Seoul: South Korea's leading 30 conglomerates are increasingly appointing individuals with business expertise as outside directors, moving away from the previous preference for former prosecutors and professors, recent industry data reveals.
According to Yonhap News Agency, 239 listed units of South Korea's top 30 conglomerates by assets appointed 152 new outside directors in 2025, bringing the total board membership to 876. Of these new appointees, 39 were former high-ranking government officials, judges, or prosecutors, making up 25.7 percent of the total. This is a noticeable decrease from the previous year when former public officials constituted 30.7 percent of the 215 new outside directors.
The number of former prosecutors joining the boards saw a significant drop, with only three appointed this year compared to 11 the previous year. Additionally, the number of new outside directors from academic backgrounds decreased substantially, from 68 last year to 35 this year.
Conversely, there was an increase in the number of appointees from the business sector. This year, 52 business professionals, or 34.2 percent of the total, were named as outside directors, an increase from 38 professionals, or 17.7 percent, in the previous year.
Meanwhile, female representation among the new outside directors reached 18.4 percent this year, with women now making up 21.9 percent of all board members.