Ministry of SMEs and Startups Seeks Candidates for "2026 Win-Win Company of the Year Award"

Introduction of Public Recommendation and Voting Systems
Award Scale Expanded to 97 Recipients

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced on the 10th that it is publicly seeking candidates for the "2026 Win-Win Company of the Year Award." The award is open to individuals and organizations that have contributed to spreading a culture of mutual growth between large and small or medium-sized enterprises. Applications will be accepted until June 19.

The key feature of this year’s revision is increased public participation. In addition to the existing open application process, the ministry has newly introduced a public recommendation system and a public voting system. Anyone can recommend outstanding companies or entrepreneurs with notable win-win cases, and online public voting results will account for 50% of the candidate selection process.

The scale of the awards will also be expanded. This year, a total of 97 awards will be presented, consisting of 17 government awards and 80 ministerial commendations. The number of ministerial commendations will increase by 10 compared to last year. The ministry also plans to upgrade the level of government awards, such as the Order of Industrial Service Merit and presidential citations.

Since 2004, the ministry has annually recognized individuals and organizations that have contributed to win-win cooperation in commemoration of "Win-Win Growth Week." Starting this year, the ministry will rebrand the program as the "Win-Win Company of the Year Award" to enhance its public recognition.

Candidates can be submitted online through the Win-Win Growth Committee’s website, and public recommendations will be accepted until June 12. The final awards ceremony is scheduled to take place during the Win-Win Growth Week celebration event in November.

Minister Han Sung-sook of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups said, "With the introduction of public recommendation and public participation-based selection, we expect greater public interest," adding, "We hope this will serve as an opportunity to spread the value of mutual growth throughout society."

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