 127

06 The Shortcut to Wrecking an Organization: Do the Opposite 133

07 What to Close and What to Open: Reflecting on a Leader's Virtues 140

08 Energizing Teamwork: Link the 4D Environment with Team Roles 145

09 The Power of Cooperation: A True Leader Draws It Out 153

10 Motivation 3.0: A New Paradigm 159

11 The Four Types of Team Members: The Loyalist, the Deserter, the Mercenary, the Hostage 166

12 The Relational Leader: Become a Strategic Giver 172

13 Leave Your Specialty: Let Go to Gain Something Greater 179

Part 3. Talking About Management

   01 What Is Management? Learning from the Great Merchant Im Sang-ok 185

02 Why Do We Call a General a 'General'? 190

03 The CEO's Stakeholders: Customers (C), Employees (E), Owners (O) 197

04 A Flood of Analysis, a Shortage of Insight: Find the Story Within the Numbers 202

05 Signals of a Sinking Company: It's Only a Matter of Time 208

06 The Internet, Robots, AI: Digital Transformation 214

07 Innovation and Change Management: One Alone Is Not Enough 222

08 Competitive Advantage for Sustainable Management: Win at PQS 230

09 The People Who Visit Hanilkwan: A Story of Sustainable Management 235

10 CSR, CSV, ESG: The Three Musketeers of Sustainable Growth 240

11 Is HR Everything? HR Is Everything 247

12 Management Is Service: Seek Solutions, Not Mere Kindness 255

13 Management of the People, by the People, for the People 261

Epilogue. Now Your Boot Camp Begins. 266