I met GyeongGi Provincial Governor Kim Moon-Soo at his official residence last summer in Suweon and wrote about the meeting in a previous post (Meeting the Governor). With a little persistence, that meeting led to lunch with the governor's office manager and Foreign Investment Attraction Office Director General Lee Hak-Soo in November where I proposed that I could support the foreign investment attraction efforts of the province through my social networking activities in exchange for an official (though unpaid) position.
The Director General was receptive to the suggestion and as I was getting ready to head to the US for winter vacation, I said I'd do some preparatory work and provide more specifics on my return to Korea in February. I corresponded with his staff a little while in the US but it wasn't until we'd been back in Korea for a couple days that I received an invitation to the semi-annual meeting of advisors to the Foreign Investment Attraction Office of the province… as well as notification that I was to be named to a two-year term as one of twenty-two advisors!
Realizing that I needed to make an extra effort right off the bat in order to stay relevant with my social networking-based initiative, I asked for and was graciously given ten minutes to present to the group. Here is a link to the presentation I gave in Korean:
Download 10-02-17 GyeongGi Province Presentation, v2k
An English version of the presentation:
Download 10-02-17, GyeongGi Province Presentation, v2e
Following my presentation, the meeting continued with about an hour and a half of group discussion about the foreign investment situation in GyeongGi Province. This was followed by the official awarding to me (and one other new advisor) of the following Letter of Entrustment:
Letter of Entrustment
Korean Consulting & Translation Service
Representative: Steven Bammel
I hereby entrust you with the position of "GyeongGi Province Foreign Investment Attraction Advisor" based on Article 12 of the Ordinances on GyeongGi Province Foreign Investment Attraction and Support.
(Entrustment period: February 19, 2010 – February 18, 2012)
February 19, 2010
Governor of GyeongGi Province
It is an honor to have received this position. I will work hard to be an effective member of the advisor team.
