Korea's HRD agency wraps up 100-day advisory panel with new value charter

The Human Resources Development Service of Korea said Friday it closed out its public growth advisory committee after about 100 days.

The committee, made up of 10 outside and internal experts from academia, government ministries and the labor union, held seven regular meetings after its launch in August. It livestreamed the full proceedings of its meetings on the agency's YouTube channel to improve transparency and build support among staff.

Discussions centered on the agency's long-term strategy, its shift to artificial intelligence and digital operations, and restoring public confidence in the national qualification system. Members also urged the agency to deliver results the public can feel, to carry out national policy tasks including youth employment, and to communicate more with its own staff. The agency said it has reflected those recommendations in the direction and action plans of each task.

The service, known as HRDK, is a quasi-government body under the labor ministry that runs vocational training and skills certification. It said it is concentrating on youth job support through programs that include apprenticeship training, overseas employment assistance and a job-skills bank, and plans to add a pilot next year called the Youth AI First Job Career Support project.

At the final meeting the agency and its labor union jointly declared a new set of core values and management principles, and the committee reported its final results, including its operating process, main discussions and how its recommendations were reflected. The service said the committee's recommendations will be carried forward by an internal body, the HRDK Innovation Task Force, and tied to management plans and reform projects rather than left as one-off proposals.

"Through the HRDK public growth committee, we were able to look at the agency through outside eyes and examine a wide range of areas," Chairman Lee Byung-hoon said. "We will faithfully carry out the tasks discussed and grow into a public institution trusted by the people."