Women break glass ceiling in South Korea's advertising sector

Major advertising agencies in South Korea have appointed women to the position of vice president.

Because advertising is a field in which women are actively pursuing, industry observations predict that more female executives will appear.

Innocean Worldwide Inc., an advertising agency under Hyundai Motor Co., on Wednesday announced that Chief Creative Officer Kim Jung-ah was promoted to vice president, a first for the agency since its inception in 2005.

Joining the advertising sector in 1996 after getting hired by Cheil Worldwide, Kim moved to Innocean in 2006. She has managed the brand campaigns for major domestic corporations like Hyundai Motor Group, Hanwha Group, SK Telecom and Shinsegae.

Last month, LG Group also appointed a woman to lead its advertising subsidiary GIIR as part of its executive appointments for next year.

Getting the CEO job after her promotion to vice president, Park Ae-ri was hailed for her outstanding capacity and expertise in data-based integrated marketing demanded by shifts in the business environment like digital transformation.

The nation's first female vice president in advertising was Choi Ina, former vice president of Cheil Worldwide and founder of Choi Ina Bookstore. Born in 1961, she joined Cheil Worldwide through open recruitment in 1984 and was named vice president in 2009. In January 2000, she made history again as Samsung Group's first female executive or assistant director hired from open recruitment.

"The rise in the number of high-ranking female executives means women are showing concrete performances with their skills in advertising," said an advertising analyst. 

Write to Mikyoung Lee at capital@hankyung.com