I've worked in the US, Europe, and Korea. The biggest difference is how people approach innovation.

Myung-hee Na (on right) is the vice president and general manager of technology research at Intel. Intel Foundry Myung-hee Na leads Intel Foundry's semiconductor research, focusing on future chip technology. She says there are notable differences between working in the US and Korea. The US fosters innovation and independent thinking, while Korea emphasizes discipline and execution, Na said. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Myung-hee Na, an engineer with more than two decades of experience in the semiconductor industry who leads technology research at Intel Foundry . At Intel, she focuses on developing next-generation technology in semiconductor chips. The conversation has been edited for length and clarity. I've worked in the US , Europe, and Korea, and across all those places, the technology itself was the same. Device physics is device physics, no matter where you are.