Story of a Big Player from Gangnam

The next day, Mr. Sakata Ikuzo didn’t do any work.

“We will resume the work after two days. I will have to get inspired first.”

After that day, Mr. Sakata Ikuzo just sat in his chair and read a book; the way he sat quietly reminded Jong-Suk of a Buddha. Jong-Suk was wondering what kind of book Mr. Sakata Ikuzo was so into, but he couldn’t figure it out since it was all written in Japanese and Chinese characters.

The plant manager called for Jong-Suk.

“Hey, why aren’t you testing the product?”

“Mr. Sakata Ikuzo is just reading a book for hours now.”

“What book?”

“I don’t know. He said he needs to be inspired or something before he could continue the work.”

“Inspiration?”

“Yes, he said he needs inspiration.”

“Ha. He is something!”

“Right. Japanese people are weird.”

“Hmm, let me go and check what kind of book he is reading.”

The plant manager went to Mr. Sakata Ikuzo’s desk.

“What are you reading, Mr. Sakata Ikuzo? Is it fun?”

“Oh, no… I just have to figure out something.”

The plant manager seemed to know how to read some Chinese characters. He looked at the cover of the book to see the book title.

“The Book of Five Rings.”

“That’s right. It’s the book of five rings.”

“I think I heard of it from somewhere.”

The plant manager tilted his head while thinking of the book. He then went to the chief officer of the research center.

“Do you know of a book called The Book of Five Rings?”

“Oh, umm… I think I’ve heard of it somewhere. Isn’t it a martial arts novel?”

“He is reading a martial arts novel to figure out something at work.”

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo kept reading the book, and sometimes he stopped reading the book and seemingly thought about something with his eyes closed. And he resumed his reading after he was done thinking.

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo’s reading and thinking process looked so weird to Jong-Suk.

“Is he reading Buddhist texts?”

Jong-Suk thought the reading might be part of his meditation, or it was some sort of religious practice.

The next day, Mr. Sakata Ikuzo continued reading the book without work until late at night.

“Fu*k! I want to go home. Should I wait until he finishes his reading for the day? I have to take him to his hotel. Sh*t.”

“Me too.”

The interpreter complained as well while standing next to Jong-Suk.

“At least your OneRoom is close to the factory. I have to drive all the way to my house. Fu*k.”

Jae-Sik who was working night shift saw Jong-Suk grumbling.

“What’s wrong?”

“That bossy Japanese guy doesn’t want to go home yet. He is just reading a book, and I have to wait until he finishes his reading.”

“Really?”

Jae-Sik started patrolling the factory. He checked every office with his flashlight. He was checking if an office’s light was still on even though no one was working in that office. Jae-Sik stopped by the area where Mr. Sakata Ikuzo was reading his book. The interpreter was sitting a bit distant from Mr. Sakata Ikuzo, and he was playing a game with his smartphone.”

“You are reading a book, sir. Oh, it’s The Book of Five Rings.”

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo looked at Jae-Sik who was wearing a security guard uniform.

“It’s The Book of Five Rings written by Miyamoto Musashi.”

The interpreter suddenly hit his forehead.

“That’s right! The Book of Five Rings is a book written by Miyamoto Musashi! I remember it now!”

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo lifted his head and looked at Jae-Sik again.

“Do you know of Miyamoto Musashi?”

“Of course. He was the best swordsman in Japan. He was a legendary samurai who had never lost in his 60 fights.”

“Hmmm. You do know of him.”

“The Book of Five Rings was written in his final years. It has been the best-selling book for the longest period in online bookstores and amazon.com in the U.S. as a book for management. He was the master of Niten Ichi-ryu. I like him a lot.”

“Oh, I see.”

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo scanned Jae-Sik from head to toe.

“It’s a shame that he works as a security guard of a factory.”

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo murmured to himself.

Gun-Ho went to the construction field in Jiksan Town. When he entered the factory yard, Director Yoon ran to him.

“Wow. The building is almost complete.”

“That’s right. It’s really quick to complete the building. It takes time to finish the interior though.”

“Really?”

“This is the area where the production field will be; it will be divided into section A and section B. This area is the management office area. And, this is for a conference room, and that will be a company cafeteria and resting area. Please come with me. We haven’t installed the guardrail for the stairs yet. You have to be careful when you use the stairs to walk upstairs.”

Gun-Ho walked up to the second floor; he was wearing a suit and a safety helmet that Director Yoon gave to him.

“This is the management office area. That one will be your office, President Goo. There will be small and large meeting rooms. That will be the restroom.”

Gun-Ho closely looked around the building. A pine tree was once planted in the front yard as part of the landscaping. The factory would look really nice once the construction was completed.

“Once we successfully develop our new product, one by one, we can take 1,000 employees in this factory, right?”

“Of course, sir. We would have enough space in this factory to take 1,000 workers. Moreover, we have a vacant lot over there, so we can always add more buildings at any time.”

“What about the power and water supply? Are we getting enough of them?”

“Yes. The previous factory had high electric power capacity anyway, so we can continuously use it. As to the water, we are getting the water supply service, but we are planning to use underground water as well.”

“Underground water?”

“Yes. There are tons of underground water in this area. So, we are thinking of utilizing underground water for our cooling facilities.”

“Hmmm.”

Gun-Ho nodded his head.

“Are we going to use cement for the floor?”

“The entrance area and the factory yard will be paved with asphalt.”

When Gun-Ho came back to his office in Asan City, he called for his secretary.

“Please ask Mr. Sakata Ikuzo to come to my office.”

“Yes, sir.”

Mr. Sakata Ikuzo entered Gun-Ho’s office.

“How’s work? I just wanted to have a cup of tea with you.”

“Thank you.”

“I’ve heard that you are reading a book these days.”

“Oh, yes, I’ve been reading the Book of Five Rings, which is written by an old Japanese swordsman. The book is very popular as a book for management nowadays.”

“Really?”

“The Book of Five Rings is translated into English and is being sold on amazon.com. I recommend you read the book. I’d like to give my book to you, but it is written in Japanese, so it won’t be very useful to you.”

“I will read the book when I have the chance. Thank you.”

“I get inspired by reading that book. The swordsman had 60 fights, and he had never lost in even a single fight. I also wanted to develop 60 new products, but it’s not easy to achieve it.”

“How many new products have you developed so far?”

“I’ve developed 20 products. It’s not even close to 60.”

“Haha. It must be very challenging.”

“I’ve done reading the book, and I got the inspiration I need. I will start again developing the product tomorrow. I will succeed this time and will make you happy, President Goo.”

“Thank you.”

“By the way, you are a very lucky man, President Goo.”

“Why do you say so?”

“You have two very good workers close to you.”

“Are you talking about the plant manager and the chief officer of the research center? Or are you referring to the sales director?”

“No, I meant the production manager—Jong-Suk Park—and the security guard—Jae-Sik Moon.”

“Huh? Those people?”

“I am not sure about their mindset on management, but I know that they are very good workers and professionals. They will assist you and will be a big help to you in the future, President Goo.”

“Really?”

Gun-Ho thought about it while rubbing his nose.