“The competitiveness index of our companies has been declining for years. We urgently need to raise it, and it is a task for the Korean Academic Society of Business Administration to solve. During my term, I will present research on ways to enhance corporate competitiveness at the joint conference in August.”

Elected as the new chairman of the Korean Academic Society of Business Administration (KASBA), Professor Hahn, Ingoo from KAIST College of Business, stated that research on strengthening the competitiveness should be the top priority project for the academy. Professor Hahn will lead KASBA until the end of February next year, following the former chairman Professor Yoo Chang-joo (Dongguk University).

In an interview with Maekyung, chairman Han, In-koo said, “We will continue to develop and manage the major existing businesses of KASBA including the joint conferences. In addition, we will focus on carrying out three projects: strategies for strengthening corporate competitiveness, consulting on promising ventures and small companies, and the case study on Hanshang Enterprise.”

Chairman Hahn is currently conducting research on strengthening corporate competitiveness with business scholars from diverse fields. He plans to hold discussion forums at the end of next month and May to gather feedback from the industry, and present the final outcome at the joint conference in August. This research will be published in books so that the business community in practice can apply them.

Businesses that enable business scholars to achieve results in industry that are not limited to the academics only times of economic downturn, are also promoted at the KASBA level. Chairman Han emphasized, “Promising venture companies and SMEs will be recommended by economic organizations and advised by professors appropriate to the regional and business characteristics of the company. Through this, we will help the companies to strengthen their competitiveness and grow.”

Research on Korean-American entrepreneurs who have succeeded in the world, in places including China, Southeast Asia, Central and South America, will be emphasized this year. Through the case studies on Hansang Enterprise, Korean success factors will be identified, and a cooperation scheme will be devised to help Hansang Enterprise cooperate with domestic companies. The results of the Hansang Corporation research conducted by Korean Academic Society of Business Administration are expected to be presented at the World Korean Business Convention that will be held in Changwon, Gyeongnam in October.

Chairman Han said, “I was impressed by the Korean business scholars who devotedly taught Korean-Chinese students when I visited Yanji University and Yanbian University of Science and Technology (YUST) China few years ago. I will establish the Yanbian brand of the Korean Business Review centered on Korean professors at YUST.”

Professor Hahn received his bachelor's degree from Seoul National University, Department of Commerce, his master’s degree from KAIST, and his Ph.D. in business administration from the University of Illinois, USA. Since 1993, he has been a professor at the KAIST College of Business, and has served as the head of the Graduate School of Business and the Graduate School of Finance. He has published over 140 articles including 70 articles in SCI/SSCI international journals and 70 articles in Korean journals.

Prior to the event, Professor Hahn received the 22nd Sangnam Business Administration Award at the ‘Korean Academic Society of Business Administration Business 2016 Awards Ceremony.’ This award from the Korean Academic Society of Business Administration is given to scholars who have contributed to the advancement of business administration. It is recognized as the highest award in the area of business administration.

Professor Hahn has been conducting research on the effects of marketing communication on consumer choices. He has been an advisor for 21 PhD students and 203 Masters students, and has published 51 articles in Korean and international business journals.

Prior to the general assembly, ‘Joint Seminar on Creating Shared Value and Ethical Management,’ there was an introduction to ‘Transparent Management in Lotte Home Shopping.’ The Chairman of Lotte Home Shopping CSR Growth Committee said “We launched the ‘Management Transparency Committee’ which is made up of external specialists, and set ‘public disclosure and transparency’ as the core for reforms.”