Qualified Professional Investor (Dec 2021–Present), Korea Financial Investment Association

• Designated as a qualified retail investor, authorized to invest in high-risk financial products due to advanced expertise and asset criteria, with reduced regulatory protections compared to general investors

Fellow, Institute of Actuaries of Korea (admitted Oct 2018, member in good standing)

• Passed all actuarial exams shortly after completing military service (Oct 2013)

"It is better to be a human being dissatisfied than a pig satisfied, but even better to be a satisfied human." —Hyungchan Cho

I have long felt, deeply and personally, that financial constraints can limit not only my living choices but also the pursuit of my aspirations as a researcher. To alleviate this burden—and because I enjoy data-driven decision making—I applied my research toolkit to personal investing. Inspired by Peter Lynch's 'One Up On Wall Street' (and other value thinkers), I focus on process over predictions:

• I build views using alternative indicators (e.g., Google Trends, YouTube Charts for K-pop idols, and national trade data by product/region) before earnings releases.

• My target metric is Operating Income rather than sales or net income, since it reflects a firm's core operations more directly.

• The same logic underpins my academic work at the Operations-Finance Interface: connect operational choices and information to measurable performance.

Investment, in many ways, parallels my research interests: it's about identifying patterns in data and deriving insights from them.

• Product Development Team (Jan 2016–Aug 2020)

During my college years, the financial burden was a significant source of stress, which motivated me to pursue a challenging yet rewarding career in actuarial science—a field where I could leverage my strengths in math and statistics. Passing all actuarial exams enabled me to secure a substantial loan with favorable terms, allowing me to manage my financial situation effectively. While my long-term goal has always been to become an operations researcher, I began working as an actuary right after college to repay the loan and gain valuable industry experience.

In my role at Korean Reinsurance Company (profiled in 2015 Korean Re Annual Report — p. 31), I developed insurance policies using statistical models such as Cox proportional hazards regressions and logistic regressions using healthcare data, including hospital records. Throughout my career, I developed over 20 health insurance products, four of which received exclusive sales rights from authorities.

This experience exposed me to a range of data quality—both low-quality healthcare claims data and high-quality national health insurance records covering more than 95% of Koreans. Working with structured, large-scale data (exceeding 1 billion rows in national health insurance records) and unstructured data from insurance claims and healthcare devices helped me become adept at handling diverse datasets. Additionally, I had the opportunity to collaborate with doctors and nurses, deepening my understanding of various diseases, treatments, medical devices, and medications.

My exposure to healthcare data and industry challenges serves as a great potential in pursuing healthcare-related research in my graduate studies. I still reconnect with former colleagues to get myself ready to embark on a journey to explore healthcare topics in greater depth through academic research.

Project Intern (Jul 2015–Sep 2015), Oliver Wyman–Financial Services

During my internship at Oliver Wyman, I contributed to a credit risk management project for a leading financial group, optimizing their Risk-Weighted Assets to meet Basel III standards. The majority of the task was to identify patterns in the data. I was strongly recommended by the project partner to extend my contract based on my performance.

Automated Logistical Specialist (Jan 2011–Oct 2012), 4-58th Airfield Operations Battalion, Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army

As an Automated Logistical Specialist (MOS 92A), I was responsible for maintenance management and warehouse operations. I managed incoming supplies and equipment, streamlined maintenance data, and improved performance, cost, and parts data accuracy through the 'Standard Army Maintenance System'. My personality was well-suited to these tasks, and as I delved deeper into them, I realized that the system was founded on principles from the field of operations.

While working, I became curious about how preorder amounts were automatically determined by the system. This curiosity led me to independently analyze historical data and search optimization techniques like EOQ—a field I knew little about at the time. With my newfound knowledge, I reorganized the entire stockage listing and replenishment cycle, which were not addressed by the system. As a result, I was awarded 'The Army Achievement Medal' by the Battalion Commander.

This experience sparked my passion for optimization, which has shaped both my career as a researcher and my academic interests.