Michele Kang
American businesswoman (born 1959) From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Yongmee Michele Kang (born 1 June 1959[1]) is an American businesswoman, philanthropist, investor, and owner of multiple professional football (soccer) teams.[2][3] She became vice president of the e-Business unit of Northrop Grumman in 2000. Since 2006, she is on the board of directors at Rexahn Pharmaceuticals. In 2008, she founded Cognosante, a medical technology company, and Cognosante Ventures, a venture capital firm.[4]
Michele Kang | |
|---|---|
Kang at a Washington Spirit game in 2022 | |
| Born | 1 June 1959 South Korea |
| Alma mater | University of Chicago (BA) Yale School of Management (MPPM) |
| Occupation(s) | CEO and founder of Kynisca Sports International |
| Known for | Majority owner of Washington Spirit Majority owner of OL Féminin Majority owner of London City Lionesses OL Groupe board director Eagle Football Holdings director |
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Born and raised in Seoul, South Korea, Kang attended the Ewha Womans University. While in her first year of business administration at the Sogang University in 1980, the student-led protest for democracy, the Gwangju Uprising, broke out that prompted her to move to United States. Using her parents' savings for her future marriage, she entered the University of Chicago, and graduated in economics. She then obtained her master's degree in public and private management (MPPM) from the Yale School of Management.
Since 2020, Kang turned her attention to promoting and investing in women's football as scandals emerged in United States National Women's Soccer League.[5] In 2022, she became the majority owner of Washington Spirit, which competes in the NWSL; then of Olympique Lyonnais Féminin, which competes in the French Première Ligue;[6][7] and of the London City Lionesses, which competes in the English Women's Championship.[8] In 2024, she established a London-based Kynisca Sports International as an umbrella management for her multi-club ownership.[9] She is described as "the first tycoon of women's football."[10][11]
Early life
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Kang was born and raised in Seoul, South Korea,[12] the youngest of three sisters.[13] Her mother was a lawyer and politician, Lee Yoon-ja, who was elected member of the parliament in the 11th and 13th National Assembly of South Korea.[14][15] Her father was educated in US through the US-sponsored scholarship during the rebuilding of South Korea after World War II, and was one of the first four[16] selected by the United Nations Korean Reconstruction Agency[17] for the financial support.[18] She studied at the Ewha Womans University, a private institute in Seoul.[19] Her ambitions had been to become an opera singer or a professional basketball player or a teacher.[16] Encouraged by her father to study business administration, she entered Sogang University in Seoul in 1980. The only female student, she topped the class in the first year, but realized that she could have better opportunities in US.[14]
Korean women had little opportunity for high-profile careers. As she related the time of her growing up, women were expected to get proper education but not for profession; even if one was highly educated, they were expected to get married and care for their families.[16] In her own words:
Even if you graduate with the highest score, you would probably be an assistant to the chairman. Then, when you get married, you will be voluntarily or involuntarily asked to leave.[10][20]
In Korean culture, it is the duty of the parents to save up for their children's marriages, and on average amounts to more than half of their total life savings.[21][22] Kang asked her parents to loan her their savings for her future marriage,[14] with a commitment that when her loan is exhausted, probably by the first year, she would self-support.[16] Being American educated himself, her father approved the intention.[20] There was another impetus – starting from 18 May 1980, there was a mass protest and demonstration for demanding democracy initiated by college students in Seoul, the event that became the Gwangju Uprising or Five One Eight Democratization Movement.[23] Under martial law, the military reacted violently resulting in hundreds of students killed.[24][25] Kang's parents feared for their daughter's live and progress in education, and allowing her to move abroad was the best option for safety and education.[18]
In 1981, with her wedding-savings loan, she moved to Chicago enrolling in economics major at the University of Chicago.[14] After obtaining the bachelor's degree, she continued with the master's degree in public and private management (MPPM) at Yale University School of Organization and Management (which later became the Yale School of Management and the degree, Master of Business Administration, or MBA[26]).[13][27]
The problem was that I have never been very good at accepting what I "should" or "should not" do, especially when it came to what a woman can or cannot do. With my father's reinforcement, I believed I could do anything a boy could do. I wanted something different from the future than what was expected of me.
