• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.27-42
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• 2020

Startup accelerators have emerged as new investment entities that help early startups, which are not easy to survive continuously due to lack of funds, commercialization capabilities, and experiences. As their positive performance on early startups and the ecosystem has been proven, the number of early startups which want to receive their investment is also increasing. However, they are vaguely preparing to attract accelerators' investment because they do not have any information on what factors the accelerators consider important. In addition, researches on startup accelerators are also at an early level, so there are no remarkable prior studies on factors that decide on investment. Therefore, this study aims to help startups prepare for investment attraction by looking at what factors are important for accelerators to invest, and to provide meaningful implications to academia. In the preceding study, we derived five upper level categories, 26 lower level accelerators' investment determinants through the qualitative meta-synthesis method, secondary data analysis, observation on US accelerators and in-depth interviews. In this study, we want to derive important implications by deriving priorities of the accelerators' investment determinants. Therefore, we used AHP that are evaluated as the suitable methodology for deriving importance and priority. The analysis results show that accelerators value market-related factors most. This means that startups that are subject to investment by accelerators are early-stage startups, and many companies have not fully developed their products or services. Therefore, market-related factors that can be evaluated objectively seem to be more important than products (or services) that are still ambiguous. Next, it was found that the factors related to the internal workforce of startups are more important. Since accelerators want to develop their businesses together with start-ups and team members through mentoring, ease of collaboration with them is very important, which seems to be important. The overall priority analysis results of the 26 investment determinants show that 'customer needs' and 'founders and team members' understanding of customers and markets' (0.62) are important and high priority factors. The results also show that startup accelerators consider the customer-centered perspective very important. And among the factors related to startups, the most prominent factor was the founder's openness and execution ability. Therefore, it can be confirmed that accelerators consider the ease of collaboration with these startups very important.

• Journal of Convergence for Information Technology
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• v.8 no.1
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• pp.301-312
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• 2018

The purpose of this study is to propose strategies for enhancing competitiveness through the utilization of policy funds, especially in the start-up companies supported by the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund. And then, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund should develop 'user-centered policy funding model' in order to increase start-up's utilization of policy fund and support start-ups that are supported in the long run. The competitiveness of domestic start-up companies has been strengthened by 'user-centered policy funding model' and new innovations have been introduced through 'Living Lab', an open innovation. But, in order to overcome the limitation of reaching the stage of commercialization, the 'user-centered policy funding model' proposed in this study enables start-ups to be the subject of actual policy funding, and also allows users to freely apply for necessary funding at any time. Therefore, the Korea Credit Guarantee Fund has a significance in suggesting 'user-centered policy funding model' as a support model to be customized. However, since SMEs recognize the actual situation and limit acceptance of all the difficulties, the systematic analysis of the actual situation of the policy funds of the start-up by the credit guarantee fund and the related support institutions for the scientific approach of the user-oriented policy funding model need.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.91-107
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• 2023

Lean startup is a concept that combines the words "lean," meaning an efficient way of running a business, and "startup," meaning a new business. It is often cited as a strategy for minimizing failure in early-stage businesses, especially in software-based startups. By scrutinizing the case of a startup L, this study suggests that lean startup methodology(LSM) can be useful for hardware and manufacturing companies and identifies ways for early startups to successfully implement LSM. To this end, the study explained the core of LSM including the concepts of hypothesis-driven approach, BML feedback loop, minimum viable product(MVP), and pivot. Five criteria to evaluate the successful implementation of LSM were derived from the core concepts and applied to evaluate the case of startup L . The early startup L pivoted its main business model from defecation alert system for patients with limited mobility to one for infants or toddlers, and finally to a smart bottle for infants. In developing the former two products, analyzed from LSM's perspective, company L neither established a specific customer value proposition for its startup idea and nor verified it through MVP experiment, thus failed to create a BML feedback loop. However, through two rounds of pivots, startup L discovered new target customers and customer needs, and was able to establish a successful business model by repeatedly experimenting with MVPs with minimal effort and time. In other words, Company L's case shows that it is essential to go through the customer-market validation stage at the beginning of the business, and that it should be done through an MVP method that does not waste the startup's time and resources. It also shows that it is necessary to abandon and pivot a product or service that customers do not want, even if it is technically superior and functionally complete. Lastly, the study proves that the lean startup methodology is not limited to the software industry, but can also be applied to technology-based hardware industry. The findings of this study can be used as guidelines and methodologies for early-stage companies to minimize failures and to accelerate the process of establishing a business model, scaling up, and going global.

