KoreaWho - Biographical and news service about individuals who have a significant impact on the Korean economy

- General Director of Severance Hospital
  Lee Kang-young
  
  Lee Kang-young(Korean: 이강영) is the General Director of Severance Hospital. He is focusing on transforming the hospital system into a specialized medical center for critical and highly complex treatments, led by expert physicians. He was born in 1967. He graduated from Kyungmoon High School in Seoul and earned his medical degree from Yonsei University College of Medicine. He received a master’s degree in medicine from Yonsei University Graduate School and a PhD in pathology from Korea University Graduate School. He completed his residency at Yonsei University's Severance Hospital and later worked as a researcher at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in the United States. In March 2012, he was appointed as a professor in the Department of Colorectal Surgery at Yonsei University College of Medicine. He has served as the head of the Colorectal Cancer Clinic at Gangnam Severance Hospital and as director of the Medical Quality Management Office at Severance Hospital. He later held key leadership positions at Yonsei University Health System, including Director of Planning and Coordination, Director of Future Strategy, and Head of the Mid-to-Long Term Project Division, where he played a key role in shaping both the present and future management of the hospital. In April 2024, he was appointed General Director of Severance Hospital for a two-year term. He is regarded as a pioneer in the field of robotic surgery for colorectal cancer in South Korea. He currently serves as President of the Korean Surgical Society.
- CEO of Dentis
  Sim Gi-bong
  
  Sim Gi-bong(Korean: 심기봉) is the CEO of Dentis. He is focused on transforming Dentis into a global healthcare company, concentrating efforts on expanding its global footprint. He was born on February 15, 1969, in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province. He graduated from Pusan National University with a degree in Inorganic Materials Engineering. He began his career at Shinhung, a company that manufactures dental equipment, where he served as Sales Team Leader. After gaining experience, he established Biocom, a company specializing in the distribution of dental implants. In 2005, he founded Dentis and expanded the business to include the manufacturing of dental implants. Sim is a self-made entrepreneur who rose from a sales position to become the owner of a dental medical device company. He embraces the management philosophy of "benefiting oneself by benefiting others" (利他自利). He also serves as Chairman of the Daegu West Crime Victim Support Center. Keywords: #SimGiBong #Dentis #dentalimplants #healthcareCEO #selfmadeentrepreneur #dentaldevices #globalexpansion #PusanNationalUniversity #SouthKoreahealthcare #Biocom
- Chairman of Seoul Auction
  Lee Ho-jae
  
  Lee Ho-jae is the chairman of Seoul Auction and also serves as chairman of Gana Art. He is the founder of Seoul Auction, a leading art auction house, and Gana Art Gallery, a prominent art gallery. He has been driving the expansion of auction categories—including luxury goods, automobiles, and real estate—and working to invigorate the auction market. He was born on November 11, 1954. He graduated from Kyungbok High School in Seoul and earned a degree in business administration from Kyung Hee University. Lee began his career in art sales at Goryeo Gallery before founding Gana Gallery (now Gana Art Gallery) in 1983, where he became CEO. In response to the Asian financial crisis, he established Seoul Kyungmae (now Seoul Auction) in 1998 to revitalize the art distribution market. He was appointed chairman of Seoul Auction in 2014. He is widely recognized as a pioneer who led the industrialization of Korea's art market. #LeeHoJae #SeoulAuction #GanaArt #KoreanArtMarket #ArtIndustryPioneer #AuctionExpansion #LuxuryAuction #ArtEntrepreneur #ContemporaryArt #CulturalLeadership
- Co-CEO of ISC
  Kim Jeong-ryeol
  
