SK Group appoints Chey Chang-won as second-in-command

SK Group is entering a "cousin management" system for the first time in 25 years since Chairman Chey Tae-won took office in 1998. SK Discovery Vice Chairman Chey Chang-won, the younger cousin of Chairman Chey, has been appointed as the chairman of SK SUPEX Council, a deliberative body of CEOs of affiliate companies and the group's highest decision-making body.

On Thursday, SK Group announced the "2024 Executive Personnel and Organizational Restructuring," which includes new appointments, including the chairman. Faced with a crisis in the group's core businesses, including semiconductors and batteries, Chairman Chey has appointed Vice Chairman Chey as the group's second-in-command, with a term of two years. Vice Chairman Chey's involvement in group management is seen as an effort to strengthen the family owners' responsibility in overcoming the crisis.

Vice Chairman Chey is the third son of the late SK founder Chey Jong-gun. After graduating from Seoul National University with a degree in psychology and completing his MBA at the University of Michigan in the U.S., he joined SK Group in 1994 as a manager in the management planning office of Sun Kyong Group. In 1998, following the passing of the late SK first-generation Chairman Chey Jong-hyeon and the succession of Chairman Chey, he assumed the position of director at SK Chemical. In 2017, he became vice chairman of SK Discovery, the intermediate holding company of SK Chemical, SK Gas, SK Bioscience, and others. Known for his serious and dedicated personality, Vice Chairman Chey has earned Chairman Chey's trust, according to SK officials.


Do-Young Kwak now@donga.com