Imagine Jeff Bezos writing personal good-luck letters to thousands of Amazon employees’ kids before the SAT.
Unlikely, right? Yet in South Korea, that’s exactly what one billionaire does — every single year.
Each November, as the country braces for suneung, its ultra-high-stakes college entrance exam, Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-yeon keeps a tradition that has lasted 21 years: sending handwritten letters and gift boxes to employees’ children taking the test.
The packages, ordered personally from a Seoul hotel bakery, went to about 4,300 students this year, bringing the total to nearly 80,000 since 2004.
To outsiders, the gesture may sound quaint or even excessive. But in South Korea, where the exam can shape college admission, career trajectory, and social status, families feel enormous pressure — and Kim’s message carries real emotional weight.
This year, he urged students to view the exam not as a wall but as “a key to new possibilities,” adding that every step taken without giving up is already an achievement.
The tradition reveals a uniquely Korean corporate culture. In the U.S., CEOs post leadership advice on LinkedIn or talk about “work-life balance” in keynote speeches.
In Korea, some business leaders still behave like family patriarchs, offering personal encouragement during life’s biggest milestones.
Weddings, funerals, and even exam season can bring gestures from corporate leaders — moments meant to signal loyalty and shared responsibility beyond the office.
It also highlights the intense national focus on suneung. On exam day, airplanes pause takeoffs during the English listening section, offices delay opening hours, and police escort late students to test centers.
The country quite literally slows down for youth facing a single test that many see as a gateway to the future.
One Hanwha employee said the letter arrived at the right time. “My child has been nervous, and this gave us both encouragement,” the parent said. For families navigating one of the toughest academic systems in the world, a handwritten note from the top boss can feel like more than corporate tradition — it feels personal.
In an era when many global executives talk about empathy in leadership, one of South Korea’s most powerful business figures shows it in ink, quietly repeating the same ritual every year. And in a society built on competition, this old-fashioned act of support still strikes a chord.
