Among 300 Owner Family Executives Born After 1970, 25 Are Chairpersons or Heads... 51 Female Executives

Chairmen Chung Eui-sun, Koo Kwang-mo, Cho Won-tae, Jung Ji-sun
Vice Chairman Kim Dong-kwan, President Jung Ki-sun in Focus
Female Vice Chairmen Kim Joo-won, Lim Se-ryung, Presidents Lee Boo-jin, Chung Yoo-kyung, etc.

Among approximately 260 owner-family executives of large business groups and small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-sized companies, 300 executives were born after the 1970s. Of these 300, 25 were chairpersons or heads of large business groups (with total assets exceeding 5 trillion KRW). There were 90 MZ generation (Millennials + Generation Z, born between 1980 and 1994) executives born after the 1980s. The number of women was 51.

On the 23rd, Korea CXO Institute, a corporate analysis specialist, announced the results of a survey on owner-family executives born after 1970 from about 260 companies, including 200 major groups and mid-sized and small companies, covering 82 large business groups designated by the Fair Trade Commission.

Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Euisun (third from the left) is touring electric vehicles from Hyundai, Kia, and competitors at the India Technology Research Institute.
[Photo by Hyundai Motor Group]

The survey found that there were 300 executives born after 1970. Officially, 24 individuals held the title of chairman. Jang Byung-gyu, chairman of Krafton’s board, does not use the chairman title but is the same person (head) of a large business group. Including Chairman Jang, there were five chairpersons and heads of large business groups born after 1970. In order of corporate ranking, they are Chung Eui-sun, chairman of Hyundai Motor (3rd), Koo Kwang-mo, chairman of LG (4th), Cho Won-tae, chairman of Hanjin (14th), Chung Ji-sun, chairman of Hyundai Department Store (21st), and Jang Byung-gyu, chairman of Krafton (68th). In contrast to Chairman Jang, there were two owner-family executives who were chairpersons but not heads of large business groups: Cho Hyun-bum, chairman of Hankook Tire, and Kim Nam-ho, chairman of DB.

There were 39 executives at the vice chairman level. Among them, those who are only sons, eldest sons, or have secured a majority stake and are considered strong candidates for the next chairman include Kim Dong-kwan, vice chairman of Hanwha; Kim Nam-jung, vice chairman of Dongwon Industries; and Kang Ho-chan, vice chairman of Nexen. Female vice chairpersons included Kim Joo-won of DB HiTek, Lim Se-ryeong of Daesang Holdings, and Cho Yeon-ju of Hansol Chemical, totaling six.

There were 154 CEOs at the president level (including representative directors), accounting for 51%. Of these, 42 (27%) were born after 1980. Presidents of 82 large business groups included Jung Ki-sun, president of HD Hyundai; Hong Jung-guk, president of BGF; Lee Kyu-ho, president of Kolon Mobility Group; Kim Dong-won, president of Hanwha Life Insurance; and Kim Dae-heon, chief planning officer and president of Hoban Construction. Among women, Lee Boo-jin, president of Hotel Shilla; Chung Yoo-kyung, general president of Shinsegae; and Cho Hyun-min, president of Hanjin, are active. The CXO Institute stated, "With Lee Boo-jin’s older brother, Lee Jae-yong, Samsung Electronics chairman, being promoted to chairman last October, it is highly likely she will soon be promoted to vice chairman."

When dividing the 300 surveyed individuals by management generation, second-generation executives were the largest group with 165 (55%). Third-generation executives numbered 108 (36%), and fourth-generation executives were 17 (5.7%). Founders accounted for 10 (3.3%).

By position, president-level executives (including representative directors and chairpersons) were the largest group with 154 (51%), followed by vice chairpersons at 39 (13%), chairpersons (including heads) at 25 (8%), executive directors at 19 (6%), and managing directors at 16 (5%). Other executives such as directors, advisors, and management leaders numbered 23 (8%).

By age group, owner-family executives born in 1972-1973 were the largest group with 51 (17%). They were followed by those born in 1974-1975 with 49 (16%), 1976-1977 with 39 (13%), 1978-1979 with 37 (12%), and 1970-1971 with 35 (12%). MZ generation executives born after 1980 numbered 90 (30%). Among those born after 1990 in their early 30s, there were eight owner-family executives including Lee Sun-ho, management leader of CJ CheilJedang; Shin Sang-yeol, managing director of Nongshim; and Kim Min-sung, executive director of Hoban Industry.

By gender, there were 51 women (17%) and 249 men (83%).

Oh Il-seon, director of Korea CXO Institute, said, "Second-generation executives face fierce succession competition, making it difficult to rise to group heads, but among third- and fourth-generation executives, the number of only sons has significantly increased, and many are designated as group successors even without demonstrating clear management capabilities." He added, "It is necessary to observe over a long period how this method of succession will affect the improvement of the management structure of Korean companies in the future."