Corporate life has been like a “race” for Yoon Jo that she can’t seem to win, not because she doesn’t have skills but because others use illicit means to run further than her. While many choose to turn a blind eye to all the wrong things going on in Seyong, Yoon Jo has been the only one to speak up against them. However, this one time, Yoon Jo gave in and approved a problematic proposal, which turned into a huge controversy later. Yoon Jo was not the only one at fault here, as Jae Min had a part in starting the controversy. They have to wait for the decision of the higher officials to know if they are going to stay at Seyong or not.
Spoilers Ahead
Is Sun Tae A Part Of The Fraud?
Yoon Jo and Jae Min’s future at Seyong is now dependent on the decision by the disciplinary committee, and the committee members are the two people who are the real culprits behind the protein powder controversy: Manager Jin and Manager Kim. Some days before the committee hearing, Yoon Jo, Jae Min, and their colleagues came together to find the real culprits, but they found no leads. Jae Min only had one lab test report, which wasn’t enough. They tried to get help from their team leaders and from other employees in the sales department, but no one was able to help them. As a last resort, they asked Yi Jung for help. Yi Jung was also on the verge of losing her job for not being able to handle the controversy, but she had to do what she could before she left. Yi Jung was just as frustrated at the company’s management and their hierarchical way of working and wondered how she ended up there.
Yi Jung held a meeting with all the team leaders of the PR department to hear the story from their side. Sun Tae, who submitted the false lab test of the protein powder, said that the wrong sample must have been used for the report he had, and he was clearly scared as he was visibly sweating while talking. After their meeting, Jae Min met Yi Jung and told her directly that he suspected Sun Tae to be colluding with the culprits because he had a personal relationship with Manager Cho of the sales team, who was in league with the main culprits. Yi Jung talked with Sun Tae alone outside the office and tried to assure him that she was on his side as long as he told her the truth. Sun Tae had been feeling uncomfortable trying to hide the truth because his job would also have been at risk if he were to be called one of the culprits. In reality, Sun Tae only trusted his friend, Manager Cho, and submitted the false report trusting him. Only later did he find out the fraud behind it.
How Does Yi Jung Get The Vice President On Her Side?
Yi Jung brings the vice president of the company to the disciplinary hearing and exposes Manager Jin and Manager Kim in front of him. Manager Kim is taken aback by the sudden attack, and his defensive reaction only confirms that he is guilty of everything that Yi Jung just accused him of. The vice president ends the hearing, and Yoo Jo and Jae Min are now no longer at risk of getting fired. When he asks them if they want to add something, Jae Min speaks up about the company’s outdated and weak corporate culture that always has employees in fear of losing their jobs, which makes them afraid to suggest the right thing. The vice president had been against Yi Jung and Ji Hyeon until now, but since his trusted people like Kim and Jin almost made the company go bankrupt, he realized that a change was needed. He asks Yi Jung to start the employee engagement project again. However, before doing that, Yi Jung needs to resolve the bigger issue. Both the employees and the public need answers about the recent controversy, and Yi Jung suggests it’s in their best interest to come clean with the truth if they want to regain trust. Ji Hyeon holds a press conference, reveals the fraud that happened inside the company by their trusted employees, and assures that the same won’t happen again. The employee engagement team restarts their project, and they get an even better response than before.
After Yoon Jo is relieved from the stress of the recent incidents, she finally goes on the promised date with Dong Hoon. She sees it as just a casual date, but Dong Hoon is serious and asks her once again if they are going to get into a relationship. Dong Hoon doesn’t want to be the person who waits for someone to like them when the other person has no intention of doing so. He says to Yoon Jo that it is now or never, and Yoon Jo agrees to become an official couple with him because she doesn’t want to lose a good man like him. While she starts dating Dong Hoon happily, Jae Min develops feelings for her. His heart breaks a little every time Yoon Jo mentions Dong Hoon, but he is confused between friendship and love. He is not sure if he is afraid of losing a friend or of losing Yoon Jo to someone else. However, their friend, Eun, makes him realize that he actually has feelings for Yoon Jo, and it has nothing to do with their friendship. Jae Min cannot do anything about it now, as Yoon Jo even declares to her colleagues that she has a boyfriend.
Seyong is going through changes, and Yi Jung finally gets to do the work that she was appointed for. She proposes a change in personnel after considering the survey results of the employee engagement project. Race episode 11 ends with good news for some and upsetting news for others. All the employees related to the protein powder controversy are either resigning or getting fired. The teams are all getting shuffled, and Yoon Jo and Jae Min end up on the same team, with Jae Min getting promoted. Seung Hee, who was worried about her job due to her pregnancy, also gets promoted thanks to Sun Tae. Sun Tae himself also gets promoted, as he came clean about his mistake. However, the team leader of PR Team 1 gets handed a voluntary retirement application, and Chul Jun, who was senior to Jae Min, is now Jae Min’s subordinate.
