LS Group said Sunday that its board members have picked LS Cable & System chairman Koo Cha-yol as the next chairman of the business group.

The incumbent LS Cable chairman will replace the outgoing chairman John Koo, who is scheduled to step down from his post on Dec. 31. The two figures are cousins.

John Koo will be in charge of supportive activities for the conglomerate in terms of fostering talented employees, overhauling corporate culture, upgrading brand image and enhancing social contribution activities.

The outgoing chairman has been taking on the post for nine years since LS Group was spun off from LG Group in 2003.

The second chairman Koo Cha-yol has mostly worked for LG affiliates such as LG Corp. and LG Investment & Securities.

LS Group, unrivaled in Korea for industrial cables and electrical systems, is aggressively expanding abroad with a focus on green businesses, such as smart grids, renewable energy, electric car parts and resource development.

With LS Cable & System and LS Industrial Systems as its two main pillars, LS has grown into one of the nation’s 15 largest conglomerates in terms of total assets.

By Kim Yon-se (kys@heraldcorp.com)