( CNN ) -- Kim Jong Un , successor to his father 's dictatorship over North Korea , will have to find ways to balance political factions and generate revenue -- or he may not remain in power for long , analysts said Tuesday . Shrouded in mystery and believed to be only in his late 20s , Kim marks the third generation in his family to officially reign over the so-called Hermit Kingdom . `` It 's unprecedented in modern times , '' said John Park , an expert on the region with the Harvard Kennedy School 's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs . A popular expression , Park said , summarizes one central reason that third-generation dynasties do n't occur . `` The first generation makes the wealth ; the second generation manages the wealth ; the third generation squanders the wealth , '' he said . Kim Jong Il inherited power from his father , a military leader who built a new North Korean economy . Kim Jong Il maintained a fierce grip , partly through building his country 's nuclear arsenal . It is unknown whether Kim Jong Un has the skills , knowledge or training to lead his country through the next era . North Korea does not function as a `` normal nation state '' through imports , exports and taxes , Park said . `` Kim Jong Il ran a system that was based on competition among senior officials '' who controlled economic institutions such as trading companies . `` The way to view Kim Jong Un is almost as a CEO of North Korea Inc. , '' Park said . `` He either makes money on a recurring basis or he 's out . The fact that he 's the youngest son wo n't matter if he ca n't produce the cash . '' Christian Caryl , an editor of foreignpolicy.com , said the younger Kim 's lack of experience does not bode well . `` I personally put the odds fairly low '' that he will succeed in power , he said . North Koreans `` know much more about the world than they did '' when Kim Jong Il came to power , said Caryl , who last visited a few years ago . `` They 've watched DVDs of South Korean soap operas . People know about China -- and China is light years ahead of North Korea . '' `` You can no longer expect people to believe in the Kim name the way they used to , '' he said . The government still deprives its citizens of basic rights and freedoms , and there is little risk of any popular protest against a leader , Park said . If something were to end Kim Jong Un 's time in power , it would be battling forces within the North Korean power structure . `` There are different factions and interest groups , '' Caryl said . `` I would n't say organized power blocs , but groups that have big business interests now because they 've also been trading with China . '' `` These things begin to get complicated very quickly '' for a new leader at the helm , Caryl said . Jayshree Bajoria of the Council on Foreign Relations writes that `` even with a successor , North Korean observers have for some time feared a behind-the-scenes power struggle or nuclear instability after Kim Jong-Il 's death . '' Still , `` some experts doubt that Kim 's death will lead to chaos , '' Bajoria writes , noting that the country has shown resilience in the past . In the region , analysts and government leaders are looking at early indications in an effort to read the tea leaves . `` Over the span of some 50 hours , North Korea was very effectively able to conceal the death of Kim Jong Il , successfully make the announcement of his death . Seeing that it has gone smoothly so far without any bumps , we can relatively carefully speculate that the leadership is relatively well-grounded , '' South Korean intelligence committee chairman Kwon Young-se said Tuesday in an interview with CNN . `` But at the same time , Kim Jong Un is still very young and has only gone through a short period of time for grooming as an heir . Also , Kim Jong Il died all of a sudden without having been able to fully accelerate the process of the succession . Depending on the balance between the new people that support Kim Jong Un and the older generation that upheld Kim Jong Il , things may not necessarily go smoothly within the leadership , '' he said .
A third-generation dynasty has not happened in modern times , analysts say . Kim Jong Un can be viewed `` almost as a CEO of North Korea Inc. , '' an analyst says . Different factions and interest groups could end the younger Kim 's reign , an analyst says . S. Korean official : A `` relatively well-grounded '' government seems to be in place .