Samjong KPMG's First Female Deal Partner Yumi Kim, Executive Director
17 Years of Deal Experience... M&A with SK Hynix, Classys, and More
"Creating Profit for Both Buyers and Sellers... A Great Reward"
Out of 365 days a year, I worked late at the office about 330 days. I lived like that for over 10 years. Because I enjoyed it, the rewards naturally followed. This year marks the 55th anniversary of Samjong KPMG, and I hold the title of the 'first female deal partner' there. This is the story of Kim Yumi (44), a partner in the Financial Advisory Division at Samjong KPMG.
Partner Kim became the first female deal partner at Samjong in 2017, after 10 years with the company. About 700 people work in the Financial Advisory Division, commonly called the 'deal division.' There are 55 partners, equivalent to executive level in a general company, and among them, only 4 (7.3%) are women. Even when looking across the 'Big Four' accounting firms, there are only 13 female deal partners in total. Although women's social advancement in this field is still slow, the trend is gradually increasing. Samjong KPMG has recorded an average growth rate of 18% in the deal division over the past five years, continuing its steep growth. We met Partner Kim, who is playing a key role in this growth, at Samjong KPMG headquarters in the Finance Center, Gangnam-gu, Seoul.
Hobby also includes watching 'economic YouTube'... Those who enjoy it cannot be beaten
"Genius cannot beat a person who works hard, and a person who works hard cannot beat a person who enjoys it." This is a saying from Confucius' Analects. Partner Kim perfectly fits this saying. She said, "I never had the ambition to become a partner," and added, "I think I came this far because I felt pride in what I was doing and enjoyed it." The driving force behind the '330 days of overtime' was precisely the joy. Even in her free time, her hobby is watching economic news or economic-related YouTube channels. She named 'Sampuro TV' as her favorite channel. Laughing, she said, "Including weekends, I worked late about 330 days out of 365 for over 10 years, but recently I don't work that much," and added, "I just got lucky to come this far."
Contrary to her outward humility, Partner Kim has fiercely run in the heart of the capital market. She has 17 years of experience in the deal division and has handled numerous companies. She is known as "someone you always see at the office even on weekends." Representative companies she has worked with include SK Hynix, MagnaChip Semiconductor, Lotte Rental, New York Palace Hotel, Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering, Hyundai Merchant Marine, Douzone Bizon, and various companies in the cosmetics and healthcare sectors such as Carver Korea, Able C&C, Classys, and Iruda. Partner Kim said, "Since women are the main consumers in cosmetics, beauty, and healthcare, I tend to handle many consumer goods companies," adding, "Many clients appreciate it when I try the products myself and give feedback." As her track record accumulated, there are quite a few cases where clients entrusted work to her based on trust in her experience.
The deal division of accounting firms is one pillar of the M&A market. The goal is to provide the best advisory services that maximize the client's value on behalf of either the buyer or the seller. It is divided into four parts: M&A negotiation, financial due diligence, real estate, and restructuring. Partner Kim mainly worked in the financial due diligence part, assessing the company's revenue growth potential and the quality of profits. She said, "We play the role of scratching the client's itch," and added, "When a request comes from the seller's side, it is important to find buyers." She also said, "From the buyer's perspective, the role is mainly to properly understand the company's situation through due diligence and evaluation and to make the price and conditions favorable through negotiations with the seller."
In meetings, I am the only woman... "I work 5% harder than men"
Partner Kim was born in Seoul in 1980. She graduated from Sogang University with a degree in Business Administration. After about two and a half years of exam preparation, she passed the Certified Public Accountant (CPA) exam. She took her first step into society in 2005 at Anjin Accounting Firm and moved to the current Samjong KPMG two years later. Since joining Samjong, she has been active in the deal division. She said, "Samjong's deal division has been famous for a long time, so I joined thinking I wanted to try it once."
Compared to audit or tax, the deal division is a male-dominated field. This is because it involves many face-to-face contacts and sales elements called 'marketing.' From the time she reached the manager level until becoming a partner, she was always the only woman at that rank. This means there were no female leaders to seek advice from or use as a reference. She said, "It was lonely, but I think I was able to endure it thanks to my positive personality." Partner Kim's MBTI is ENFP, which is rare in accounting firms. She is classified as talented, imaginative, and not bound by the past.
In the meeting room, she was always the only woman. Because she stood out so much, when she spoke, accounting firms, law firms, buyers, and sellers paid special attention. The attention was a 'double-edged sword.' Partner Kim said, "This is a problem faced not only by women but by all minorities," adding, "If you do well, you get excessive praise, but if you don't, you hear excessive criticism like 'this is why women can't do it.'" To survive in the M&A market, called a 'war without gunfire,' she engraved two principles in her heart: "One is to praise others, and the other is to work 5% harder than men." She smiled throughout, showing a strong yet gentle character.
Looking back on her daily routine, frequent drinking gatherings continue on weekdays, and on weekends, she often goes golfing with clients. Partner Kim said, "I have 4 to 5 meetings a day," and "I meet about 70 people a week." In the past, work was often entrusted based on personal relationships, but these days it has changed. She said, "Now, work is definitely entrusted to those who do well," adding, "Building good relationships and quickly understanding clients' needs is the most important."
"A rewarding job, I hope women have ambition and challenge themselves"
The deal process usually takes 6 to 9 months, sometimes over a year. Partner Kim said, "Analyzing various industries and reviewing contracts during negotiations are all fun," adding, "I feel proud when a deal is closed and announced." In fact, there is another part where she feels more rewarding. When she gives a negative opinion through financial due diligence that "this company should not do M&A," and the client accepts it. She said, "Among those companies, some later actually went bankrupt or had their sales 'cut in half,'" adding, "I feel very proud because I helped prevent client losses."
Regarding the currently ongoing recession in the M&A market, she diagnosed, "The bottom has not come yet, and we have to wait and see this year," adding, "Deals are not properly happening because the parties have different expectations." Sellers want prices that were highly valued before, while buyers wait for lower prices considering market conditions and interest rates. Notable deals in the current market include Affinity Equity Partners' acquisition of SK Rent-a-Car, the sale of Asiana Airlines' cargo division, and Taeyoung Group's sale of Ecobit. Partner Kim said, "These deals well show the strategies of companies and financial investors (FI) in the current economic situation, such as business restructuring, funding for construction companies, and competitive acquisitions by domestic and foreign FIs." She also said, "Cosmetics, which are rising thanks to increased sales in the U.S. and Japan recently, are one of the noteworthy sectors in the M&A market."
When asked what she would say to juniors considering a career in the deal division, she answered, "The past 20 years flash before my eyes," and said, "Since women are a minority in this profession, honestly, it is tough. To endure difficult times, I want to say have a clear goal and ambition. Deal work is rewarding because it helps sellers earn current money and buyers earn future money, so it is a job that helps someone. It is such an attractive job that I hope many will challenge themselves."
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