Hana Financial Group has established an ESG mid- and long-term strategy and vision, and is fostering social ventures to solve social problems with Underdogs as one of its core tasks. Through Underdogs’ innovative entrepreneurship methodology, practical training and coaching, and passionate management, we have been able to strengthen the entrepreneurial capacity of local youth and build a sustainable entrepreneurship ecosystem in the region.

While working with Underdogs on the ‘Dream With Our Village Level Up Project’ to help local social entrepreneurs across the country grow, we were able to see the positive impact of creating a social economy ecosystem centered on youth in local areas. The personalized coaching and attention to detail of the team members, as well as the team’s commitment to the local community and local activists, made it clear that Underdogs has a genuine love for the region and its people.

Underdogs coaches provided 1:1 coaching tailored to individual founders, helping local food businesses successfully revamp and rebrand their smartstores. It was also impressive to see that the close management of the training operations team created a strong network among the startup teams, which allowed all participants to complete the course.

In the early days of our business, when we were building prototypes, we met Underdogs Education through the 4th GS Retail Eco Social Impact Project. My coach’s emphasis on validating market response, an essential step before creating a product or service, not only allowed me to reduce trial and error by getting to know my market and customers first, but the close coaching kept me on track whenever I got stuck.

I participated in the second edition of the Hana Social Venture Academy and connected with Underdogs. As an early entrepreneur building a business model, internalizing the fast-growth, social venture mindset emphasized by the Underdogs coaches helped me set the direction of the business and drive profitability.

I’ve taken a lot of other entrepreneurship courses in the past, but the content was often a bit vague, and the Underdogs entrepreneurship course was very practical. I participated in the third year of the KB Financial Campus S.I.N.G project because I felt the need to express my company in numbers, and I received practical help that I still use today.