— Michele Kang[28]
Business career
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Beginning
Kang initially worked as a management consultant for diverse companies related to information technology.[29] She then became a partner with Ernst & Young specializing in the high-tech and telecommunications industries.[30]
Northrop Grumman
Kang joined Northrop Grumman, the American aerospace and defense technology company, in 2000 as a senior executive.[29] In 2003, she became vice president of their Health & Science Solutions unit.[30] During her four-year leadership, the company was estimated to grow four-fold.[29]
Rexahn Pharmaceuticals
Following the resignation of two directors in 2006, Kang along with Charles Beever and Kwang Soo Cheong were elected to the board of directors at Rexahn Pharmaceuticals, headquartered at Rockville, Maryland.[31][32] Since her joining, the company has developed several drug candidates and drug delivery systems for cancer treatment which are under clinical trials.[33][34]
Cognosante
In 2008, Kang resigned from Northrop Grumman, to start her own company which she named literally in "the empty room above her garage".[29] Her aim for the company was "to disrupt and challenge the status quo in the U.S. healthcare system".[35] The corporation works with federal and state health agencies to "expand access to care, improve care delivery, address social determinants of health, and ensure safety and security through multi-faceted technology and customer experience (CX) solutions."[36] Kang has said that she is focused on developing a pipeline of opportunities that "will directly improve the lives of veterans, military spouses, persons with disabilities, seniors and residents in underserved communities."[37]
On April 15, 2024, Cognosante announced that it signed an agreement to be acquired by Accenture Federal Services for undisclosed financial terms. The transaction was completed in May 2024.[38]
Kynisca Sports International
On July 27, 2024, Kang announced the launch of Kynisca Sports International, Ltd., a London-based company that would serve as the umbrella group for her multi-team sports ownership and sports science efforts. The company was named after Cynisca of Sparta, the first woman to win an event in the ancient Olympic Games. The announcement claimed that the organization was the first international group dedicated to women's association football.[39][40] The launch was made in Paris during the start of the 2024 Summer Olympics.[41] Kang also announced the launch of $50 million in seed and matching funding for the Kynisca Innovation Hub, a non-profit research initiative specialized in female sports training.[9]
In October 2024, Kang's Kynisca hired former FC Barcelona Femení sporting director and Royal Spanish Football Federation women's football head Markel Zubizarreta to be Kynisca's global sporting director, overseeing all of its component clubs.[42][43]
On October 31, 2024, Kynisca led a $2 million seed funding round for IDA Sports, a company producing cleats and turf shoes for female athletes.[44]
Other investments
In June 2022, Kang was announced as an investor in Just Women's Sports, an American media company dedicated to women's sports.[45]
Kang is part of the ownership group that bought the Baltimore Orioles in January 2024.[46][47]
Sports ownership
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Washington Spirit
Background
Kang had only little knowledge on football. She had played football and volleyball in her college days, but tennis became her favorite sports.[13] She did not know about football clubs, the business, or the players, as she remarked: "I didn't even know who [Lionel] Messi was."[10] In 2019, the United States women's national soccer team won the FIFA Women's World Cup.[48] Kang was attended the formal celebration in the Capitol Hill. It was only then and there that she came to learn the nature of women's football and the existence of football club, the Washington Spirit.[49] She was invited there by Tom Daschle, her associate investor at Cognosante,[50] at the time a former Democrat leader. Daschle introduced her to Steve Baldwin, the managing owner of the Washington Spirit. Baldwin immediately won her over to join the club. Kang recalled the occasion, saying, "When I met the team after the World Cup, I knew I wanted to help lead this club. I believe it is essential for successful women to take the lead in advancing other women, and I look forward to doing so for the women of the Washington Spirit."[51]
Acquisition
On December 29, 2020, Washington Spirit announced that Kang had joined the club's ownership group.[52] Later reports confirmed that the stake was 35 percent, equal to former majority owner Steve Baldwin's stake though Baldwin retained control over the team.[5] Following Spirit coach Richie Burke removing himself from coaching duties in August 2021 and subsequent media reports alleging abusive behavior by Burke toward players, Kang began pursuing majority and controlling ownership of the club.[53][54]
After a protracted negotiation process,[55][56] Baldwin and minority owner Bill Lynch agreed to sell the club to Kang.[54] Following league approvals, Kang officially became majority owner on March 30, 2022.[57][58] Kang became the first woman of color to be the majority owner of an NWSL club.[53]
