“Passion is More Important than Academic Background”

‘We give priority to potentiality over academic background.’

Amid the ever more serious hiring slump, those who graduated from colleges outside Seoul have more difficulties because of their academic background. Nevertheless, there is a successful businessman who aggressively hired such potential college graduates.

The businessman is Sung Wan-jong, CEO of Dae-A Group.

In fact, the CEO of a medium-standing company with 7 subsidiaries did not graduate from those colleges outside Seoul. However, he has insisted on employing provincial college graduates since he took over Dae-A Engineering and Construction Co.,Ltd. in 1980. As a result, 70 percent of the 1,200 full-time employees in the company are from the provincial universities. Besides, provincial university graduates amount to more than 70 percent of 90 new recruits this year.

CEO Sung said, “We have been hiring them because we thought their passion for work and devotion to the company will be practically a great help to us.”

He admitted that the company was “forced” to employ graduates from the provincial universities because there were not many of those from prestigious ones who sought employment with small businesses. Now it voluntarily hires provincial university graduates although it has become a company with the annual sales of more than 1 trillion won.

There were many people who urged him to have second thoughts.

Some said, “The decision is against the reality of the Korean society where academic background has a great influence,” while others worried that it would widen the gap with other companies in this competitive society.

His company with the provincial university graduates in the principal axis, however, has become a sound medium-sized one “with flying colors” after 20 years of steady growth.

It was the economic crisis in 1997 when CEO Sung confirmed the true value of those employees from the colleges outside Seoul.

Despite the lay-offs, Dae-A Group laid off only 80 out of 1,000 employees because they voluntarily returned their bonus of 400 percent in an attempt to save the company.

“I realized at that moment that our employees run the company without a waste of human resources,” he said. That is why he sees his employment strategy as the key to success.

The CEO, born in Seo-san, Chung-nam province, had to make his living as soon as finishing the elementary school because of the poor family. In the daytime, he delivered newspaper, worked at a pharmacy, and did some errands for others, while at night he concentrated on studying. Thanks to his efforts, he was able to graduate from the high school after passing the qualification examination for high school entrance. He saved money with laboring and brokering in the transportation business and became a businessman.

Without a college degree, Mr. Sung decided to start studying again at the age of almost 40 and graduated from the department of management at Pacific Western University in the United States before finishing his MBA at Hanyang University in Seoul.

“I Know better than anyone the sorrow of those who cannot study because of money,” the CEO said. He set up Seo-san Scholarship Foundation in 1991 to help students with economic difficulty. The foundation with the accumulated contribution of nearly 10 billion won so far supported about 3,100 students. He received Moran-jang, the Order of National Service Merit, from the government on Feb.11.

“In reality, it is impossible to disregard academic background. But it is the trust in others that elicits the potential of individuals.”

He stressed once again that the true value of the young lies in “passion for work” and “potentials” rather than the present grades.

Hyo-Lim Son aryssong@donga.com