All KT CEO Candidates Are 'Current and Former KT Employees'... Four-Way Contest for Selection Intensifies (Comprehensive)

Next Representative Candidates Park Yoon-young, Shin Soo-jung, Yoon Kyung-rim, and Lim Heon-moon Shortlisted

KT's board of directors announced four candidates for the next CEO on the 28th. The candidates under review are former KT Enterprise Division Head (President) Park Yoon-young, KT Enterprise Division Head (Vice President) Shin Soo-jung, KT Group Transformation Division Head (President) Yoon Kyung-rim, and former KT Mass General Manager (President) Lim Heon-moon. Contrary to expectations inside and outside KT that political and business figures would be strong contenders, all four candidates under review are current or former KT insiders.

Yoon Young Park, former Head of KT Enterprise Division (President, from the left), Sujeong Shin, Head of KT Enterprise Division (Vice President), Kyunglim Yoon, Head of KT Group Transformation Division (President), Heonmun Lim, former Head of KT Mass Division (President)

Who are the four candidates under review?

The common denominator among the four candidates is Seoul National University. Three of the four (Park Yoon-young, Yoon Kyung-rim, and Shin Soo-jung) graduated from Seoul National University. Former President Lim Heon-moon, who graduated from Yonsei University’s Business Administration department, also completed his master's and doctoral courses at Seoul National University.

KT old boys (OB) Park Yoon-young (62) and Lim Heon-moon (64) are making their second attempt. Three years ago, both made it to the final round of the KT CEO election along with current CEO Koo Hyun-mo but were ultimately unsuccessful. Park, who graduated from Seoul National University’s Civil Engineering department, served as head of KT’s Future Business Development Team under the Future Convergence Business Promotion Office and as head of the Corporate Consulting Headquarters before leading the Corporate Business Division from 2017. He is credited with playing a pivotal role in achieving results in the corporate business sector through swift execution during his tenure at KT.

Lim Heon-moon (64) joined KT and served as head of KTF Marketing Research Office and Home Customer Strategy Headquarters. After retiring in 2010, he worked as a professor in the Business Administration department at Chungnam National University before returning to KT in 2014. He then served as head of the Customer Division (Vice President) and later as President of KT Mass. Lim is an expert in domestic telecommunications distribution and mainly handled consumer and marketing-related tasks at KT.

Yoon Kyung-rim (61), who graduated from Seoul National University’s Business Administration department, served as head of the Future Convergence Business Promotion Office and Global Business Division before moving to Hyundai Motor Company in 2019 to oversee mobility business. She returned to KT in 2021 and is currently working to create synergy among group affiliates. Shin Soo-jung (59), who graduated from Seoul National University’s Mechanical Design department, is a former SK employee. She moved to KT in 2014 and has held positions such as head of the Information Security Team and IT Planning Office.

What are the document screening criteria?

KT’s board of directors selected external interview candidates by directly reflecting the candidate shortlist results from the nomination advisory group. For internal candidates, the advisory group selected interviewees from the first-round shortlisted candidates by considering external experts’ leadership assessments and management performance.

The nomination advisory group comprehensively considered opinions on the ideal KT CEO image gathered from major shareholders including the largest shareholder, the National Pension Service, the top 30 shareholders, and the KT labor union. Domestic and international shareholders emphasized ▲expertise in information and communication technology (ICT) trends ▲experience related to KT’s business and proven management capabilities ▲ability to enhance shareholder and corporate value ▲effective communication with key stakeholders ▲and ESG-focused management. The labor union stressed that the appointed individual should present a future vision for the KT group and be capable of advancing labor-management relations. The advisory group explained, "The candidates under review are individuals equipped with leadership to present a future vision in the rapidly changing digital transformation (DX) environment and the ability to deliver tangible management results."

The advisory group consists of Kwon Oh-kyung, Chair Professor at Hanyang University; Kim Joo-hyun, lawyer at Kim & Chang Law Firm; Shin Sung-chul, government science and technology cooperation ambassador; Jung Dong-il, professor at Yonsei University Business School; and Jung Hae-bang, former Vice Minister of Planning and Budget.

Final candidates to be confirmed on March 7

The interview evaluation criteria for CEO candidates include establishing a sustainable growth foundation based on DX capabilities, pursuing change and innovation, enhancing corporate value, and strengthening ESG management. Next week, the CEO Candidate Screening Committee will conduct fair and objective interviews based on evaluation criteria reflecting stakeholder opinions. The board will finalize one candidate as the CEO nominee on March 7. The selected candidate will be appointed as CEO after a shareholder vote at KT’s regular general meeting scheduled for the end of next month. The new CEO’s term will run from March 2023 to March 2026.

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