How I became interested in Southeast Asia(6)

Brief story of how I became interested in Southeast Asia including Indonesia

In 2015, I began my own business of market research and consulting in Indonesia, KOWATREE based upon my experience in Bandung. 

And I have further joined ASEAN Business Center, a Southeast Asia-specialized consulting service provider since 2016. I have conducted several market research projects for the Thailand government.

 

I also led a Korean fintech delegation to Jakarta so that they would develop the Indonesian fintech market. Nowadays the importance of Southeast Asia is getting highlighted as the region's economic clout has been growing in the international stage. 

How I became interested in Southeast Asia(5)

Brief story of how I became interested in Southeast Asia including Indonesia

After closely monitoring the poor public transportation infrastructure in the country, they introduced passenger transportation service to Indonesia by recruiting ideas from the Korean intercity bus system. 

Not only expansion of business but also accumulation of knowledge on the local transportation practice was gained while I was serving as a marketing director for 1.5 years. In particular, as a one and only non-Indonesian staff, I tried my best to adapt myself to the Indonesian society by acquiring local languages and learning local culture for survival. 

This turned out a big hand to my book for the general public, 'Why the World Pay Attention to Indonesia' and other columns and lectures on Indonesia later.

How I became interested in Southeast Asia(4)

Brief story of how I became interested in Southeast Asia including Indonesia

This role gave me an opportunity to be hired by QS Asia, an Asia-Pacific branch of QS. As a marketing and PR director for the Korean and Japanese market, I went back and forth between Singapore and Seoul in 2011~2012. 

In doing so, I could observe the situation of the contemporary higher education industry in Asia. Actually, this is when I was seriously linked to Southeast Asia first. The reason is that I stayed and worked in Singapore, the most-advanced country in the region.

It was Indonesia in which country I was involved after Singapore. Around the summer of 2013, I made up my mind to apply for a position at a newly-established company by my Indonesian friend and Korean friend in Bandung, Indonesia. 

How I became interested in Southeast Asia(3)

Brief story of how I became interested in Southeast Asia including Indonesia

I was also given a chance to take a short-term MBA program at JAIMS in Hawaii, America. JAIMS(Japan-America Institute of Management Science) is an in-house management institute of Fujitsu, a Japan-born IT giant. 

My global capacity seemed to be improved a lot during 4 months in Hawaii. I intensively discussed and debated in English with classmates from 10 different countries all over the world at the campus.

Back in the social section at Maeil Business Daily, I was in charge of the Korean MBA rating project in partnership with QS, a world level college rating agency. 

How I became interested in Southeast Asia(2)

Brief story of how I became interested in Southeast Asia including Indonesia

I advanced to Graduate School of Law at Younsei University while I was still working for the newspaper company. Unlike my undergraduate course, I chose law as my major because I realized the necessity of legal mind. 

My topic for the dissertation was 'A Study on Territorialitatsprinzip and Lex loci Protectionis in the International Disputes over the Intellectual Property Rights(Focused on the Issue of the Governing Law in Von Dutch Case)'. 

This is because I wanted to deal with international issues and the international law in depth in which I had been much interested. I was also given a chance to take a short-term MBA program at JAIMS in Hawaii, America.