How Lunit’s Corporate Culture Shaped its Language Program: “Luniversal”
Language classes are not a chore at Lunit; they are a perk that matches our corporate culture. Many companies based out of Korea evaluate employees in their language programs by using tests. However, Lunit’s corporate culture allowed its language program, named Luniversal (Lunit+Universal), to avoid this and instead encourage the members to focus on education and self-improvement. As a Luniversal tutor and a Lunit member, I can illuminate what makes the program unique.
Today around fifty members take part in the program. Members take two classes a week in classrooms in the office with their assigned tutors. A typical classroom has a desk for each of the tutor and student with a computer provided for the tutor. Classrooms are structured to encourage conversations between the student and the teacher.
Luniversal was originally conceived of by Brandon Suh, Lunit’s CEO, in order to make Lunit a global company. The program isn’t mandatory as Lunit members are encouraged to be driven and focused on learning on their own. The program began in 2019 and has been growing in size and scope ever since.
Luniversal started in a very different condition from where it is now. It began as a conventional language program where students were tested on their knowledge of textbooks and ranked on their progress. However Lunit’s corporate culture, which promotes independence and self-motivation as core values, allowed students and tutors to change the program.
Lunit’s culture of flexibility and independence contrasts with the strict requirements needed for strict curriculums and standardized tests. Lunit members are given the freedom to develop their own schedules and act independently. Accordingly, they expect the same freedom when taking classes through the company. “This is what your company wants” wasn’t an acceptable excuse when students became unsatisfied with the material. As a result, each Luniversal tutor has been able to develop a unique approach.
My classes are designed around student-centered classes as I’ve found that they match perfectly with Lunit’s culture. “Student-centered” classes are classes where the student drives the class and chooses what to learn. They are in contrast to teacher-centered classes where teachers make all the decisions and lead the class. In a student-centered class, the student should be talking much more than the teacher while the teacher suggests necessary corrections and guidance. One example of how this looks in a class is that I use open-ended questions that avoid yes-no answers when discussing class materials. I often ask “What do you think it means?” instead of “Do you remember what this word means?”.
Students aren’t passive learners in our classes as they are active participants shaping the curriculum on the fly. How a class usually operates is that we will read a short article or watch a short video together. The students ask questions about any vocabulary words, natural expressions or grammar forms that they aren’t familiar with and then I demonstrate how to use each. I make numerous comments in a shared document as class notes. When an error or question about one grammar form is repeated in the notes I then focus the rest of the class on that area. Ideally the class should focus on one language function and the student will be able to use the function comfortably in a discussion without repeated errors before the class finishes.
One of my most important rules is that errors are positive and an opportunity for learning. I have worked in the South Korean public school system and felt the emphasis on tests left no room for error. A single error could make a difference in a student’s grades which led to perceived failure. Many students who have gone through this education system are afraid of making errors. Therefore I treat each error as an opportunity and only use positive language when describing them. We work together to correct an error and record both the original error and the correction. At first students said sorry when they made errors but now they consider it as a way to learn and grow.
We have never had problems with getting rid of grades or numerical evaluations. Instead of ritualistic competition and ranking, Luniversal uses regular feedback with a comment on each student’s progress at the end of each class. Feedback is direct and clear giving specific areas where they did well or where students need to improve.
Lunit’s culture allows the company to operate without strict rules and systems. The Luniversal program is an example of how a culture of flexibility and independence allows employees to focus on what really matters and be more efficient. Our corporate culture overall saves time and allows Lunit to skip pitfalls that more hierarchical companies have deemed necessary.
