KoreaWho - Biographical and news service about individuals who have a significant impact on the Korean economy

- Vice Chairman and CEO of SAMCNS
  Choi Yu-jin
  
  Choi Yu-jin is Vice Chairman and CEO of SAMCNS. She aims to transform the company into a comprehensive semiconductor materials and components platform company by increasing the utilization rate of the Osong new plant and securing customers for new products used in DRAM and system semiconductors. She was born on February 20, 1982, as the eldest daughter of Choi Myung-bae, Chairman of YC. She graduated from Seoul National University with a degree in Materials Science and Engineering and earned both her master's and doctoral degrees in Materials Science and Engineering from Seoul National University. She began her career at Samsung Electronics' Semiconductor Research Institute. She later joined YIK Corporation (now YC), the semiconductor inspection equipment company founded by her father. In 2020, she was appointed CEO of SAMCNS, a manufacturer of key components for semiconductor inspection equipment. She is regarded as having strengthened the company's fundamentals through technical expertise and proactive infrastructure investment.
- Prime Minister nominee of the Republic of Korea
  Han Seong-sook
  
  Han Seong-sook is the nominee for Prime Minister in the Lee Jae-myung administration. She was born on June 20, 1967, in Uijeongbu, Gyeonggi Province. She graduated from Uijeongbu Girls' High School and earned a bachelor's degree in English Language and Literature from Sookmyung Women's University. She began her professional career as a reporter for Mincom, a computer magazine. She later served as head of the public relations team at Nanum Technology. She joined search portal Empas as a founding member and served as head of its Search Business Division. After Empas was acquired by SK Communications, she moved to NHN, the predecessor of Naver, where she worked as head of the Search Quality Center, head of Service Division 1, and executive director overseeing services. In 2017, she was appointed CEO of NHN. Following the launch of the Lee Jae-myung administration, she was appointed as the first Minister of SMEs and Startups. At the time, she held assets worth KRW 44.0 billion (US$ 31.7 million), making her the wealthiest ministerial nominee in the Lee Jae-myung administration. In June 2026, following Prime Minister Kim Min-seok, President Lee Jae-myung nominated her as the candidate for prime minister, and she is now preparing for a National Assembly confirmation hearing. #HanSeong-sook #LeeJaeMyung #PrimeMinisterNominee #SouthKoreaPolitics #Naver #NHN #MinisterOfSMEsAndStartups #Empas #KoreanGovernment #TechIndustryLeader
- CEO of Neosem
  Yeom Dong-heon
  
  Yeom Dong-heon is the CEO of Neosem. He was born in August 1958. He graduated from the Department of Avionics Engineering at Korea Aerospace University and completed an MBA program at Yonsei University Graduate School of Business. He joined Samsung Electronics and worked in its semiconductor division. He later worked as an engineer at Schlumberger ATE Korea, a global semiconductor testing company under Schlumberger (now SLB), and then moved to Teradyne Korea, where he served as Sales Manager. He returned to Schlumberger ATE Korea and served as the head of its Korean subsidiary. In 2002, he founded Neosem, a semiconductor testing specialist company. He is known for his ability to identify technology trends and for his persistence as an engineer. Under his leadership, Neosem has grown into a specialized semiconductor tester company that leads global standards. He now faces the challenge of proving visible growth based on solid business fundamentals to the market. #Neosem #YeomDongheon #SemiconductorTesting #SemiconductorEquipment #SLB #Teradyne #SamsungElectronics #SemiconductorIndustry #TechnologyLeadership #GlobalStandards
- CEO of XGate
  Ju Gab-soo
  
  Ju Gab-soo is the CEO of XGate. He is expanding the company beyond its leadership position in South Korea’s internet personal information security VPN market into next-generation fields such as quantum security and home networking. He was born on January 25, 1975. He graduated from Yonsei University with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He worked as a network engineer at Datacraft Korea and Pan World Networks. In 2001, he founded the security company NexG. After stepping down as CEO 10 years later, he launched XGate and embarked on a new entrepreneurial challenge. XGate became part of Gabia in 2016, and he has continued to serve as CEO, leading the company with a technology-focused management approach. #XGate #JuGabsoo #Cybersecurity #VPN #QuantumSecurity #HomeNetworking #NetworkSecurity #Gabia #NexG #InformationSecurity
- Chairman and CEO of Seobu T&D
  Seung Man-Ho
  
  Seung Man-ho is Chairman and CEO of Seobu T&D. He has focused on the development of the Yongsan International Business District and the construction of the Sinjeong-dong Urban High-Tech Logistics Complex. He was born on July 15, 1957, as the youngest of three children—two daughters and one son—of Seung Hyang-bae, Chairman of Yongsan Tourist Bus Terminal (now Seobu T&D). He graduated from Gyeongbok High School in Seoul and earned a bachelor's degree in French Language and Literature from Seoul National University. He later received a master's degree in business administration from the graduate school of Seoul National University. He worked as a managing director at Ojin Development and Korea Truck Terminal, affiliates of his father's company. He also served as Vice President of Yongsan Tourist Bus Terminal and later became CEO of Ojin Trading, Yongsan Tourist Bus Terminal, and Ojin Tourism. Since 2005, he has served as CEO of Seobu Truck Terminal (now Seobu T&D). He also concurrently serves as CEO of Seoul Dragon City. For more than 15 years, he served as Chairman of the Yongsan Business Association (now the Yongsan District Chamber of Commerce under the Seoul Chamber of Commerce and Industry). #SeungManHo #SeobuTD #YongsanInternationalBusinessDistrict #SeoulDragonCity #LogisticsComplex #YongsanDevelopment #KoreanBusinessLeader #UrbanDevelopment #SeobuTDChairman #SouthKoreaBusiness
- President of Seoul National University Hospital
  Paik Nam-jong
  
