[K-Women Talk] "Jojoso" Is Just a Drama: Outstanding SMEs That Even Big Corporations Envy

Industry Leaders in Niche Fields, High Growth Potential
Incentives and Welfare Attract Millennials and Gen Z
Spotlight on the Youth-Friendly Strong SMEs List

Lee Sook-eun, publisher of Lee's Bookstore

Do you remember the web drama ‘Jojoso’? It is a small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) version of Misaeng that resonated with viewers as ‘the story I experienced yesterday,’ surpassing 50 million cumulative views on YouTube. Since then, SMEs have unfortunately gained the stigma of being ‘Joso companies,’ which seems to have unfairly lumped good companies together under a negative label.

In Korea, 99% of companies are SMEs. Among them, there are many genuine strong SMEs that take a completely different path from the Seongseung Network depicted in the drama, but they are simply ‘not well known.’

To address this lack of information about SMEs, the Ministry of Employment and Labor announces the ‘Youth-Friendly Strong SMEs’ every year. The ‘2024 Youth-Friendly Strong SMEs’ list includes 533 companies, applying much stricter evaluation criteria than before. The advisory panel, composed of people in their 20s and 30s, assessed wages, welfare, length of service, and more. Selected companies pay 1.08 million KRW more per month on average than regular companies, and have higher average length of service and a greater proportion of young workers. Job seekers should download the file and use it as a reference when applying.

Although the list is carefully selected, it is difficult to distinguish which are truly strong SMEs among 533 companies. It requires some effort to check ratings and reviews one by one on company review sites. Following the common rule of thumb, “discard those with ratings below 2.5, and go for those above 3.5,” you can create your own application list.

The SMEs mentioned below are precious companies that have been selected as Youth-Friendly Strong SMEs for two consecutive years and received ratings of 4 or higher on employment review sites. These companies share several common traits, and although it might be a bit tedious, it would be good to remember each company name. Praise makes SMEs dance.

First, they have systems to share performance with employees. Unlike large corporations with established systems, SMEs that require employees to perform multiple roles are particularly sensitive about performance distribution. Take Daehaknaeil, which started as an offline magazine and expanded into advertising and recruitment agencies. Employees own about 88% of the shares, and with annual cash dividends of 10-20%, the turnover rate is around 6%. Kemia, a distributor of advanced chemical materials, offers incentives up to 500%, and DND, an analysis company located in Centum, is also famous for generous performance bonuses upon achieving targets.

Second, they have pride in being number one in a specific field and show high growth potential. Although the MZ generation is often thought to prioritize work-life balance, they are more interested in ‘personal and company growth’ than any other generation. If a company has competitive core technology, they are willing to endure heavy workloads to learn. Examples include Sanai System, a developer of panel design simulation software; Miraewa Dojeon, a nuclear engineering company; Ingenions, a security technology solutions provider; Anvision, a machine vision and optics specialist; and Gaon Chips, which trains new employees for four months.

Third, they offer meticulous welfare benefits that employees can feel the company cares about. Due to high living costs, companies that provide lunch receive high marks. For the MZ generation, medical expense support and free health checkups are also important. Well-equipped snack bars, golf clubs, birthday leave, and other differentiated welfare programs win employees’ hearts. For SMEs where flexible working hours or remote work are difficult, early Friday leave by 1-3 hours or a 4.5-day workweek during off-peak seasons also earn good reviews. Remember Cloud Networks and Dayside, known as welfare hotspots.

One notable point: the smaller the company, the more often ‘management’ or ‘CEO’ is mentioned. Dabok Corporation, a semiconductor distribution company; Nextin, a manufacturer of semiconductor full-process equipment; and Open Survey, an online research company, are genuine strong SMEs praised for ‘trusting their management.’

Lee Sook-eun, Publisher of Lee’s Bookstore