Shim Sang-taek visits 4 affiliated institutions in director-led outreach tour
Shim Sang-taek, president of the Korea Arboretum and Garden Authority under the Korea Forest Service, completed a tour of four affiliated institutions, hosting director-led field communication events at each site.
The tour began July 23 at the National Baekdudaegan Arboretum in Bonghwa-gun, North Gyeongsang Province, and continued through the National Sejong Arboretum in Sejong and the National Korean Native Plant Garden in Pyeongchang-gun, Gangwon Province, before concluding Wednesday at the National Garden Culture Center in Damyang-gun, South Jeolla Province.
At each stop, Shim shared the authority's new management strategy framework and said the organization would focus on building a healthy workplace culture free of improper directives and sexual misconduct, while also promoting safety management and AI adoption for sustainable growth.
Particularly notable were interactive sessions in which Shim posed questions and staff responded — a format the authority called "reverse communication" — along with integrity-themed team activities and dosirak lunch meetings. At those sessions, Shim and employees discussed workplace hazards identified on-site and worked together to develop improvement measures.
Shim also conducted on-site inspections of high-traffic facilities, including visitor centers and exhibition gardens at the arboretums, with a focus on preventing serious accidents in preparation for heat waves and flooding.
"The small voices from the field are where change begins," Shim said. "We will do our utmost to create a safe and healthy workplace by building a work environment and an integrity-driven organizational culture that employees can truly feel."
kwonhl@heraldcorp.com
