Hyundai Department Store Group said on the 20th that it received the top honor, the Best Award, at the "ATD 2026 Awards Reception" hosted by the Association for Talent Development (ATD) on the 18th local time.
The ATD Best Award is given to organizations among corporations and institutions worldwide that have excellent talent development strategies and operating systems and meet global standards. This year, a total of 52 corporations won, and Hyundai Department Store Group was the only Korea-based corporation on the list. This is also the first time a company in the domestic retail industry has received this award.
ATD is the world's largest talent development organization, founded in the United States in 1943. It has more than 30,000 members across some 120 countries. Every May in the United States, it holds the "ATD Conference & Expo," where talent development experts from around the world share the latest trends and best practices.
Hyundai Department Store Group is also expanding its talent development capabilities through industry-academia partnerships with external educational institutions. A representative example is its participation in operating the "Retail Convergence Major" at Seoul National University. The Retail Convergence Major is a retail-specialized program that Seoul National University opened in the first semester this year for the first time in Korea, characterized by treating the distribution industry as a comprehensive industry that combines data, space planning, brand strategy, customer experience, and digital transformation, rather than simple sales.
The curriculum is led by six departments at Seoul National University closely related to clothing, food, and housing—clothing and textiles, consumer science, food and nutrition, business administration, economics, and agricultural economics and rural development—with 10 professors newly opening and running courses for the Retail Convergence Major. From Hyundai Department Store Group, a total of nine affiliates will participate across distribution (department stores, home shopping, duty free), fashion (Handsome), food (Green Food, Bioland), and living (Livart, L&C, ZINUS).
Lee Dae-hee, head of the talent development institute at Hyundai Department Store Group, said, "We will continue to expand cooperation with Korea's top-tier educational and research institutions to build a future-oriented talent development system."