회장 인사말

Kim, Jae-Gu,
President of the Korean Academic Society of
Business Administration in 2023

Honored Members of the Korean Academic Society of Business Administration (KASBA).

I promised to do my best to make the KASBA a "platform for opportunities, growth, and contribution for everyone". During the election campaign for the position of the President, I could observe the reality of business schools across the country. And I wanted to create the 'companies-led regional innovation ecosystem' to bring about a new revival of business administration studies,

Fair opportunities in this era are only possible when the era of local autonomy begins. The justice desired by this era can be achieved through an innovative ecosystem based on regions. Although many efforts have been made to achieve regional balanced development, the understanding of companies has been lacking even in the good frame of industry, space, and people. Unless freedom is given to companies that become the agents of innovation and innovation based on autonomy is created, regional development cannot take place.

In 2023, I want the KASBA to be the cornerstone of innovation in Korea through the "construction of a glocal new industry innovation ecosystem". Countries or regions with economic growth and vitality must attract innovative companies or entrepreneurs and have an ecosystem for growth. To create such an innovative ecosystem, corporate innovation as well as university management innovation and government reform must be achieved together. To achieve regional innovation, I will perform tasks centered on these three axes to the best of my ability and work for the members of the KASBA who are management professionals and scholars across the country.

First of all, to achieve corporate innovation, policy discussions and decisions on the reconstruction of each region's strategic industry are underway at the Central and Local Government Cooperation Council, which is 'the second Cabinet Council'. In line with this, based on the contents that the KASBA has been preparing, I will research and put into practice new industry innovation strategies together with the members of the KASBA. For this, I will establish and operate a new industry innovation committee.

To achieve university management innovation, I will cooperate with the National Education Committee and relevant ministries to conduct research and development and education tailored to the characteristics of each region to make local universities a place of innovation. I will work in close collaboration with the Korean Association of Business Schools and Graduate Schools as well as the Korean Association of Business Education Accreditation (KABEA) to implement plans that will allow regional business schools to take the lead. I will explore ways for business schools to participate in R&D projects and to connect them to technology commercialization and startups at the local level. For this, I will establish a university innovation committee.

Government reform is said to be difficult, but the reason it is necessary is precisely because regulation must be considered first when creating new industries. Current regulations are fragmented by ministry, making integration difficult and preventing them from solving business problems. Government reform is urgently needed to create testbeds that can lead new industries, to foster and supply specialized personnel, to bring about new business models, and to activate the capital market. To this end, the KASBA will launch a government management committee to drive and support innovation in both the central and local governments.

We will create a regional industry innovation ecosystem forum to discover and lead opportunities needed for local regions and industries, and to demonstrate that local business schools can help actual businesses. The KASBA will perform the bridging role to assist the government, companies, and economic organizations in participating and operating in each regional forum.

We are preparing various activities to accomplish these goals. First, on March 21, 2023, as the first event of the KASBA, we will hold a global forum on ChatGPT, a hot topic, to discuss the challenges of industry-academic cooperation in education and corporate services in the context of digital transformation.

On May 15, we will host a joint academic conference of the five major academic societies in Korea, Korean Academic Society of Business Administration, Korean Economic Association, Korean Sociological Association, and Korean Political Science Association, and the Korean Association for Public Administration, to present the direction in which our country should go under the theme of "Challenges and Prospects of Korean Society in 2023" by the scholars of the five academic societies.

The annual KASBA conference will be held in Busan on August 16-18, 2023, under the theme of "Korea Glocal Grand Innovation," proposing the establishment of a regional ecosystem for glocal innovation. On the first day, we will propose the role of industry-academic cooperation in rebuilding local strategic industries, focusing on the New Industry Innovation EXPO led by Busan. On the second day, we will organize the Global Academic EXPO, inviting Joel Podolny, the former dean of Apple University, to speak on education innovation and university management based on corporate demand, discussing with global scholars. On the third day, the New Entrepreneurship EXPO will be held, featuring exhibitions and presentations by companies, including the Korean major conglomerates, and the participation of young students. We will prepare The annual KASBA conference on Busan to be more fruitful in the post-coronavirus era, so that all members can participate together.

The most important thing I need to do to make all of this possible is to obtain the cooperation and help of management scholars and executives who are members of the KASBA. Please remember that the members are the owners of the KASBA, and I will do my best to make the academy tp provide practical help to the members. I ask for your wisdom and capacity to be gathered. We will do our best to lead the transformation that builds the Korean glocal new industry innovation ecosystem.

Thank you very much.

JAE-GU KIM,
The 68th President of KASBA

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