Getting to know Kyeong Sang Kim, Red Hat general manager for Korea

We’re delighted to welcome Kyeong Sang Kim to Red Hat as a general manager for Korea. In the new role, he will be responsible for Red Hat’s business operations in the country.

Kyeong Sang is an expert in the field of IT consulting, supporting numerous business innovation projects for more than 25 years. Prior to joining Red Hat, Kyeong Sang served as the CEO of SICC (Ssangyong Information & Communications Corp), where he successfully led the company’s digital transformation to the cloud. He has also  held several other leadership roles at global companies, including Accenture.

We caught up with Kyeong Sang to find out more about his interest in open source and Red Hat, and his insights on leadership.

Why did you choose to join Red Hat?

There were two big reasons why Red Hat got my attention. First of all, I am fully confident that Red Hat’s innovative open source capabilities and the open hybrid cloud business model will continue to impact and lead the IT industry in the coming years. The second has got to be Red Hat’s open culture and how it’s deeply rooted among associates around the world. I’ve got a glimpse of this culture throughout the interview process, and I believe this culture will play a huge role for the company to move forward.

What do you look most forward to in your new role?

I’m aware that my role as GM for Korea is to lead our team so that we expand the end-to-end multi product portfolio in the Korean IT market. I strongly believe our products, services and culture is the solid foundation for us to stay at the top of the game.

I look forward to trying out new strategies, such as encouraging, developing creative solutions to maximize efficiency, and transforming traditional sales to a customer centric value-added sales model.

How can Red Hat and open source technology support the digital transformation of Korean companies?

I believe that Red Hat’s expertise in open source technology is unrivaled. Red Hat’s not limited to specific architecture or vendors, so our customers can work with the hardware or infrastructure of their choice.

Korean companies have accumulated their understanding of open source and cloud native technology, and now looking for ways to put them into practice. Looking at the IT technology adoption history of Korean market it’s likely that digital transformation will be very active for the next 10 years. Red Hat’s proven technology will definitely play a huge role during these years, and will be an accelerating factor in the Korean market.

How would you define leadership, and what kind of leader would you like to be?

A leader should show the direction an organization should follow, and make sure the right steps are taken when heading towards that direction. More importantly, a leader should listen. The direction shouldn’t be set alone, and a common goal is essential for an organization to move forward. Everyone in the organization should be a part of making the decision and I want to be a leader who would listen, and  prioritize communication.