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| Seen above are incumbent and former chief executives of Korean companies who are licensed to practice medicine. Clockwise from top left are Kyobo Life Insurance Chairman Shin Chang-jae, presidential candidate of the People뭩 Party and former AhnLab CEO Ahn Cheol-soo, Dong-A Socio Group Chairman Kang Shin-ho and Doosan Yonkang Foundation Chairman Park Yong-hyun. / Korea Times files |
Doctor-turned-entrepreneurs lead businesses successfully
By Kang Seung-woo
A specialist in a field is believed to usually fail to pull off in another sector.
However, there are a number of people whose jobs were treating patients and switched to running a company and they stand out in their new area.
It is Kyobo Life Insurance Chairman Shin Chang-jae that is leading the pack in the nation's business circle.
Shin was a promising obstetrician and university professor at Seoul National University from 1987 to 1996, but he could not reject Kyobo founder and his father Shin Yong-ho's call to take over the insurance firm because his father was undergoing cancer treatment.
Given the absence of business experience, there were concerns about his leadership.
However, Shin has silenced critics, helping then money-losing Kyobo cruise well in the hard-fought insurance industry. Currently, Kyobo is the country's third-largest life insurer by assets.
In March, Shin, who took the helm of the company in 2000, was re-elected to lead the company until 2020 and Kyobo considers launching an initial public offering (IPO) for a capital increase to deal with new financial reporting rule IFRS 17. The IPO is expected to take place late this year or early next year.
Shin, 63, has contributed much to maintaining a strong financial structure of the Seoul-based life insurer.
"Overcoming the Asian financial crisis in the late 1990s and the global financial crisis in the late 2000s, Shin has driven a solid growth," an official in the insurance industry said.
Forbes' May 2010 cover story about him said that he "never wanted to be a businessman. … And it turns out he's an excellent businessman."
Shin is also known for his close relationship with employees.
"When it comes to encouraging his employees, Shin never gets tired of transforming himself into stunning figures: an aproned waiter, a chef in uniform, and a singer playing guitar at charity meetings organized by his employees," Forbes said.
Along with his medical career, he has a deep involvement in literature as Kyobo has long been affiliated with literature.
Shin received the Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award for his long-time support of Korean literature in 2010, while he became an "honorary poet" acknowledged by the Society of Korean Poets in January for his efforts to assist poets.
According to Forbes' 2017 Forbes Korea Rich List, released on Thursday, Shin ranked 16th with $1.67 billion (1.89 trillion won).
Along with Shin, Park Yong-hyun, chairman of Doosan Yonkang Foundation, Ahn Cheol-soo, a former CEO of AhnLab, and Kang Shin-ho, chairman of Dong-A Socio Group, are also doctor-turned-entrepreneurs.
Park was a renowned surgeon serving as president of Seoul National University Hospital, but he quit the job to join Doosan in 2005. He headed Doosan Engineering and Construction in 2007 and chaired Doosan Group from 2009 to 2012.
Ahn and Kang are also Seoul National University graduates. Ahn is now running in the May 9 presidential election. Kang was a former chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries, the country's largest business lobby.
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