"Eradicating Private Interests, Solely for the Public Good"…An Unusual Integrity Letter from the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development

A total of 6 relay sessions from April to September
Planned to conclude with a letter from Director Kim Yongmun next month

"We will eradicate the pursuit of private interests and do our best to revitalize the domestic startup ecosystem with the true mindset and attitude of a public official who works solely for the public good."

This is part of the "2023 Relay Integrity and Ethical Management Letter (August)" written by Lee Young-seok, Head of the Startup Foundation Division at the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development (KISED). KISED plans to post a total of six integrity letters in a relay format from April to September to spread a culture of integrity in the startup ecosystem and encourage active participation from stakeholders. The second letter is written by Kim Yong-moon, President of KISED, and the fourth letter is written by the heads of four divisions.

In April, Kim, who wrote the first letter, appealed, "As a public institution leading the startup ecosystem, we will actively fulfill our anti-corruption and integrity obligations and gain the trust of the public to greatly contribute to creating a healthier and better startup ecosystem in Korea. We ask all members of the startup ecosystem to take an interest and participate in improvement activities together with KISED."

Jung Jae-kyung, Head of the Planning and Management Division, said, "We will take the lead in creating an honest organizational culture and a clean startup ecosystem through thorough review and improvement of corruption-prone areas. If there are any inconveniences such as fraudulent acts or improper practices experienced directly or indirectly during work with KISED, please provide candid feedback through the reporting center," emphasizing the importance of open communication.

Seong Seung-ho, Head of the Innovation Startup Division, stated, "Our goal is to establish a culture of integrity where there is no corruption among stakeholders and competition is based on capability, in order to support startups that truly need help. We hope that all startup stakeholders who operate or support companies will join these efforts."

Along with this, Cho Sung-hyun, Head of the Startup Growth Division, said, "To move toward an honest society, it is a time when we all need to participate together and have the will to take the lead ourselves. True happiness can be achieved when we keep our conscience without being swayed by momentary gains," advocating for personal responsibility.

According to this year’s anti-corruption and integrity promotion plan, President Kim will send another letter next month to conclude the relay.

A KISED official said, "The purpose is to declare KISED’s transparent and fair work performance intentions to external stakeholders and secure public trust. The letters include the institution’s anti-corruption and integrity policies, precautions during corruption-prone periods, social issues, and requests according to the characteristics of each project. The internal and external responses to the letters have been positive," they explained.

The KISED official also added, "Integrity is the basic and mandatory duty of employees working in public institutions. To live up to the title of the only dedicated startup support organization in Korea, all executives and staff will continue to strive to build an honest KISED."

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