시장개방(市場開放)과 국내기업(國內企業)의 구조조정(構造調整)

Structural Adjustment of Domestic Firms in the Era of Market Liberalization

경제(經濟)의 개방화(開放化) 및 산업구조(塵業構造)의 고도화(高度化)가 진전되면서 국내기업들은 주력사업의 성장이 감퇴하는 구조변화(構造變化)에 직면하게 된다. 극단적인 경우에 도산(倒産)이나 폐업(廢業)을 단행하는 국내 기업들도 있을 것이다. 그러나 보다 우월한 적응능력을 가진 대부분의 대기업이나 중견기업들은 고임금(高賃金)과 현재의 기술여건(技術與件)에서 경쟁우위를 확보할 수 있는 영역(market niches)을 찾아 합리화 및 고부가가치화, 제품 및 시장다각화 등 신축적인 사업조정(事業調整)을 통해 수익성이 낮은 기존사업의 비중을 점차적으로 줄이면서 고수익성(高收益性) 사업(事業)으로 전환(轉換) 할 것이다. 사업구조 조정과정에서 기업(企業)은 단기적으로는 기존의 주력사업 내에서 경영합리화 및 감량경영을 통해 비용(費用)을 절감(節減)하고 제품의 고부가가치화(高附加價値化)를 추구하는 동시에 장기적으로는 사업구조 재편성을 목표로 기존의 우위요소를 최대한 활용하면서 새로운 우위요소(優位要素) 창출(創出)을 위해 기업의 전략구상, 조직 및 기업문화면에서의 구조전환을 시도하게 된다. 그러나 기업의 발상(發想), 조직구조(組織構造), 조직문화(組織文化)는 환경변화만큼 신속히 일어나지 않는다. 동일한 환경, 동일한 산업 내에서도 성공하는 기업이 있고 실패하는 기업이 있는 것처럼 환경변화에 대한 정확한 인식(認識)과 성공적인 전략(戰略)의 수립 및 실행은 기업들의 체계적인 노력여하에 따라 다르게 나타난다. (企業)의 구조전환(構造轉換)은 국가경제의 발전방향, 업종의 실태와 전망에 관한 정보에 기반하여 장기계획하(長期計劃下)에 기업의 축적된 경영자원을 활용하는 방향으로 이루어져야 한다. 기업이란 주주(株主), 경영자(經營者), 근로자(勤勞者) 등 이익집단간의 이해관계(利害關係)가 균형을 이루면서 발전해 나가는 조직이라는 새로운 인식(認識)에 기반하여 기업은 합리적 노사관계의 정착에 노력하고 정부(政府)는 경쟁(競爭)을 통한 기업체질 강화라는 기본방침하(基本方針下)에 재래산업(在來産業)의 전환비용(轉換費用)을 줄이고 신규사업(新規事業)의 창출(創出)을 뒷받침하는 제도개선(制度改善)을 해 나가야 한다.

Market liberalization progressing simultaneously with high and rapidly rising domestic wages has created an adverse business environment for domestic firms. Korean firms are losing their international competitiveness in comparison to firms from LDC(Less Developed Countries) in low-tech industries. In high-tech industries, domestic firms without government protection (which is impossible due to the liberalization policy and the current international status of the Korean economy) are in a disadvantaged position relative to firms from advanced countries. This paper examines the division of roles between the private sector and the government in order to achieve a successful structural adjustment, which has become the impending industrial policy issue caused by high domestic wages, on the one hand, and the opening of domestic markets, on the other. The micro foundation of the economy-wide structural adjustment is actually the restructuring of business portfolios at the firm level. The firm-level business restructuring means that firms in low-value-added businesses or with declining market niches establish new major businesses in higher value-added segments or growing market niches. The adjustment of the business structure at the firm level can only be accomplished by accumulating firm-specific managerial assets necessary to establish a new business structure. This can be done through learning-by-doing in the whole system of management, including research and development, manufacturing, and marketing. Therefore, the voluntary cooperation among the people in the company is essential for making the cost of the learning process lower than that at the competing companies. Hence, firms that attempt to restructure their major businesses need to induce corporate-wide participation through innovations in organization and management, encourage innovative corporate culture, and maintain cooperative labor unions. Policy discussions on structural adjustments usually regard firms as a black box behind a few macro variables. But in reality, firm activities are not flows of materials but relationships among human resources. The growth potential of companies are embodied in the human resources of the firm; the balance of interest among stockholders, managers, and workers of the company' brings the accumulation of the company's core competencies. Therefore, policymakers and economists shoud change their old concept of the firm as a technological black box which produces a marketable commodities. Firms should be regarded as coalitions of interest groups such as stockholders, managers, and workers. Consequently the discussion on the structural adjustment both at the macroeconomic level and the firm level should be based on this new paradigm of understanding firms. The government's role in reducing the cost of structural adjustment and supporting should the creation of new industries emphasize the following: First, government must promote the competition in domestic markets by revising laws related to antitrust policy, bankruptcy, and the promotion of small and medium-sized companies. General consensus on the limitations of government intervention and the merit of deregulation should be sought among policymakers and people in the business world. In the age of internationalization, nation-specific competitive advantages cannot be exclusively in favor of domestic firms. The international competitiveness of a domestic firm derives from the firm-specific core competencies which can be accumulated by internal investment and organization of the firm. Second, government must build up a solid infrastructure of production factors including capital, technology, manpower, and information. Structural adjustment often entails bankruptcies and partial waste of resources. However, it is desirable for the government not to try to sustain marginal businesses, but to support the diversification or restructuring of businesses by assisting in factor creation. Institutional support for venture businesses needs to be improved, especially in the financing system since many investment projects in venture businesses are highly risky, even though they are very promising. The proportion of low-value added production processes and declining industries should be reduced by promoting foreign direct investment and factory automation. Moreover, one cannot over-emphasize the importance of future-oriented labor policies to be based on the new paradigm of understanding firm activities. The old laws and instititutions related to labor unions need to be reformed. Third, government must improve the regimes related to money, banking, and the tax system to change business practices dependent on government protection or undesirable in view of the evolution of the Korean economy as a whole. To prevent rational business decisions from contradicting to the interest of the economy as a whole, government should influence the business environment, not the business itself.