First Regular Personnel Appointment by Lee Bok-hyun, Head of FSC, Kicks Off Full-Scale Generational Change Drive

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Hwajeong] Lee Bokhyun, Governor of the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), has taken a regular personnel reshuffle replacing 70% of department heads, putting full drive into generational change. Following a groundbreaking ad hoc personnel reshuffle in August that signaled generational change, Governor Lee firmly demonstrated his commitment to generational change and organizational innovation in his first regular personnel reshuffle since taking office.

According to the financial sector on the 15th, the FSS conducted a department head reshuffle, changing 56 out of 79 department head positions along with an organizational restructuring the previous day.

Following the ad hoc reshuffle in August, the generational change trend continued this time as well. Among the new department heads, 31 were newly appointed. Two-thirds of the headquarters’ bureau and office chiefs are filled with those born in the 1970s. In the August ad hoc reshuffle, department heads born in 1967 stepped down, and this time most of those born in 1968 left frontline departments. After this reshuffle, only two bureau and office chiefs born in 1968 remain at headquarters. The proportion of relatively younger department heads from the open recruitment generation among headquarters department heads rose to 25%. In the August ad hoc reshuffle, 40 department heads were replaced, and those born between 1969 and 1971 were fully appointed as department heads. For the first time, executives born in the 1970s emerged, and a department head born in 1974 was appointed at the director level.

The trend of promoting female talent also continued. Five female directors with outstanding work ability and leadership were appointed to headquarters departments. Following one promotion in the August reshuffle, two more were promoted this time.

This regular personnel reshuffle is evaluated as a personnel move that clearly reflects Governor Lee’s style. Prior to the regular reshuffle, Governor Lee emphasized that personnel decisions would be made on a 'zero base' without considering the balance of originating institutions, based solely on work ability and performance. Since taking office, he has consistently stressed performance-centered appointments over seniority in personnel matters. The full appointment of open recruitment and 40s department heads in both the ad hoc and regular reshuffles is interpreted as a direct reflection of Governor Lee’s will to break the seniority-based personnel practices.

The organizational restructuring carried out alongside the personnel reshuffle focused on rapid response to current issues. To respond to the recent increase in financial market volatility, the FSS established the Financial Market Stabilization Bureau, a dedicated department for financial markets and risk management. Additionally, to build a company-wide response system for important financial issues, the Supervisory General Bureau was strengthened by granting it authority to oversee special assignments from the governor and to establish a task force (TF) for rapid response to critical issues.

Furthermore, organizational restructuring was implemented to strengthen responses to various financial accidents and illegal activities. To enhance responses to financial crimes affecting the livelihood of the public, the Livelihood Finance Bureau was newly established to specialize in prevention and crackdown on loan businesses and private finance damages. To respond to unfair trading and market disruption such as illegal leading chat rooms, a dedicated investigation team for stock leading chat rooms was established within the Planning and Investigation Bureau, and the accounting audit organization was reorganized into a two-bureau system to respond to accounting fraud. To prevent financial accidents such as embezzlement in the financial sector caused by poor internal controls, the Bank Inspection Bureau was expanded from two bureaus to three bureaus.

Financial Supervisory Service Governor Lee Bok-hyun is delivering opening remarks at the Financial Supervisory Service Governor-Research Institute Heads Meeting held at the Bankers Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 7th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

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