Chairman Chey Tae-won: "I Will Solve Problems Through Communication"… Town Hall Meeting to 'Listen' Instead of Inauguration Ceremony

Choi Tae-won, the newly appointed chairman of the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industry, is presiding over a meeting at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry executives' general assembly held on the 24th at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jung-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] Choi Tae-won, the newly appointed chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), replaced the inauguration ceremony on the 29th with a 'non-face-to-face town hall meeting.' It is evaluated that he placed more emphasis on 'listening' rather than his own 'speech.'

On the 29th, KCCI held a 'non-face-to-face town hall meeting' at the Chamber of Commerce building in Jung-gu, Seoul, announcing 'the new beginning of the 24th Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry.' Present on site were Jang In-hwa, chairman of Busan Chamber of Commerce, Chung Mong-yoon, vice chairman of Seoul Chamber of Commerce (chairman of Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance), Lee Han-joo, vice chairman of Seoul Chamber of Commerce (CEO of Bespin Global), Kim Dong-myung, chairman of the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, and Yoo Young-sook, chairman of the Climate Change Center.

On a 10-meter screen, more than 50 stakeholders including general citizens, small business owners, startups, small and medium enterprises, mid-sized companies, large corporations, nationwide chambers of commerce, civic groups, the Office for Government Policy Coordination, Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Ministry of Science and ICT participated in the 'online meeting.'

KCCI stated, "We replaced the inauguration ceremony with a town hall meeting based on the opinions of the new chairman Choi Tae-won," adding, "The new KCCI held its first 'listening' town hall meeting not only to gather corporate opinions but also to hear diverse voices from various sectors about the role of companies."

The event began with a 10-minute video titled 'A New Leap, Korea's Economy 24 Hours.' It captured the voices of 24 stakeholders who expressed their hopes for the 24th KCCI, including National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seok, Seoul National University Professor Park Sang-in, and job seekers, over a 24-hour period.

A Message Basket also appeared. Stakeholders who could not attend in person sent 1,000 text messages regarding 'the role of companies and the role of KCCI.' KCCI combined this with big data analysis from social media (Twitter, blogs, comments) and delivered the results on an 11-inch tablet to the attendees.

Opening the Message Basket revealed that communication and coexistence were the most frequent topics, followed by ESG (environment, social, governance) and institutional innovation. Regarding communication and coexistence, there were requests for 'listening leadership' from large corporations to local small businesses. In the ESG field, companies were urged to strive not only for profit but also for creating social value. In institutional innovation, there were demands to improve outdated laws and systems to create a business-friendly environment.

By economic actors, the public emphasized 'communication and coexistence,' asking KCCI to be a balanced representative for its 190,000 member companies. They also expected companies to create social value through ethical management and social contribution. The government and National Assembly called for establishing an industrial future foundation capable of responding to the post-COVID era. Companies hoped for market order establishment through 'self-regulation' rather than uniform regulations, while labor and civic groups emphasized solving social issues such as human rights and gender equality alongside ESG management. Academia also urged the creation of an ESG roadmap to spread ESG management.

Chairman Choi Tae-won stated as his inaugural remark, "Since companies are part of society, they must consider sustainability and regain society's trust," adding, "I will seek ways to resolve conflicts and problems through communication."

He continued, "KCCI aims to establish new partnerships of cooperation," requesting active participation from all sectors.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.