  Kim Jeong-ryeol is Co-CEO of ISC. ISC is a subsidiary of SKC specializing in semiconductor test solutions. He leads the company alongside fellow Co-CEO Yoo Ji-han. He is accelerating efforts to pursue mergers and acquisitions (M&A) aimed at strengthening competitiveness in the semiconductor back-end process sector. He was born on February 6, 1962. He graduated from Kyungpook National University with a degree in electronic engineering. After working at Hyundai Electronics (now SK hynix) and DYL Tech, he joined ISC on November 3, 2003. He was appointed CEO in 2010. He later moved to JMT Inc. in Japan, where he served as CEO, before returning to ISC as CEO in 2021. He is a professional executive who has led ISC for 22 years. He succeeded in localizing key consumable components for semiconductors, a market previously monopolized by Japan. #ISC #KimJeongryeol #SKC #semiconductor #ISCleadership #Koreansemiconductor #M&A #JMT #SKhynix #electronicsindustry
- CEO of SOOP
  Seo Soo-gil
  
  Seo Soo-gil is the Co-CEO of SOOP. He leads SOOP as an owner alongside Chief Strategy Officer (CSO) Choi Young-woo. He faces the task of dispelling doubts about SOOP’s business operations and management capabilities, following the emergence of accounting fraud allegations and issues related to the promotion of explicit and gambling-like content in 2024. He was born on March 9, 1967, in Goesan, Chungcheongbuk-do. He graduated from Hwanil High School in Seoul and earned a degree in Aerospace Engineering from Seoul National University. He completed an MBA program at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. In 1997, he worked as a consultant at Boston Consulting Group in the United States before being appointed CEO of Itekstyle. He was later recruited as Vice President of the consulting firm Bellmore Partners (Clayman) and subsequently served as Executive Director of the Planning Division at SK C&C. He later served as CEO of Actoz Soft and CEO of Wemade Entertainment. In 2011, he acquired Nowcom, the predecessor of SOOP, and became its CEO. He renamed the company to AfreecaTV and served as CEO of AfreecaTV until 2021. He returned as CEO in 2024. He is credited with creating the ecosystem for the internet-based one-person broadcasting market in Korea. #SeoSooGil #SOOP #AfreecaTV #InternetBroadcasting #KoreanTech #BusinessLeadership #WhartonSchool #SeoulNationalUniversity #CorporateTurnaround #MediaIndustry
- CEO of Kolon TissueGene
  Noh Moon-jong
  
  Noh Moon-jong is the CEO of Kolon TissueGene. He faces the challenge of successfully leading the U.S. clinical trials and product approval of TG-C, a cell and gene therapy for osteoarthritis, which is the company’s only pipeline candidate. He was born on March 12, 1968. He graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in Microbiology. He earned both his master’s and doctoral degrees in Molecular Biology from KAIST (Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology). He joined Kolon Central Research Institute, where he worked as a senior researcher and head of the Biotechnology Research Lab. He was dispatched to Kolon TissueGene and participated in the research and development of TG-C (U.S. development name for Invossa), a treatment for knee osteoarthritis. He served as Vice President overseeing R&D and as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Kolon TissueGene. In 2019, he was appointed CEO of Kolon TissueGene. He is leading the clinical trials of TG-C. He is the only remaining researcher from the early development team of Invossa at TissueGene. He has a deep attachment to the TG-C development project. #NohMoonjong #KolonTissueGene #TGCTherapy #Invossa #OsteoarthritisTreatment #ClinicalTrials #BiotechLeadership #KAIST #SNU #Genetherapy
- CEO of Resort Group at Samsung C&T
  Jeong Hai-lin
  
  Jeong Hai-lin is the CEO and President of Resort Group at Samsung C&T and the CEO and President of Samsung Welstory. He aims to focus on external growth. To achieve this, he is concentrating on expanding overseas business and strengthening solution capabilities. He was born on November 21, 1964. He graduated from Korea University with a degree in Economics. He joined Samsung Electronics in 1990, served as Head of the Management Support Group, and later worked as Executive Director at Samsung Group's Future Strategy Office. After transferring to Samsung C&T to work in the Corporate Planning Office, he returned to Samsung Electronics, where he served as Head of the Management Support Group of the Mobile Business Division Support Team and Executive Vice President in charge of the Business Support Task Force. In 2023, he was appointed CEO of Resort Group at Samsung C&T and CEO of Samsung Welstory. He is a management expert who has held key positions at the Future Strategy Office and the Business Support Task Force, both regarded as the command centers of Samsung Group and Samsung Electronics. #JeongHaiLin #SamsungCT #SamsungWelstory #SamsungElectronics #FutureStrategyOffice #BusinessSupportTaskForce #KoreaUniversity #ResortGroup #ManagementExpert #SamsungGroup
- Chairman of Dongwon Group
  Kim Nam-jung
  
