Yilmaz Karakoyunlu served as minister of state of Turkey from 2001 to 2002.
Turk Iktisad Tarihi Belgeseli (Documentary of the History of the Turkish Economy) for which he wrote the text was broadcast by the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation an eight-part serial.
In 1999 his work Salkim Hanimin Taneleri (Seeds of Salkim Hanim), with which he collected the Yunus Nadi Novel Award in 1990, was filmed.
He did his MBA in the United States at Georgia University and Michigan University where he received a Certificate of Effective Management.
He was also a manager and consultant in the private sector.