seoul four decades choi gee-sung fourth son poor civil servant work way top south korea samsung group one world lead business empires inspire legion salaried workers friday seoul court sentence choi four years jail part corruption scandal topple country president hand billionaire boss jay y. lee five-year jail sentence song wu-cheol lead defense attorney choi lee others say would appeal convictions choi downfall fuel sense disillusionment time country big conglomerate look army loyal samsung men navigate potential leadership vacuum choi lee mentor head samsung corporate strategy office dub control tower four years disband early year come fire role graft scandal office oversee samsung group orchestrate big decisions asset sales arrange support weaken group affiliate close february choi step samsung scandal late series mire south korea so-called chaebols powerful family-run conglomerate dominate asia fourth-largest economy criticize often cozy tie politicians involvement choi rise high conglomerate possible someone outside powerful chaebol families shock many samsung employees admire business acumen work ethic help samsung become global technology powerhouse choi portray poster child successful businessman ... deject anger scandal say one samsung employee decline identify samsung company official say hard job like without loyalty previous generation frame think loyalty get change go forward know tenacity attention detail focus drive choi take credit help samsung electronics group crown jewel overtake nokia apple inc mobiles sony corp television manufacture also world lead chipmaker play part today samsung stand tall semiconductors surpass mobile firm nokia everyone think do choi recall trial testimony lee charge samsung executives sit alongside day media report samsung surpass intel semiconductors 40th anniversary first day samsung also day court hear continue a.m. say refer late july samsung report record earn strong chip sales overwhelm feel regret reflection sadness bear poor family korean war 1951 choi join samsung 1977 put food table study prestigious seoul national university work samsung main businesses chip mobile display screen choi among rise top without engineer background become ceo samsung electronics 2010. people like think high go hard work unjust things deal say 33-year-old samsung employee decline identify think choi may agonize though choice take job head control tower choi say accept great responsibility lee decisions make matter relate scandal inevitable protect samsung political pressure chaebols dominate local economy provide millions job define many people identity south korean society salaried workers expect serve long hours unquestionable loyalty culture put top executives pressure take blame boss experts say like japan samurai sacrifice live sake master say chung sun-sup head chaebul.com corporate analysis firm regrettable reality expect professional managers path choi felt little option take hold samsung responsible please blame age lose judgment ... others trust follow judgment tell court trial downfall ex-samsung strategy chief leave 'salarymen disillusion