Public Service Twice
Korea Minting, Security Printing & ID Card Operating Corp (KOMSCO) is the first public enterprise to carry out this year’s government assignment, “socially recognizing that ability should not be evaluated by academic records,” with its open recruitment of new employees. For positions on sales, promotion, and social contributions, KOMSCO decided not to request school information, GPA, foreign language score, or certificates from the candidates. For these kinds of job positions, the level of education is not the main factor in work performance. So, the decision it made seems to have caught three birds with one stone: complying with the government’s request, being sensible in seeking employees, and earning a good name for leniency.
KOMSCO is the sole currency and national ID card manufacturer in Korea. The company started off with full investment from the National Treasury in 1951. It was established so that Korea could supply banknotes on its own, which is a big step to make a country financially independent and supported. Its role was sufficient enough to keep its business there, but it expanded. In 1970, it started exporting banknotes by signing a supply agreement with Thailand.
From then on, KOMSCO has been setting an exemplary image among public enterprises. It has, and still is, actively promoting overseas business. Expansion of its business overseas actually made it stable, providing financial leverage when in need. With its first exports in 1970, it became a supplier of coins, banknotes, banknote papers, special inks, National Identification cards, and passports to more than 40 countries. It not only exported finished products, but semi-finished products such as design, engraving, and layout techniques, original and printing plates, and even training and consulting.
KOMSCO has made itself into one of the few total security solution providers in the global market, and stable enough to look around outside of its core business. Since 2011, KOMSCO committed itself to social contributions to create a better society.
In just April this year, KOMSCO invited 30 people from the House of Love, a facility for the disabled in Daejeon, for a walk on a cherry-blossom-lined road in Daejeon and a visit to the Currency Museum, established in 1988. It runs this program every month, visiting facilities for the disabled and seniors and bringing free meals. Also, it held a campaign called “The Best Gift of My Life” with World Vision in order to help make a better world through sharing and helping. Each executive and staff member of KOMSCO gets to support one child in need from a different country.
Kim Hwa-dong, CEO of KOMSCO, said, “We are going to do all we can to help all executives and staff to actively participate in social contributions and find more diverse and creative ways of making social contributions, thus making KOMSCO a leading public enterprise that earns trust and shares happiness with the public.”
In Korea, KOMSCO helps out with an expertise donation group called “…And Share.” Ten donors and 30 children from multicultural families participated in “The One and Only Shirt for Me” program. Banknote designers of KOMSCO gathered to make the expertise donation group, and they have been doing pro bono activities by teaching the children in welfare facilities art and banknote design. Thirty-five pro bono activities by 278 staff have been done in 2013, and these activities will continue to be done to help society.
As a result of all these efforts, this well-managed public enterprise received the top grade in “Customer Satisfaction Research” for six straight years from the Ministry of Strategy and Finance (MOSF). Each year, the MOSF evaluates 182 public enterprises and semi-government institutions for services and products. In 2013, the score for its certificate stamps increased 25.6 points from last year, contributing greatly to receive the top grade.