iM Financial Group narrows CEO candidates to 6, final pick due in December

iM Financial Group has narrowed its pool of candidates for the next group chairman to six. The company plans to finalize a shortlist by the end of next month after about four weeks of in-depth evaluations, with a final candidate recommendation expected in December.

The CEO Candidate Recommendation Committee of iM Financial Group held a meeting Tuesday and announced it had selected six longlist candidates in its search for the next CEO.

The committee launched the management succession process on Sept. 28 and spent about four weeks conducting the first round of screening and evaluation on both internal and external standing candidates. It verified eligibility based on standardized application forms and supporting documents, and assessed candidates on reputation checks by outside specialist firms, key management achievements, financial industry expertise, leadership, and ethical and responsible management.

The committee decided not to disclose the names of the candidates, citing personal privacy protections and the need to preserve the independence of future evaluations. Having completed document and reputation checks on both internal and external candidates, the committee said it would focus the next phase of assessment on each candidate's vision for the group's future strategy and management capabilities.

Over the next four weeks, the committee will conduct second-round in-depth evaluations of the longlist candidates. Independent directors will interview candidates on their management philosophy, future vision for the group, leadership and management capabilities. Outside experts in finance, management, leadership and strategy will also conduct separate in-depth interviews to assess financial industry expertise, organizational and leadership qualities, and strategic thinking.

The committee will then compile the evaluation results and finalize a shortlist by the end of next month. In the final stage, candidates will go through individual interviews with independent directors and a "3 Yrs. Visioning" session — in which they present and discuss their management direction for the group over the next three years — before a final candidate recommendation is made in December.

Committee Chairman Jo Gang-rae said the longlist selection process focused on enhancing objectivity and fairness by standardizing the format of documents submitted by each candidate and drawing on reputation information from outside specialist firms.