Cheil Worldwide earns top co-growth rating for 7th consecutive year, first in ad industry

Cheil Worldwide announced Friday that it has earned the top "excellent" rating in the Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership's 2026 co-growth index evaluation for the seventh consecutive year — a first in the advertising industry.

The co-growth index is an annual assessment published by the Korea Commission for Corporate Partnership to measure and promote shared growth between large corporations and small and medium-sized enterprises.

Cheil Worldwide has held the top rating every year since 2020. The company was also named an "excellence honorary enterprise" — a designation given to firms that achieve the top rating for three or more consecutive years — for the fifth straight year, setting another first in the domestic advertising and marketing industry.

Cheil Worldwide has operated a dedicated co-growth division since 2015 to build fair and transparent business relationships with partner companies and provide substantive support for their growth. The company incorporates improvement proposals from partner firms into the following year's business plans, ensuring support is tailored to real on-the-ground needs.

Key co-growth support initiatives include customized human resources and labor consulting for small and medium-sized enterprises, recruitment subsidies to help partners attract skilled talent, and AI capability-building education for partner companies.

Cheil Worldwide also received an integrated A (excellent) rating in the Korea Institute of Corporate Governance and Sustainability's (KCGS) 2026 ESG evaluation, recognizing its sustained progress in sustainable management. By category, the company scored A in the environmental sector, A+ in the social sector and B+ in governance — with the social sector rising one notch from last year's A.

The improvement in the social sector is attributed to the company's strengthened human rights management practices, including public disclosure of its human rights management policy and medium- to long-term targets. Identifying key risks related to personal data protection, fair trade and occupational health and safety, and implementing risk-mitigation measures, were also cited as major contributing factors.

In the environmental sector, Cheil Worldwide received high marks for obtaining ISO 14001 international environmental management certification last year. The company is reinforcing its company-wide environmental management framework with targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent by 2030 and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.

"We will continue to lead sustainable management in the industry through genuine co-growth cooperation and the advancement of ESG management," a Cheil Worldwide official said.