Hyundai Motor has appointed former Ambassador Sung Kim, who is a seasoned diplomat from the U.S., as an advisor to enhance its predictive capabilities regarding the uncertain global business environment.
Having served recently as both the U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia and the Special Representative for North Korea Policy, Sung Kim plans to join Hyundai Motor beginning in January of next year after retiring from the U.S. State Department.
As an advisor to Hyundai, Sung Kim will support the automaker’s overseas market strategies, global trade and policy response strategies, as well as external networking.
Amidst the rising uncertainties of the management environment due to geopolitical conflicts, the shifting paradigms of trade, and issues related to climate, environment, and energy, Hyundai is optimistic that Sung Kim’s involvement will help in addressing key management challenges such as entering new markets and restructuring global supply chains.
Not only will he strengthen the group’s think tank capabilities in analyzing global trends and seeking strategic partnerships, but he is also expected to impart his experiences of ‘global standard’ communication gained from his extensive public service career, thereby elevating Hyundai Motor Group’s external networking capabilities.
Sung Kim began his public service career as a prosecutor in Los Angeles County and transitioned to a diplomat in 1988. Since then, he has traversed the diplomatic path, beginning in Hong Kong and continuing through Japan, Malaysia, and various countries. He solidified his reputation as ‘Korea’s expert’ while serving as the Director of the Korea Desk at the U.S. State Department in 2006 and as the Chief Negotiator for the Six-Party Talks and Special Envoy for North Korea in 2008.
His diplomatic prominence further grew when he was appointed U.S. Ambassador to South Korea in 2011, being the first Korean-American ambassador since the establishment of U.S.-Korea relations. During his tenure, he successfully concluded significant issues such as the Korea-U.S. FTA and the revision of missile guidelines.
In 2014, he served as the Special Representative on North Korea Policy and East Asia Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Japan and Korea. From 2016, he was the U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines, leading the U.S. delegation to working-level talks ahead of the 2018 U.S.-North Korea summit, thereby playing a key role in U.S. diplomacy regarding the Korean Peninsula and East Asia.
Kim transitioned to the role of U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia in 2020 and was appointed by President Joe Biden as Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia and the Pacific and Special Representative for North Korea Policy (equivalent to assistant secretary level), establishing him as a top expert on East Asian and Korean Peninsula affairs across multiple administrations including Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden.
He uniquely became the first Asian American to serve as U.S. Ambassador to three countries: South Korea (2011), the Philippines (2016), and Indonesia (2020). Notably, during his time in the Philippines in 2018, he was also the first Korean American to rise to the rank of Minister Counselor in the U.S. Foreign Service.
Meanwhile, after last year’s mass production at the plant in Indonesia, Hyundai Motor Group has been focusing on the ASEAN market with this year’s completion of the Singapore Global Innovation Center and the establishment of a local subsidiary in Thailand. Sung Kim’s advisory role, given his local market experiences in the Philippines and Indonesia, is expected to contribute to successful market entries.
Lee Sang-jin daedusj@autodiary.kr