Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Association Recruits External Experts in Global Affairs, Drug Pricing, AI, etc. to Support Industry Capability Enhancement

Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association building.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] The Korea Pharmaceutical and Bio-Pharma Manufacturers Association has been actively recruiting external experts to strengthen industrial capabilities and expand services for its member companies.

The association announced on the 3rd that it recently hired Lee Hyun-woo as Head of the Global Division, Jeong Kwang-hee as Director of the Insurance Policy Office, Kim Chi-min as Head of the Research Team at the Education and Research Center, and Hong Seung-hwan as Principal Researcher at the AI New Drug Development Support Center.

Lee Hyun-woo, a former diplomat who passed the 30th Foreign Service Examination and served in public office for 25 years, now oversees the Global Division, which has significantly expanded its status and role from the previous global team structure. Lee has held positions such as Director of Development Cooperation at the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Director of Climate Change at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Consul General at the Consulate General in Chengdu, China, and Deputy Consul General at the Consulate General in Boston.

During his tenure as Deputy Consul General in Boston, the largest bio-cluster in the world, Lee leveraged his diplomatic network to improve local experts' perceptions of 'K-Bio' and assisted Korean companies in entering the U.S. market. Through Lee's recruitment, the association aims to more actively support its members' overseas expansion and strengthen global capabilities.

Additionally, the association upgraded its existing Insurance Distribution Team to the Insurance Policy Office and appointed Jeong Kwang-hee, an expert in drug pricing and former Executive Director at Korea Allergan, as the new director. Since joining Hana Pharmaceutical in 2002, Jeong has demonstrated his expertise in drug pricing, regulatory approval, and external cooperation across three pharmaceutical and bio companies over more than 20 years.

Dr. Kim Chi-min was recruited as Head of the Research Team at the newly established Education and Research Center, reporting directly to the Vice President. Kim has demonstrated expertise in science and technology policy research, corporate R&D support, patent assistance, and regulatory improvement while working as a policy planning researcher at the National BioResearch Resource Information Center of the Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology.

To strengthen the capabilities of the AI New Drug Development Support Center, Dr. Hong Seung-hwan was hired as Principal Researcher. After conducting computer-based new drug development research at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and other institutions, Hong gained field experience at two AI-utilizing new drug development companies.

An association official stated, “Expectations for K-Bio have risen unprecedentedly both domestically and internationally during the COVID-19 phase, and our member companies have shown their support for the association’s proactive role by agreeing to the first membership fee increase in 11 years.” He added, “The consecutive recruitment of senior talents in key areas such as global affairs, drug pricing, research, and AI reflects our commitment to delivering successful outcomes through organizational capability enhancement.”