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| Kumho Petrochemical Group Chairman Park Chan-koo |
By Kim Bo-eun
Kumho Petrochemical Group Chairman Park Chan-koo stepped down from his position as CEO and board member of the group's core affiliate, Kumho Petrochemical, Tuesday. His resignation is part of the group's transition to a board-centered management system, Kumho said.
The synthetic rubber manufacturer stated Tuesday that its board had accepted Park's resignation and decided to appoint two new board members. The new members are: synthetic rubber expert Ko Young-hoon, who heads the company's R&D center, and managing director Ko Young-do, who specializes in accounting.
The appointment of the new members is set to be approved at a shareholders' meeting on June 15. The new members, along with Senior Executive Vice President and CEO Baek Jong-hoon, will lead the company's management.
Kumho Petrochemical said it has been seeking to strengthen its board-centered management system, appointing at a shareholders' meeting in March a pool of outside directors determined to have expertise and be capable of making decisions free from the influence of Park. The board has seven outside directors.
Park stepped down as Kumho Petrochemical CEO 11 years after he took on the position. Park is seen to have made the decision after determining that the company is now on a solid trajectory, based on its investments and financial stability. The company is projected to achieve record-high earnings this year. Kumho Petrochemical generated 1.85 trillion won in sales and 612.5 billion won in operating profit in the first quarter. These figure are the highest quarterly earnings for the company since its establishment in 1970.
"The governance transition will contribute to boosting the company's value, as it is one of the factors in ESG management principles that are being emphasized these days," Kumho Petrochemical stated.
