The Pulse of K-Entertainment

Kim Ji-won
ArtistSM Entertainment

Kim Ji-won

Kim Ji-won (김지원) is one of the executives most closely tied to how SM Entertainment explains itself at global scale. Public reporting around the company's 2023 management reset placed her at the center of SM's marketing operation. By 2026, she was serving as chief relations officer, the role attached to communications strategy, external positioning, and the way SM frames its artists and business to partners, media, and international stakeholders.

That work reaches far beyond corporate talking points. It shapes how acts such as aespa, RIIZE, NCT, and EXO are introduced, contextualized, and protected in public view as SM keeps expanding its global footprint.

Billboard's Women in Music list recognized Kim in 2025 and 2026, which underlined how much strategic communications now matters inside K-pop's executive power structure. Kim Ji-won is not the loudest public face in the company, but she represents the operator class that helps turn label momentum into long-term brand position.

0 articles4 creditsSouth Korean

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Other Credits

2026
Billboard Women in Music 2026Industry Recognition
HonoreeaespaRIIZEBillboardSM Entertainment
2026
Chief Relations Officer at SM EntertainmentExecutive Role
Chief Relations OfficeraespaNCTEXOSM Entertainment
2025
Billboard Women in Music 2025Industry Recognition
HonoreeaespaBillboardSM Entertainment
2023
SM Entertainment Inside Director and Marketing Center HeadExecutive Role
Inside Director and Marketing Center HeadSM Entertainment

Fans Also Ask

Who is Kim Ji-won at SM Entertainment?
Kim Ji-won is the SM Entertainment executive publicly identified in 2026 as chief relations officer. Her work sits at the junction of communications, media strategy, and partner-facing positioning, which makes her one of the people shaping how SM and its artists are understood outside the company.
What did Kim Ji-won do before becoming chief relations officer?
Reporting around SM Entertainment's 2023 management transition identified Kim Ji-won as head of the marketing center and one of the company's inside directors. That earlier title matters because it shows her rise came through artist positioning and brand strategy, not a late symbolic appointment.
Why did Billboard Women in Music recognize Kim Ji-won?
Billboard Women in Music recognized Kim Ji-won in both 2025 and 2026 because SM Entertainment's communications and artist-brand strategy had become a visible part of the label's international power. The honor highlighted executive influence, not only artist output, in K-pop's global expansion.
How does Kim Ji-won affect SM artists?
Kim Ji-won's role shapes the public framing around artists such as aespa, RIIZE, NCT, and EXO. That includes how SM handles media narratives, global partner communications, and the broader positioning that helps artists travel cleanly across markets without losing brand coherence.
Was Kim Ji-won on Billboard Women in Music two years running?
Yes. Kim Ji-won appeared on Billboard Women in Music in both 2025 and 2026. The repeat recognition matters because it signaled sustained influence rather than a one-cycle headline, and it reinforced her place inside SM Entertainment's modern leadership picture.

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