KEPCO has won the Unleash Award, Europe's most prestigious prize in human resources development, for the second consecutive year. It is the first time a South Korean company has won the award in back-to-back years.
The utility said it received the 2026 Unleash L&D Award at Unleash World, Europe's largest human resources development conference, held in Paris on the 22nd. A KEPCO official said the company had won the ATD Awards, organized by the U.S.-based Association for Talent Development, for two years running last year, adding that the latest prize again recognized its capabilities in talent development.
The Unleash L&D Award has been presented since 2016 by the European Association for Personnel Management (EAPM) and Unleash, a U.K.-based global HR technology group. Winners are selected based on a comprehensive assessment of the scope and role of talent development within an organization, the strategic use of talent development functions, and the link between development outcomes and organizational performance.
KEPCO was recognized for aligning its human resources development with its long-term 2035 management strategy and for establishing a 2030 mid-term master plan for talent development centered on artificial intelligence transformation and the creation of new growth engines. Judges also praised the company for partnering with Seoul National University to launch a customized AI curriculum — the first among South Korea's state-run institutions — and for building a data-driven tailored training system. Its decision to factor a newly established competency dictionary for each job function into promotion decisions, and to certify individual employees' digital skills in the form of badges that are then reflected in internal personnel decisions, also helped secure the award.
"Once again, KEPCO's talent development system has been recognized as world-class," KEPCO President Kim Dong-cheol said. "Building on the expertise and know-how we have accumulated, we will continue to contribute to the growth of the domestic human resources development industry by sharing our results, including through consulting for outside organizations."