Kyung H. Yoon Joins Diversified Search

Kyung H. Yoon, acknowledged as one of the world’s premier talent strategists, particularly in the fields of technology and innovation, has joined Diversified Search in the role of Senior Advisor, effective immediately. Her experience will provide additional strength to the firm’s Innovation and Transformation, Consumer and Retail,CEO, and Board practices.

A former vice chairman of Heidrick & Struggles, Yoon is regularly engaged as a corporate director, advisor, and executive search and organizational consultant, known for her creativity, global vision, and innovative thinking—and particularly for offering timely insights and value-added solutions to clients facing disruption from technology and globalization. As the CEO and founder of the Silicon Valley-based Talent Age Associates, she has developed talent strategies for the Fortune 500, multinational corporations, and mid-cap/venture-backed companies in the technology, fashion, consumer, lifestyle, and financial sectors.

“Kyung marries two critical skills sets: She knows how to spot and recruit exceptional leadership talent, and she is a knowledge-based trusted advisor who understands the transformation and disruption affecting global business. She knows what kind of talent corporations and organizations need even before they do,” said Dale E. Jones, the CEO of Diversified Search. “We are so very excited to have her on board with us, and to have her as part of our growing and dynamic team addressing the leadership needs in the technology/innovation sector.”

A multi-cultural and multi-lingual leader who brings a unique blend of business, artistic, and cultural expertise to her work, Yoon led Heidrick’s expansion in Asia, managing its Singapore, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Taipei, Shanghai, and Seoul offices. She will be a key asset in Diversified’s membership in AltoPartners, the leading international alliance of retained executive search and leadership consulting firms.

Prior to joining Heidrick, Yoon was president of Benten Investments, Inc., in San Francisco; President of Pacific Union Management in San Francisco; and Vice President of Dillingham Development Co. in Honolulu. She is also the co-founder and partner of the Executive Board Exchange (EBX), the premier community for corporate director and board engagement. She currently serves as a board director of the global fashion group MCM Worldwide, board director of Give2Asia, council member of the Stanford Center on Longevity, and as an advisory board member of Translink Capital. Previously, she served on the boards of Silicon Valley Bank; several venture-backed technology companies, including Mobile Money Ventures (a joint venture between Citi and SK Telecom); and several nonprofits, including Harvard University’s Kennedy School Women’s Leadership Board. Born in Seoul, Korea to a diplomatic family, she grew up in Seoul, Washington, D.C., and Paris, and is fluent in English, French, and Korean, with literacy in Mandarin Chinese and Spanish.

“I am delighted to be joining Diversified Search,” Yoon said, “to leverage our collective expertise and global relationships to serve clients embarking on innovation and strategic succession planning on their boards and corporate leadership teams.”