Press

Case Presentation on Fostering Startup Ecosystem to Address Regional Decline and 2023 ESG Implementation Outlook Highlighting the importance of nurturing local startup ecosystem through capacity building of regionally-settled entrepreneurs and small business owners Underdogs, a startup education specialist company (CEO Cho Sang-rae), successfully held the '2022 Underdogs Pacemaker Seminar' in Sindang-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, targeting ESG and corporate social responsibility officers from various companies. The seminar was named 'Pacemaker Seminar' with the intention to mutually encourage one another for a healthy completion, recognizing that the process of implementing ESG management practices is like a long marathon journey. The seminar was designed to properly understand the various impacts of ESG activities on corporate competitiveness and derive strategic implementation plans, featuring presentations including: 'Corporate ESG Evaluation Response' by Oh Hyun-joo, Team Lead at Daishin Economic Research Institute ESG Research Division; 'Differentiated ESG Program Planning and Operation through the Localize Gunsan Case' by Choi Eun-jeong, Manager of SK E&S Planning Division; and 'ESG Program Planning Workshop' by Cho Sang-rae, CEO and Park Byung-ryong, Coach Team Lead of Underdogs. Oh Hyun-joo, Team Lead at Daishin Economic Research Institute's ESG Research Division, explained that the necessity of ESG is growing not only due to stricter regulations but also due to demands from investors and consumers. She emphasized that recognizing ESG as a management strategy rather than a trend, and determining which evaluation criteria should be prioritized when assessing corporate ESG activities is as important as genuine corporate communication. Choi Eun-jeong, Manager of SK E&S Planning Division, presented the 'Localize Gunsan' project as a case study, demonstrating how corporate activities can contribute to addressing regional decline as ESG activities. She emphasized that the key strategy for successful project implementation focused on long-term cultivation of startup teams rather than short-term infrastructure development. She also explained how regionally-settled startups can create additional social value through progressive exchanges with local small business owners and attraction of external resources. CEO Cho Sang-rae of Underdogs stated, "As corporate ESG management practices become increasingly important, the issues requiring social impact are becoming more diverse. Through the Pacemaker Seminar organized by Underdogs, I hope that cases such as fostering entrepreneurs who can jointly strengthen solutions to regional decline and competitiveness with small business owners will become widely known." Meanwhile, Underdogs has been implementing actual projects by theme, including regionally-settled startup education, nationwide startup education to address regional decline, and capacity building for small business owners, emphasizing the importance of local startup ecosystem activation through fostering regionally-settled entrepreneurs and strengthening small business owner capacity.