“Gratitude Leads to Success”… Starkey Korea's CEO, Sangdon Shim

On March 14th, Korea University Business School (Dean=Sangyong Kim) hosted a Global CEO Lecture in Hyundai Motor Hall, Room 202. The Global CEO Lecture series invites current CEOs or top executives weekly to share their valuable experiences and management principles. Sangdon Shim, CEO of Starkey Korea, delivered the lecture on the day. 

CEO Shim is an alumnus of KU Graduate School of Business Administration and has served as the 33rd president of the Korea University MBA Alumni Association. He has been the CEO of Starkey Korea, the Korean branch of Starkey Hearing Technologies in the United States, since 1996. Starkey Korea is the leading hearing aid company in the domestic market, ranking first in market share and customer satisfaction. In 2023, they launched the GENESIS AI hearing aid, which incorporates artificial intelligence technology. 

During his lecture on "A Balanced Life," CEO Shim recalled how his service as a KATUSA (Korean Augmentation To the United States Army) and managing emergency room medical equipment at the time led him to the hearing aid business. Among various management principles, he emphasized the synergistic effects between businesses and cultural arts. In this context, he explained the Medici Effect, which occurs when combining elements from different fields results in greater energy than the sum of each element's energy. 

Following this, CEO Shim shared his views on life, dividing his life into △work, △arts and culture, △philanthropy and service, △health, and △patriotism. He said, "In my life, passion was the theme of my twenties, positivity in my thirties, humility in my forties, love in my fifties, and now in my sixties, it's 'gratitude.' I still write in my gratitude journal every day and would recommend it to you all. It's okay to feel gratitude for the simple things in everyday life." He added, "Those who know how to be grateful for happiness can feel true happiness." 

Meanwhile, Minju Kim (Business School 20) said, "As a student in my twenties, the hearing aid business was a challenging topic to approach, but it was well explained. Not only did he talk about business, but also sharing insights into life's direction was meaningful."