• The Journal of the Korea Contents Association
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• v.19 no.5
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• pp.644-657
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• 2019

This study examines the types of strategic alliances formed between terrestrial broadcasters and content start-ups, their resource inter-dependence and the dynamic evolution of their relationship through a case study of KBS Labs, a strategic alliance between KBS and content start-ups. Mergers, acquisitions and strategic alliances sought by large media companies or strategic alliances made only between disparate providers in broadcasting and telecommunications industries are now actively pursued by traditional media and start-ups. The alliances between traditional media and start-ups are beneficial to both parties: traditional media can quickly implement start-ups' innovative ideas and business models and start-ups can tap into not only vast amounts of content being created by or in the archives of traditional media but also their capital, office space and reputation. Therefore, the case study of KBS Labs will help draw out important implications for motivating strategic alliances between traditional media and start-ups. To this end, the resource-based view and the evolutionary theory of the firm are adopted to explore the characteristics and development process of the KBS Labs business.

• Journal of the Korea Convergence Society
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.163-171
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• 2021

The purpose of this study is to examine the current operation condition of fashion start-up companies and the characteristics of their founders in Fashion Creative Studio that is one of government programs supporting fashion start-up of rising fashion designer's brands in Korea and one of supporting facilities. For this purpose, this study surveyed 32 fashion start-up companies founders in Busan Fashion Creative Studio and analyzed the data based on the survey. The results are as follows. First of all, 82% of the founders have experience to start their business in 20s and 60% of founders with not more than 3 to 5 years of work experience related to fashion challenge to start a business. Secondly, major distribution channels of the fashion start-up companies are mainly on-line open-market consisting of 36% and SNS is up to 80% as the main promotion method. In addition, exports to China account for 71% of all exports. Lastly, 33% of businesses consider viral marketing by influencer and 50% of them make plan to export their items to East Asia. It is of research significance that this study can suggest the successful direction of establishing and operating fashion start-up companies through making good use of Fashion Creative Studio, the supporting program including facility.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.18 no.6
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• pp.1-10
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• 2023

Strong Critics of' Moral Hazard, due to plummeting severely their stock price down and damage falling on plain investor, has been skyrocketed against massively and simultaneously exercising stock option right of C-Level members in Stock market listed startups right after IPO regardless of proper and legal process followed. Korean Financial Supervisory Board initiate new act of extending to apply'Lock-up Rule'even to stock option of core interest group after IPO. However, it will cause startups and venture more difficulties to recruit top level of talented staffs. This paper aims to propose RSU(Restricted Stock Unit) as alternative to breakthrough the current deadlock issue with respect to stock option controversy many startups facing. This paper to meet goal, first, including Korean introducing status of RSU, it clarify the concept of RSU by comparing exploration with Restricted Stock and define characteristic of RSU by comparing Stock Option. Second, it bring more effective ways of startups introducing RSU in Korea overcoming its limitations and challenges. Third, it carry out FGI to legal expert deeply involved of introducing RSU in Korea at policy domain. FGI focus on defining core challenging factors and their level of huddles of introducing RSU in Korea with proposing breakthrough policies to landing RSU softly in Korea. Fourth, it suggest valid policies of introducing and stabilizing RSU in Korea completely. This paper expect some contributions Korean startups and venture on finding market friendly right breakthrough out of stock option dilemma currently in.

• Korean small business review
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.165-186
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• 2021

Startups are undergoing a change throughout the growth process of startups that appear in existing studies as they move away from the existing B2B or B2C frame and expand their target customer groups to O2O, C2C. In this regard, a new type of startup known as unicorns, a unicorn which has grown rapidly in a short period of time, is being created by successfully attracting government support and external investment in recognition of the potential value of the startup. This study examined the relationship between investment attraction and growth after founding for five representative unicorns in the U.S. and Korea. As a result, it was found that private investment in Korea is passive and defensive, and is attracted after the Series A stage, compared to the U.S., where the growth potential of the startup ecosystem is positively evaluated. In addition, it found that government's support policy throughout the startup's growth process is an abstract and comprehensive policy focusing on initial funding for startups. Therefore, it was suggested that the scope of government policies should be expanded to forster startups as unicorns, and that it is necessary to establish and implement differentiated support policies for each growth of the scale-up of startups. This study is significant in that it presented the criteria for the growth stage and support of startups as well as policy support for scale-up through practical case analysis of unicorns.