During the negotiations, the Spirit won the 2021 NWSL championship on November 20, 2021, defeating the Chicago Red Stars 2–1.[59]
On May 24, 2023, Kang's acquisition of the Spirit was named the Sports Business Journal 2023 deal of the year.[60]
Olympique Lyonnais
Kang is an OL Groupe board director and a director in Eagle Football Holdings, the investment vehicle of OL Groupe chairman John Textor.[3] On May 13, Olympique Lyonnais Féminin won the Coupe de France féminine 2–1 over Paris Saint-Germain, its 10th victory in the competition, on a brace by Ada Hegerberg.[61] Kang attended the match and raised the trophy with Lyon.[62]
On May 16, OL Groupe and Kang announced the formation of a separate entity that would be composed of her stake in the Spirit and OL Groupe's Olympique Lyonnais Féminin. OL Groupe would retain a 48% stake in the resulting new entity, and Kang would become the club's majority owner and CEO.[63][64][65][66][6] The transaction was approved by regulators in February 2024.[7]
London City Lionesses
On December 15, 2023, London City Lionesses announced that Kang had acquired the independent women's football club.[8][67] Following the purchase, the Lionesses hired Jocelyn Prêcheur as its coach, moved the club to Hayes Lane in Bromley, and announced plans for a dedicated training center in Aylesford of Kent.[8][43] The club's opening match of the 2024–25 Women's Championship, a 1–1 draw against Newcastle United W.F.C., drew a club-record 1,781 attendance.[68]
Philanthropy
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As a philanthropist, Kang created the Cognosante Foundation and is an active supporter of The Kennedy Center,[69][70] which also was a front-of-jersey sponsor of the Washington Spirit in 2022.[71] She has served on the boards of the American Red Cross, Washington National Opera, Northern Virginia Technology Council, and Palm Beach Symphony.[72] She has served as co-chair of the American Enterprise Institute National Council.[35]
In September 2022, Kang donated $100,000 for a military reunion of veterans who fought in the Battle of Chosin Reservoir.[73] The battle in 1950 was between China and Korea, with the latter supported by the UN forces largely led by the US Army. She had been a long-time supporter of the National Museum of the Marine Corps and US veterans in the battle called the Chosin Few. She had joined forces with other organizations in helping women veterans for their livelihoods.[74] Her donation was for funding travel expenses of the Chosin Few. She was also present at their meeting at the Arlington Court Hotel in Washington, D.C.[73]
Kang had never seen a rugby match until the 2024 Summer Olympics.[75] On July 30, 2024, she attended the women rugby match between US and Australia in Paris in which US won the match and took bronze medal. It was the first time the US team won any medal in Olympic rugby.[76] Impressed by what she witnessed, Kang on the spot announced a donation to the USA Women's Rugby Sevens team of $4 million over four years.[47][77] She later remarked: "Yes, that was an expensive game for me."[8]
On November 19, 2024, Kang announced a $30 million donation over five years to the United States Soccer Federation to be used specifically on funding training and talent identification camps for the federation's junior national teams, and developmental programs for female coaches and referees.[78] The donation was the largest ever made to the federation's women's programs.[79]
I am committed to raising the standard of excellence in women's soccer, both on and off the pitch, by delivering the resources female athletes need to reach their full potential.[80]
Kang was listed at number 28 among The Chronicle of Philanthropy's "Philanthropy 50" of 2024 for her donations totalling $84 millions.[81][82]
Honors and awards
- 2012, Kang was awarded among 100 Women Leaders in STEM.[83]
- 2015, she received the EY Entrepreneur of The Year.[84]
- 2016, she was among the Top 100 CEO Leaders in STEM.
- 2018-2021, she was elected to the board of governors of the American Red Cross.[85]
- 2019, she received the American Free Enterprise Medal by Palm Beach Atlantic University.[69]
- 2022, she was awarded the Washington Business's lifetime achievement award and inducted to the Washington Business Hall of Fame.[86][87]
- 2023, she received the Horatio Alger Award.[16]
- 2023, her business was named the Sports Business Journal's "Deal of the Year".[60]
- 2023, she was included in "The Power List 2023: The 50 Most Influential Figures in Sports" by Sports Illustrated.[88]
- 2024, she was named Virginia Business's Living Legends 2024.[89]
- 2025, she was listed among "Ten Influencers 2025" in sports by SportsPro.[90]
Personal life
While working as vice president of the Northrop Grumman, she developed breast cancer, which troubled much of her career.[18] Medical care helped her to remain cancer free, following which she started her own company, Cognosante.[29][91]
Kang's $15 million sale in 2022 of her condominium in Palm Beach, Florida was the third largest in Palm Beach history for an oceanfront apartment.[4][92]
References
Further reading
External links
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