Information Systems Review (경영정보학연구)

The Korea Society of Management Information Systems (한국경영정보학회)
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The Power of Connectivity: Cooperative Network and Firm Performance in the IT Industry

초연결시대의 협력: IT 기업 간 협력 네트워크와 성과에 관한 연구

  • Received : 2017.03.13
  • Accepted : 2017.06.05
  • Published : 2017.06.30
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Abstract

The advancement of IT and the "Fourth Industrial Revolution" blurred the boundary between industries. The importance of strategic cooperation between enterprises is emphasized. IT companies must consider their existing business areas and create new territories to drive changes in the industry. They must also secure their competitive edge and manage economic costs to enable them to compete with their global counterparts. By utilizing their resources effectively, these firms can create value through inter-firm cooperation. This study analyzes the collaborative network of global IT companies using social network analysis and examines the effect of this network on firm performance. Collaborative linkages and betweenness centrality, which represent the bridging position of a firm in a network, significantly affect firm performance. This result highlights the importance of the structural position of a firm in a cooperative network of IT companies. This study also characterizes clusters in a network of IT companies. Most of these clusters comprise a combination of IT companies in diverse IT industries. These clusters suggest that these companies engage in multilateral cooperation without boundaries to maximize their business capabilities. This study offers practical implications for establishing a cooperative strategy and framework that can capture business trends in the IT industry from a macroscopic view. This study also visualizes collaborative networks in a multifaceted way using social network analysis to provide researchers and business practitioners with an informative viewpoint.

모든 것이 이어지는 초연결시대에 기술의 융합으로 새로운 비즈니스가 생겨나고 산업의 경계가 허물어지고 있다. IT 산업의 빠른 변화에 발맞추어 기업은 기존의 사업영역을 재조정하거나 새로운 분야를 선도하는 역할이 더욱 중요해졌다. 또한 글로벌 경쟁이 심화되면서 기업은 경제적 요인을 고려하면서 보다 차별적인 경쟁우위를 확보해야만 하는 상황이다. 따라서 현존하는 자원을 효과적으로 연결하여 최적의 성과를 만들기 위한 방안으로 전방위적 협업을 통한 가치 창출에 주목해야 한다. 이에 본 연구는 특정 IT 영역 내의 기업간 협력 활동에 한정하지 않고 IT 산업 전반에 속한 주요 기업들의 협력 네트워크를 파악해 보았다. 본 연구에서 소셜 네트워크 분석 기법을 활용하여 주요 IT 기업들의 협력 네트워크를 분석하여 성과와의 관계를 살펴본 결과는 다음과 같다. 우선 기업들의 협력 네트워크의 수와 함께 네트워크상에서 중개자 역할을 표현하는 척도인 매개중심성이 성과에 유의한 영향을 미치는 것으로 나타났다. 이는 네트워크 양적 측면에서 협력의 수뿐만 아니라, 구조적 관점을 고려하며 기업이 네트워크 내에서 어떠한 포지션에 위치해 있는지도 주의를 기울여야 한다는 것이다. 또한 협력 네트워크의 클러스터 분석을 실시해 본 결과, 다양한 IT 영역에서 활동하는 기업들이 밀접하게 연결되어 클러스터를 구성하고 있었다. 이는 주요 기업들이 IT 영역 간 경계를 넘어서 전방위적 협력 관계를 구축하며 경영 활동의 효과를 극대화하고 실제 기업 성과로 연결시키고 있다는 점이다. 마지막으로 본 연구는 4차 산업혁명 시대의 흐름을 반영하여 IT 분야 간 경계를 초월하며 형성되는 협력의 의미를 기존의 네트워크 이론을 통해 재조명해 본다는 의미가 있다. 본 연구 결과는 기업이 새로운 현상을 포착하여 가치를 창출하기 위한 방안으로 다양한 파트너와의 협업 전략을 고려하는데 있어 시사점을 제공할 수 있다. 또한 실제 주요 IT 기업의 협력 관계를 네트워크 분석을 통해 가시화하여 나타냄으로써 IT 비즈니스 관련 연구와 실무진에게 보다 입체적이고 다양한 관점을 제시해 줄 것으로 기대해 본다.

Keywords

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