Connecting global IT strategy with localization at Mercedes-Benz Korea

Even in the 1990s, Korea was an unfamiliar country to many Germans who couldn’t pinpoint the country on a map. But Fares Kamal connected with Korea through Taekwondo, first visiting there when he was 14 to train and compete. Now 30 years later, he’s returned as CIO of Mercedes-Benz’s Korea division.

“Having had ties with Korea since childhood, I maintained a strong interest in the country,” he says. “So I took on the position when the opportunity came up.” It’s been four years since his appointment as CIO and he leads various initiatives while navigating unique challenges.

Developing a solutions-based mindset

Throughout a 20-year career at Mercedes in many countries in addition to Korea, such as Russia, the Czech Republic, and 10 years at Mercedes headquarters in Stuttgart, Germany, Kamal has handled IT responsibilities across various operational divisions including sales, project management, and retail.

“Thanks to my experience working with various teams and in different countries, I’ve developed a deep understanding of domain knowledge and processes for each business area, which has been tremendously helpful since becoming a leader,” Kamal says.

His affection for Mercedes is connected to his hometown of Pforzheim, about 40 kilometers from Stuttgart, where many businesses were related to the automotive industry, and most residents, like Kamal, have a strong interest in it.

Beyond personal memories, Mercedes’s unique corporate culture has kept him there. Under the brand philosophy of ‘The most desirable cars,’ the company has led the evolution of the automotive industry by pioneering innovative technologies such as seat belts, airbags, and ABS. This innovative DNA continues in the IT department as well, most notably in 2018 when it introduced AI-based infotainment system MBUX, and currently with development of the next-generation operating system MB.OS. Plus, Mercedes was the first to obtain Level 3 autonomous driving certification in the US.

Kamal also says the unique attraction of IT has been the driving force behind his long career since, for him, the true appeal of it lies in the joy of problem solving. As he puts it, the IT department often goes unnoticed when everything runs smoothly, but the moment something goes wrong, it becomes the center of attention. In such an environment, someone who becomes intimidated whenever problems arise will find it difficult to adapt. But those with an open mindset and a ‘let’s solve this’ attitude will feel that IT is a true calling.

“The advantage of the IT industry is its transparency,” he says. “Ultimately, all challenges in the IT department come down to whether the technology works or doesn’t, and problems always occur in this process. And while total prevention is impossible, we can build systems to ensure the same trial and error isn’t repeated.”

Harmonizing centralization and localization

Mercedes-Benz’s global IT organization includes around 10,000 experts driving infrastructure, cloud services, software-defined vehicle platforms, and AI technology development, and much more. The company also places a CIO at the group level at its headquarters while assigning regional CIOs to key markets, and Korea is the fifth-largest market in terms of sales volume. There, Kamal leads a Korean IT team, which serves as the core driving force behind digital innovation, as well as a shared service center in the Philippines.

Kamal says his main responsibility is balancing the uniqueness of the Korean market with Mercedes’ global IT strategy. Korea is a market with very high expectations for digital experiences, requiring localized services that still comply with global IT architecture, security protocols, and brand standards.

And as a transformational leader, he also focuses on quickly understanding how changes in one department might affect the entire organization. For instance, when one department proposes that enhancing a feature could boost performance, Kamal doesn’t immediately greenlight the change. He first considers the impact on processes in other departments before coordinating development priorities. This ability to coordinate is the core competency that distinguishes a CIO from an IT manager, and illustrates Kamal’s three main responsibilities.

The first is ensuring IT operational stability. In the Korean market, vehicle sales tend to surge at the end of each month, and if system failures occur during this period, invoice issuance could be halted, directly impacting revenue. To prevent this, he pays special attention to maintaining application and infrastructure stability. Last year, to strengthen system scalability at a global level, infrastructure was outsourced to Infosys, and the platform separation work for the Daimler Truck business unit was completed. Plus, new system construction is underway for the direct sales model scheduled for the near future.

“Direct sales might not seem like a major shift from a dealer’s perspective, but from an IT point of view, it’s a project requiring tremendous changes,” he says. “As Mercedes-Benz directly handles the entire process from contracting to pricing and invoice issuance, it enables consistent pricing policy operation within the market and direct management of customer data.”

The second area is implementing innovative technologies. IT must bypass basic operational support to explore more efficient technology adoption methods. For more than two years, Kamal has focused on converting low-code solutions and centralized databases beyond basic automation. Through this, he’s establishing an important foundation to integrate data in Korea and globally, and to build AI capabilities.

The third is strengthening the security framework to protect systems and prevent data leakage. Protecting data safely according to each country’s regulations is one of the core tasks for each market’s CIO.

“Security is a very important task in the automotive industry, especially in Europe, where data security and privacy standards are among the strictest in the world,” says Kamal. “Policies and systems that can thoroughly verify whether personal data is misused or abused are absolutely necessary.”

In accordance with these objectives, the Korean CIO team includes a diverse range of experts, including infrastructure specialists, security officers, and low-code developers.

Overcoming cultural barriers

Transformational leadership is complicated in any context, but even more so when managing teams across different cultural backgrounds. To address these challenges, Kamal utilizes a situational leadership style, adjusting accordingly to projects and teams.

“I’ve often found that a single leadership style can’t address all situations,” he says. “You have to choose the right one depending on the situation and the team’s level of maturity, which helps maximize the team’s capabilities and performance.”

As a result, he’s established a concrete support system to strengthen professional capabilities. One of the latest additions is a color label system within a project management tool, allowing for transparent and real-time tracking of project progress. In the tool, each team member’s project tasks are recorded, and a specific color label can be applied to each task. Green indicates the task is progressing normally, yellow signals there’s an issue that may require additional support, and red means there’s a critical issue that requires immediate attention from Kamal.

Currently, about 90 projects are simultaneously underway in the Mercedes-Benz Korea IT team, and thanks to this color label system, team members can independently manage their projects while clearly signaling when they need help. Likewise, Kamal doesn’t need to manage every project individually but can focus on those marked red or yellow, effectively intervening when necessary.

Another area Kamal focuses on is improving feedback culture. One of his most puzzling early experiences in Korea happened during a team meeting when he asked for opinions, and most responding with everything is good. It was only after meetings ended that some employees offered their thoughts individually. This was a completely different culture from Germany.

“I realized that in Korea, meetings often center on the senior leader, making it difficult for employees to openly voice opposing views,” Kamal says. “This isn’t a matter of right or wrong but a cultural difference. Rather than enforcing one way of doing things, we acknowledge our differences, collaborate, and find a solution that works best for everyone.”

To bridge the gap between German and Korean feedback cultures, Kamal’s solution was to help lower communication barriers and designate two psychological safety officers within the team to serve as bridges for employees who find the feedback culture awkward or can’t easily express opinions to superiors. He also established a monthly program called Shining Star, creating a dedicated space for written peer-to-peer recognition and positive feedback. Anonymous opinion submission methods are also under consideration.

“I’m very happy with my role and life in Korea,” he says. “Looking ahead, I hope to become more involved in automation and AI, both here and globally.”