[Good Job SMEs](16) Training SW Talent Reflecting Latest IT Trends... Employment Rate 83%

Jeong Cheol-yeong, CEO of Korea Software Talent Development Institute
Laid the Foundation for Nurturing SW Talent in the Early Days of the Korean IT Industry
Focused on Developing Talent Utilizing Generative AI like 'ChatGPT'

Editor's NoteSmall and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) are the backbone of the national economy. Numerically, 99% of companies in our country are SMEs. SMEs are the workplaces of the people. 81% of workers are employed by SMEs. When SMEs falter, our economy shakes and the jobs of the people are threatened. However, negative perceptions of SMEs persist. Low treatment and unguaranteed 'work-life balance,' and uncertain future growth potential. Despite the employment crisis, young people do not choose SMEs. Here, there are people who fight against these prejudices and create good jobs and SMEs. They develop technologies that can compete with large corporations. They also devote efforts to building sound financial structures and corporate cultures to provide stable living grounds for employees. On the ground, there is the struggle of SME owners to fulfill corporate social responsibility while nurturing companies where employees can take pride. Asia Economy visited the field and directly heard their voices.

Jung Cheol-young, CEO of Korea Software Talent Development Institute (KOSMO), is being interviewed by Asia Economy.

One often-cited reason behind South Korea's leap to becoming an IT powerhouse is the Kim Dae-jung administration's swift expansion of IT infrastructure. However, beyond this hardware aspect, attention must also be paid to the software (SW) sector. Without the cultivation and support of SW talent and research and development, South Korea's IT industry's competitiveness would be far below its current level. There is someone who has been dedicated to developing SW talent in South Korea for decades, even before the coding education boom. That person is Jeong Cheol-young, CEO of the Korea Software Talent Development Institute (KOSMO).

Meeting Jeong at KOSMO's headquarters located in Gasan-dong, Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, he emphasized, "Having been in the SW industry for nearly 40 years, the most important thing is ultimately people," adding, "If we do not nurture suitable talent in line with the rapidly changing IT industry trends, the industrial competitiveness we have built will quickly fall behind." Established in 2009, KOSMO is an institution for nurturing talent reflecting the latest SW technology trends. In September 2015, it was designated as a 'Software Specialized Education and Talent Development Institution' by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (now the Ministry of Science and ICT), and in October 2021, it was selected as a '5-year Certified Excellent Training Institution' by the Ministry of Employment and Labor.

Jeong began his career in IT after being discharged from military service in 1986 and joining Haitai Group, working in the computer room. Two years later, in 1988, the Korea Software Industry Association, a representative organization of IT service and SW companies, was launched, and Jeong joined as a founding member. As head of the Planning and Research Department, he laid the groundwork for South Korea's SW-related laws, systems, research and development (R&D), and support methods, which were then in their infancy. He contributed to improvements in laws and systems such as the 'Software Development Promotion Act' and the 'Software Military Service Special System,' and helped establish the Korea Software Support Center and the Software Mutual Aid Association.

Jeong first ventured into business by founding Digital One during the venture boom in 2000. In the early stages, he developed and commercialized systems such as a limousine bus management system and a telephone English teacher management system. Later, he shifted the business focus from solution development to system integration (SI). He carried out SI projects targeting government public markets, finance and insurance markets, and distribution and logistics markets. Feeling the need to nurture SW talent, he established KOSMO as a separate corporation in 2009. Jeong said, "At that time, most developer training institutions were located in Gangnam, so a SW education institution was desperately needed in G-Valley (Seoul Digital Industrial Complex), where IT manpower was urgently required," adding, "To date, we have nurtured about 4,000 SW talents."

Success stories of graduates who found employment, displayed in the hallway of the Korea Software Talent Development Institute (KOSMO) lecture rooms.

Graduates of the Korea Software Talent Development Institute (KOSMO) are conducting on-site interviews at the 'Gudi Gadi Job Together' event, which invited excellent software companies and was held last April.

KOSMO focuses thoroughly on cultivating personnel needed in the corporate field. Both theoretical and practical curricula are designed so that graduates can be immediately deployed on site. Jeong explained, "All training courses undergo consultation and verification with current corporate development departments and HR teams," adding, "Practical training is taught directly by active developers." This operation is well known in the industry, and companies recognize KOSMO graduates as having relevant job experience.

Last year, KOSMO operated 20 training courses and produced 517 graduates. Among them, 83.2% (430 people) succeeded in finding employment. The employment rate over the past three years is 82.6%, and the completion rate is 90%. The hallways of KOSMO's classrooms are filled with testimonials from graduates who succeeded in employment. Heo Hee-jin, who completed the full-stack training course and was hired by a company executing public and financial projects, said, "I apply everything I learned at KOSMO to my work and study separately on areas where I am lacking," adding, "Thanks to the instructor's active guidance, including one-on-one counseling, I was able to get a job." Kang Ha-young, who took the Python-utilizing Digital Convergence SW Developer training course and succeeded in employment, said, "Even though I was a non-major, I received a lot of help from the instructor to adapt well to the class," adding, "Some friends said that the six months at KOSMO were more helpful for practical work than the four years studying computer science."

Jeong cooperates with the local employment center to support graduates' employment and frequently holds job matching days in Guro and Gasan Digital Complexes. They invite companies preferred by graduates to present projects or conduct on-site interviews through prior matching. They also operate an online recruitment recommendation program. Jeong explained, "We are building a database of 1,000 companies related to employment," adding, "For the unemployed, we provide separate one-on-one customized management to help them succeed in employment as much as possible."

Jeong plans to focus on developing talent related to generative AI, a hot topic in the IT industry. He said, "We will actively participate in the new technological revolution like ChatGPT and focus on nurturing prompt engineers," adding, "In addition, we will develop curricula suited to practical work in fields such as big data, Python, JavaScript, and cloud computing to become the best SW talent development institution in South Korea."

Certification plaques and commendation certificates received by the Korea Software Talent Development Institute (KOSMO) from government agencies and others.