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Big firms hiring more businesspeople as outside directors

Published: 27 May. 2025, 10:43

Office workers walk around Gwanghwamun Square in Jongno District, central Seoul, on May 20. [YONHAP]

Korea's top 30 conglomerates are increasingly choosing people with a business background over former prosecutors or professors as their outside directors, industry data showed Tuesday.

According to data from corporate tracker Leaders Index, 239 listed units of the country's top 30 conglomerates by assets hired 152 new outside directors in 2025, bringing the total number of board members to 876.

Among the new outside directors, 39 were former high-ranking government officials, judges or prosecutors, accounting for 25.7 percent of the total. This marks a decline from last year, when former public officials accounted for 30.7 percent of the 215 new outside directors.

In particular, the number of former prosecutors on the board fell sharply to three from 11 last year.

The number of new outside directors with academic backgrounds also fell significantly from 68 last year to 35 this year.

In contrast, the number of appointees from the business sector rose. A total of 52 business professionals, or 34.2 percent of the total, were named outside directors this year, up from 38, or 17.7 percent, a year ago.

Meanwhile, female representation among new outside directors reached 18.4 percent this year, with women now accounting for 21.9 percent of all board members.

Yonhap