Dark Horse Enters, Heating Up the "SME President" Election

AI Cooperative chairman also enters "campaign mode"

Preference for manufacturing figures remains strong within KBIZ

Kim Kimoon's influence is also a key factor

The election for the 28th chair of the Korea Federation of SMEs (KBIZ), now just three months away, is heating up. With a new leader to be elected for the first time in 16 years, interest both inside and outside the SME community is growing. The field is becoming more diverse with the entry of Choi Eunsu, chairman of the Artificial Intelligence Cooperative, into what had been a lineup made up entirely of figures with manufacturing SME backgrounds.

According to the SME community on November 11, a total of six candidates are considering running in the next KBIZ chair election. They include Choi, whose name has recently begun circulating as a potential candidate, as well as Kang Donghan, chairman of the Korea Forging Industry Cooperative; Park Jangseon, chairman of the Korea Printing Cooperative Federation; Shim Seungil, chairman of the Korea High Pressure Gas Industry Cooperative Federation; Lee Minhyeong, chairman of the Jungbu Concrete Pipe Cooperative; and Lee Jaegwang, chairman of the Korea Electricity and Energy Industry Cooperative.

Choi appears to have entered full-fledged "campaign mode" after receiving suggestions from some quarters that he run for office at the SME Leaders Forum held in Jeju last month. He is reportedly focused on making himself known to the heads of other cooperatives. "Choi has been making a very active effort to communicate," said the head of A Cooperative. "AX (AI transformation) has also emerged as an important agenda item in the SME community, so he seems to be attracting some interest."

There is a relatively widespread view within the SME community and KBIZ that the chair should be a self-made figure who built a manufacturing company from the ground up. "You could call it something like an unwritten qualification for the established group," an SME industry source said. "It seems to be linked to the fact that manufacturing SMEs account for the largest share of the SME community." All the candidates except Choi, a former journalist who has led video analytics AI company Intellivix since August 2023, fit this profile.

The candidates also tend to be distinguished by their ties to incumbent chair Kim Kimoon, who continues to wield considerable influence. Kang is considered a figure aligned with Kim. Lee Minhyeong and Park Jangseon, meanwhile, are outside Kim's camp but form one side of the competitive field, drawing on their distinctive organizational strength and networks. At the Leaders Forum, Kim told reporters, "There are various criteria, such as whether someone is self-made, exports and sales, and there will be things to compare." He added, "It is also important to have the character to lead the federation while fostering harmony."

The KBIZ chair represents about 950 SME cooperatives and exercises authority over personnel appointments and budget execution. In overseeing KBIZ, the chair appoints 25 vice chairs and also has audit authority over member organizations. The chair also represents the SME community by presenting views on government policies. KBIZ is counted among the country's five major economic organizations, along with the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the Korea Enterprises Federation, the Korea Employers Federation and the Korea International Trade Association. The KBIZ chair is accorded protocol status equivalent to a cabinet minister and accompanies the president on overseas trips as a member of economic delegations, earning the nickname "president of SMEs." The position carries no salary, but the chair receives KRW 120 million a year in external activity allowances and KRW 60 million a year for also serving as chair of the board of Home&Shopping, in which KBIZ is the largest shareholder.

The election will be announced on December 11, and candidates will register on January 1 and 2, 2027. The election will be held on February 2, 2027. If no candidate wins a majority in the first round, a runoff between the top two candidates will be held that same day. KBIZ is pursuing a plan to entrust the election to the National Election Commission to ensure voting fairness and plans to submit an application soon.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.