• 한국벤처창업학회:학술대회논문집
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• 2024.04a
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• pp.135-141
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• 2024

최근 정부정책과 국내외 초격차기술 및 딥테크 중요성 대두로 어느때보다 기술창업에 대한 수요와 필요성이 높아지고 있다. 특히, 대기업과 함께 스타트업에서도 초격차 기술을 포함한 딥테크에 대한 접근성이 용이해지고 기술사업화를 통한 적기 시장진입을 위하여 다양한 시도와 노력을 수행하고 있다. 대기업에서는 국내에서도 점차 활성화되고 있는 Corporate Venture Capital과 함께 기술스카우팅등을 통한 사내벤처링(Corporate Venturing) 방법론을 통하여 기업의 신성장 동력확보에 노력하고 있다. 스타트업계에서는 정부 정책과 지원을 통한 다양한 사업들이 진행되고 있으며 중견 민간기업에서도 국내외 스타트업과 관련 창업보육기관들과 함께 다양한 상생협력 활동을 하고 있다. 특히, 극초기 기업을 발굴하고 보육하는 액셀러레이터 즉 컴퍼니빌딩에 대한 사례가 많음은 관련 업계 누구나 부인할 수 없는 현상이다. 본 연구에서는 저자가 대기업에서 다년간 참여한 사내벤처링 방법론 현장에서의 경험을 토대로, 대학에서 기술창업기업 발굴에 대한 방법론을 기획하고 지난 3년간 현장에서 직접 실행한 경험을 토대로 초격차기술창업 발굴과 성장전략 방법론을 제언하고자 한다. 파괴적 혁신의 패러다임이 제안된후 다양한 영역과 부문에서 이론에 대한 검증도 병행된 것처럼, 초격차기술창업 발굴의 수요가 급중하고 있는 현시점에 현실적이며 robust한 고유한 방법론이 연구되어 결과물이 기업과 시장에 적용되는 것을 기대해본다.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.275-281
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• 2022

This paper intends to provide a more effective understanding of the management performance (survival and growth) of startups and to suggest methods that can be applied to empirical research related to startups in the future. Therefore, in this study, the effect of entrepreneurship, trend analysis, and government support on business performance (non-financial and financial) is studied. A total of 220 questionnaires were received, and 215 were adopted except for 5 insincere questionnaires. Therefore, it was evaluated based on statistical data of 215 companies surveyed by startup officials. The questionnaire was analyzed using the SPSS 28.0 statistical program. The results of the study confirmed that all three items of the hypothesis, government support, entrepreneurship, and trend analysis of start-ups all play a positive role regardless of the difference in financial and non-financial management performance.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.101-116
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• 2019

Technology-based start-up is important in that it encourages innovation, facilitates the development of new products and services, and contributes to job creation. Technology-based start-up activates entrepreneurship when appropriate support is provided within the ecosystem. Thus, understanding the technology-based start-up ecosystem is crucial. The purpose of this study is as follows. First, in Herrmann et al.'s(2015) study, we compare and analyze the ecosystem of each country by selecting representative regions such as Silicon Valley, Tel Aviv, London and Singapore which have the highest ranking in the start-up ecosystem. Second, we try to deeply understand the start-up ecosystem based on in-depth interviews with various stakeholders such as VC investors, start-ups, support organizations, and professors related to the Korean start-up ecosystem. Finally, based on the results of the study, we suggest development and activation of Korean technology-based start-up ecosystem. As a result, the Seoul start-up ecosystem showed a positive evaluation of government support compared to other advanced countries. In addition, it was confirmed that the ratio of tele-work and start-up company working experience of employees was higher than other countries. On the other hand, in Seoul, It was confirmed that overseas market performance, human resource diversity, attracting investment, hiring technological engineers, and the ratio of female entrepreneurs were lower than those of overseas advanced countries. In addition, according to the results of the interview analysis, Seoul was able to find that start-up ecosystems such as individual angel investors, accelerators, support institution, and media are developing thanks to the government's market-oriented policy support. However, in order for this development to continue, it is necessary to improve the continuous investment system, expansion of diversity, investment return system, and accessibility to the global market. A discussion on this issue is presented.