  Kim Nam-jung is the Chairman of Dongwon Group. He is actively investing to discover new growth engines for Dongwon Group beyond the tuna industry. He was born on January 21, 1973, in Seoul, as the youngest son among two sons and two daughters of Kim Jae-chul, Honorary Chairman of Dongwon Group. He graduated from the Department of Sociology at Korea University and completed an MBA program at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan. After joining Dongwon Industries, he worked at Dongwon Enterprise and Dongwon F&B, then served as Head of Management Support at Dongwon Industries and Dongwon Systems. After working as Deputy General Manager of the Construction Division at Dongwon Systems, he was appointed CEO of Dongwon Enterprise in 2011. He was promoted to Vice Chairman in 2014 and became Chairman in 2024, after ten years. While serving as Vice Chairman, he led more than ten mergers and acquisitions and technology investments, building the group's four major value chains spanning fisheries, food, materials, and logistics. He is known for being quiet and modest, showing a meticulous working style. #KimNamjung #DongwonGroup #Chairman #Fisheries #FoodIndustry #Logistics #MaterialsBusiness #MergersAndAcquisitions #BusinessLeadership #KoreaUniversity #UniversityofMichigan
- CEO of Zeus
  Lee Jong-woo
  
  Lee Jong-woo is the CEO of Zeus. Together with CEO Hwang Ha-seop, he leads Zeus as a co-CEO. He is focusing on securing a long-term growth foundation by creating synergy among semiconductors, displays, and industrial robots. He was born on September 5, 1971, as the eldest son among one son and two daughters of Lee Dong-ak, the founder of Zeus. He graduated from the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan in the United States, majoring in Electrical and Computer Engineering, and received his master's degree from the same university. He also completed an MBA program at KAIST Graduate School of Business. In 1998, he started his career as a test design engineer at MACOM, an electronic components company in Massachusetts, USA. He then worked as a software engineer at Magme Design Automation in Cupertino, California, and as a product development engineer at Cadence Design Systems in San Jose, California. After returning to Korea, he joined Zeus, which was managed by his father, and completed seven years of management training before being appointed CEO of Zeus at the age of 41 in 2011. He aims to transform Zeus into a global engineering company. He spares no investment in people. #LeeJongwoo #Zeus #Semiconductor #Display #IndustrialRobots #UniversityofMichigan #KAIST #GlobalEngineeringCompany #Leadership #ManagementTraining
- CEO of The Pinkfong Company
  Kim Min-seok
  
  Kim Min-seok is the CEO of The Pinkfong Company. He is the founder of The Pinkfong Company, a character-based content IP (intellectual property) company famous for "Baby Shark." He is focusing on expanding into the global market. He was born on April 10, 1981, as the eldest son among two sons of Kim Jin-yong, Chairman and CEO of Samsung Publishing. He graduated from the Department of Chemical Engineering at Yonsei University. After working in game development and service planning at Nexon and NHN, he moved to Samsung Publishing, founded by his grandfather, in 2008. While creating mobile apps at Samsung Publishing, he saw the growth potential of infant and toddler content and went independent to found SmartStudy, now The Pinkfong Company. He gained worldwide attention by making character IPs such as Pinkfong, Baby Shark, Bebefinn, and Silly Duck major hits. #KimMinseok #ThePinkfongCompany #BabyShark #Pinkfong #Bebefinn #SillyDuck #GlobalExpansion #ContentIP #SamsungPublishing #SmartStudy

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