  Paik Nam-jong is the president of Seoul National University Hospital. He is focusing on strengthening Seoul National University Hospital’s status as the nation’s central hospital and on medical innovation, including digital healthcare. He was born on January 9, 1966, in Seoul. He graduated from Seoul National University College of Medicine and earned a master’s degree and a doctorate in medicine from Seoul National University Graduate School. In 2001, he was appointed professor in the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine at Seoul National University College of Medicine. He worked as head of the Medical Data Information Center, chief of the Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, and head of the Medical Cooperation Center at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital. He later served as head of public relations, head of planning and coordination, and head of the public healthcare project group before becoming president of Seoul National University Bundang Hospital. In May 2026, he was appointed president of Seoul National University Hospital. He is an authority in the field of neurorehabilitation who has devoted himself to research on rehabilitation treatment for functional recovery in stroke patients and the development of neuromodulation technology. He is a full member of the National Academy of Medicine of Korea. He served as president of the Asia-Oceanian Society for NeuroRehabilitation and chairperson of the Korean Society for NeuroRehabilitation. He is serving as president of the World Federation for NeuroRehabilitation. #PaikNamjong #SeoulNationalUniversityHospital #SNUH #digitalhealthcare #medicalinnovation #neurorehabilitation #strokerehabilitation #rehabilitationmedicine #neuromodulation #NationalAcademyofMedicineofKorea
- CEO of Semifive
  Cho Brandon
  
  Cho Myung-hyun, also known as Cho Brandon, is CEO of Semifive. He is focusing on strengthening the company’s design house capabilities by internalizing technology and securing design talent through mergers and acquisitions (M&A). He was born in August 1980. He graduated from Seoul National University’s Department of Electrical Engineering. He earned master’s and doctoral degrees in computer science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States. He worked for the Boston Consulting Group in the United States for six years, handling corporate consulting. After serving as head of the Korean branch of U.S. semiconductor fabless company SiFive, he returned to Korea and co-founded Semifive with SiFive through an equity investment. He has both engineering and strategic consulting capabilities. He has a sharp eye for the market and a strong sense for investment. #ChoMyungHyun #ChoBrandon #Semifive #semiconductor #designhouse #M&A #SiFive #MIT #BostonConsultingGroup #fabless
- President and CEO of GC
  Heo Yong-jun
  
  Heo Yong-jun is President and CEO of GC (Green Cross Holdings). He was born on June 14, 1974, as the third son of the late Heo Young-sup, founder and chairman of the GC Green Cross Group. He leads the company together with his uncle, Heo Il-sup, Chairman of GC (Green Cross Holdings), under a co-CEO structure. He graduated from Yonsei University with a degree in Earth Science and completed an MBA program at the University of Wisconsin Business School in the United States. He joined Green Cross Holdings and worked in the Corporate Planning Office. He later served as Executive Managing Director and Vice President of the Management Administration Office at Green Cross Holdings before being appointed CEO of GC (Green Cross Holdings) in 2017. He was subsequently promoted to President. As a third-generation member of the founding family, he is regarded as a strategist overseeing the group's overall financial restructuring, business portfolio reorganization, and organizational culture innovation. He has been leading the company's transformation into a “smart global holding company powered by AI.” Alongside improving business performance, his key challenges include streamlining the group's complex affiliate structure and managing risks related to the management control stake held by his uncle, Chairman Heo Il-sup. #GC #GreenCross #HeoYongjun #GCHoldings #Healthcare #Biopharmaceuticals #CorporateStrategy #AITransformation #FamilyBusiness #SouthKoreaBusiness
- Chairman of Taewoong.
  Huh Yong-do
  
  Huh Yong-do is chairman of Taewoong. He is focusing on securing an early lead in the special forging market for next-generation energy sectors such as offshore wind power and SMR. He was born on January 19, 1948, in Sancheong, South Gyeongsang Province. He graduated from Jinju Agricultural and Forestry High School and Chinju National University of Education. He transferred to Dong-A University and graduated from the Department of Economics. He worked as a teacher before entering the forging business. In 1981, he founded Taewoong, which produces energy and industrial forged products based on open-die forging technology. He stepped down as CEO in 2016 and has since served as chairman. He is preparing succession for his eldest son, President Huh Wook, and his second son, Director Huh Wan. He served as chairman of the Busan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, chairman of the Busan Automobile Parts Industry Cooperative, vice chairman of the Korea Wind Energy Industry Association, and vice chairman of the KOSDAQ Listed Companies Association. #HuhYongdo #Taewoong #forging #offshorewind #SMR #specialforging #energyindustry #openDieForging #BusanChamber #succession계획
- President and Head of the MS Business Division at LG Electronics
  Park Hyoung-sei
  
  Park Hyoung-sei is President and Head of the MS (Media Entertainment Solution) Business Division at LG Electronics. He is focusing on transforming LG Electronics' TV business into a service platform business centered on media and entertainment. He is expanding the scope of webOS beyond smart TVs to monitors, digital signage, and in-vehicle infotainment systems, broadening the company's service ecosystem. He was born on April 18, 1966. He graduated from John Glenn High School in the United States and earned a bachelor's degree in business administration from Michigan State University. He later completed an MBA program at the Indiana University Kelley School of Business. After joining LG Electronics, he served as Head of the DTV North America Group, Head of TV North America Marketing, and Head of IT Marketing. He later worked as Head of the HE Overseas Sales Group and Head of the HE Business Division before being promoted to president in 2023. He is known for speaking his mind when necessary and places strong emphasis on principles. #LGElectronics #ParkHyoungsei #webOS #SmartTV #MediaPlatform #EntertainmentServices #DigitalSignage #InVehicleInfotainment #ConsumerElectronics #BusinessLeadership
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