LG vice chair encourages creativity

Koo Bon-joon, vice chairman of LG Group, rewards a winner of “LG Global Challenger” with a job offer. [LG GROUP]

LG Group Vice Chairman Koo Bon-joon encouraged college students to keep striving to come up with creative ideas, stressing that creativity cannot be replaced by the development of artificial intelligence, while speaking at an award ceremony for the LG Global Challenger program held Thursday.

The program sends teams of college students overseas on two-week trips, after which they have to give a presentation explaining how they were inspired by the trip. The teams with the best presentations win.

On Thursday, 11 of 35 teams attended a prize event at LG headquarters in Yeouido, western Seoul.

“If you think creatively with passion, you will be able to play a lead role in changing [the future],” Koo said. “LG supports young student’s challenges to achieve their dreams and we will continue to offer chances to learn and experience.”

While award winners received scholarships and certificates, students from the top seven teams were offered some form of employment at LG affiliates. Out of 28 students, 16 graduating students were offered salaried positions at LG affiliates while other college students including foreign exchange students were offered internship opportunities. From 2004, when LG first offered employment as a reward, about 150 people are still working at LG affiliates, according to the company.

LG selected 35 teams in June, based on their proposals to experience certain foreign sites. These teams visited 18 different countries under different travel themes. The top prize went to a team from Kyunghee University that visited educational programs for participatory politics in European countries including Finland, the United Kingdom and Germany.

LG Chem Vice Chairman Park Jin-soo, LG Display Vice Chairman Han Sang-beom and LG Electronics CEO Jo Seong-jin were also present at Thursday’s award ceremony.

BY KIM JEE-HEE [kim.jeehee@joongang.co.kr]