Kakao Ends CPO Structure... Shifts to 'User-Centered' Approach Through Reorganization

Kakao is ending its current Chief Product Officer (CPO) structure as it reorganizes its product division. The restructured organization will focus on improving user service experiences and plans to overhaul KakaoTalk.

According to the IT industry on June 1, Kakao has begun reorganizing its product division, splitting it into two new teams: KakaoTalk and Business. In addition, all design teams will be consolidated into a single unit. Under the previous CPO system, the CPO oversaw the entire product organization.

Kakao Pangyo Ajit, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Jinhyung Kang aymsdream@

The new organization will be centered around user-oriented services. A Kakao representative explained, "The intention to communicate by reflecting user feedback was incorporated into this reorganization." In fact, the plan includes establishing a new task force (TF) called 'User First' to operate services with a user-centric approach. This task force will be responsible for strengthening communication with users and improving the overall quality of services.

On May 27, Kakao CEO Shin Sina announced the reorganization plan in an internal notice, stating, "It is time for the company to establish a stable system, redefine standards from a service perspective, and move forward together in the same direction."

Kakao faced criticism last year for failing to sufficiently collect user feedback during a previous KakaoTalk service update. In September 2025, Kakao reorganized the KakaoTalk 'Friends' tab into a feed format and changed the profile page to a grid format similar to social networking services (SNS). Users strongly objected to these changes, calling them inconvenient, and within just over a week after the announcement, Kakao reversed the Friends tab back to its original format.

This reorganization is also tied to the departure of Kakao CPO Hong Mintak, who led the KakaoTalk update. Hong, who submitted his resignation to the company on May 27, is expected to leave in early June. He has been criticized for pushing ahead with excessive updates and for sparking controversy over employee overtime. Following news of his resignation, the Kakao labor union stated, "CPO Hong ignited negative controversy over the KakaoTalk update and labor-management conflict, yet disappeared without offering any explanation, as if nothing had happened."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.