• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.20 no.3
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• pp.546-575
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• 2017

This paper investigates the effects of public R&D support on medium-sized firms' R&D investment. The paper collects a panel dataset of Korean manufacturing firms' R&D investment and public support, and employs the DID (difference-in-differences) regression for the test of stimulating or crowding-out effect. Empirical analysis examines how the effect of public R&D support differs between small and medium-sized firms and whether firm size and technological capability moderate the effect in the sample of medium-sized firms. Empirical results show that public R&D support tends to generally stimulate private pure R&D investment for both small and medium-sized firms. Comparing the results for small and medium-sized firms, this paper finds that the stimulating effect is relatively larger and more significant for medium-sized firms, while the effect is not significant for small ones. Furthermore, the paper shows that the stimulating effect of public R&D subsidy on private R&D investment is relatively stronger for medium-sized firms with superior technological competence and the effect of tax support is greater for incompetent firms. These results suggest that public R&D policies and R&D programs, differentiated from those for existing small firms, are necessary for medium-sized firms to stimulate private R&D continuously and formulated carefully by considering firm size, technological capability and growth potential.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.63-100
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• 2020

This study analyzes the effectiveness of government supported R&D program for SMEs by measuring TFP improvements. We estimate TFP for Korean companies from 2011 to 2018 using Levinsohn and Petrin (2003) method which reduces endogenous problem. Then government R&D beneficiary companies were extracted from the NTIS and linked to TFP estimates. The empirical results are as follows. First, as a result of estimating production function, the contribution of TFP to value-added is more important than in the past. Second, the TFP gap between large firms and SMEs continues to wide and there is no sign of easing.(from 3.72 times in 2011 to 5.23 times in 2018). Third, SMEs beneficiaries show higher TFP level than non-beneficiaries. However their TFP was on the decline until government support. After government supported R&D program, it reverses upward. Fourth, although one-year TFP improvement of beneficiaries is bigger than non-beneficiaries, it is smaller than the control group through PSME. Because SMEs participating in government R&D programs had showed downward trend of TFP until R&D program, it is necessary to examine whether there is a fundamental discordance between the demand of SMEs for R&D program and governments policy goal. More sophisticated program design will be required to escape the recognition that government R&D programs for SMEs are just charity.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.18 no.1
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• pp.73-97
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• 2015

Various types of government R&D support are available for activating businesses by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). However, most existing studies on this topic are focused only on the financial aspect. Interest in non-financial R&D support from the government has recently grown due to the limited provision of government financial support. In this study, government R&D support for SMEs was categorized into financial and non-financial strategies. Performance in terms of technological innovation by type was also analyzed. Furthermore, as R&D performance could vary according to the characteristics of the firms, the study classified performance variables into technological development possibility, technology intensity and technology uniqueness. The relationship between the types of support and the characteristics of the performance was also examined. Based on the results, it was found that government R&D support positively influences the SMEs' technological performance. However, the level of financial support does not significantly influence the technological uniqueness. As such, it is expected that effects from the increase in quantity of government R&D support are limited.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.77-104
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• 2014

Government R&D support for SMEs is very important and the R&D budget is also increasing. This study suggests a new method for analyzing a performance of R&D programs and analyzes the performance of R&D programs funded by small & medium business administration using the method. We discuss new measures "efficiency" that means short-term performance and "effectiveness" that means long-term performance. Weights based on the R&D programs' characteristics among the various sub-indicators of two measures were derived, and then the final scores were calculated by combining the weights with the responses on the indicators. Finally, this study tests the mean differences between R&D programs statistically. As a results, efficiency of R&D programs shows a significant difference between the R&D programs, while effectiveness does not. Most of the efficiency scores are low, whereas the effectiveness scores are high. The results explain that the R&D programs are managed inefficiently. However, most SMEs predict a positive impact of government R&D supports on effectiveness in the long term. Government needs to try to improve the efficiency of R&D supports because SMEs cannot expect sustainable performance with no improvement in efficiency.

• Management & Information Systems Review
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• v.28 no.4
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• pp.109-129
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• 2009

This study aims at investigating the effectiveness of SME's R&D system empirically. Specifically, this study analyze the relationships among R&D inputs(R&D investment, R&D human resource management), process(R&D planning, external network, internal cooperation), and output(technological innovation). A questionnaire was developed to measure the above variables. To test these relations, data were collected from the small and medium-sized IT firms located in Daegu-Kyungbuk region. The survey data of 154 firms were integrated as the empirical base for testing the relations. Most respondents were from the managers. Structural equation modeling analyses were used to examine the relations. Major results are as follows: Firstly, R&D HRM was positively and significantly influenced on the R&D planning. Secondly, R&D planning was positively and significantly affected on the external network, internal cooperation, and technological innovation. Thirdly, the both relations between R&D investment and R&D planning, and external network and technological innovation were not significant statistically. These results suggest the following implications. First, R&D human resource management is very important for IT SMEs. Secondly, internal cooperation mediates R&D inputs and technological innovation by approaching the other department's unique resources and by sharing the cost of new resource development. Several future researches need to overcome the limitations of this research. First, this study's sample was based on the small and medium-sized IT firms just located in Daegu-Kyungbuk region. This limitation may imply that empirical results can not represent overall small and medium-sized firm's situations. Therefore, future research needs to include different samples. Secondly, this study depends on the latitudinal study.

• International Commerce and Information Review
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.197-218
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• 2012

Technological competitiveness of SMEs is an important factor of the country's industrial competitiveness. And technological competitiveness of SMEs in South Korea has been a long-term congestion. Through the study, we analyzed the correlation between SMEs technical support policy and technological competitiveness. As a result, the technological competitiveness of SMEs is positively related to R&D policy of funding, taxation and infrastructure. And on the other hand, R&D support policy positively effected the technological competitiveness of subcontractors, 5~49 people of small enterprises and innovation SMEs. We suggest that technology fund should be increased by expanding policy funds, investments and loans. Also, allocation of strategic R&D resources and supportive researching staffs are needed to strengthen high-growth innovative SMEs.

• Proceedings of the Korea Technology Innovation Society Conference
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• 2017.11a
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• pp.263-287
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• 2017

본 연구는 연구개발의 기술적 성과에 비하여 상대적으로 저조한 경제적 성과를 제고하기 위해 중소기업의 기술사업화를 촉진하는 한국형 기술사업화 모델 및 이를 위한 과학적 연구방법론 제시를 목적으로 하고 있다. 먼저 기술사업화의 성공실패에 관련된 연구 중 하나인 신제품개발에서 경제적 성과에 긍정적인 영향을 미치는 요인들을 선행연구를 통해 확인하고 우리나라 중소기업의 기술사업화 추진실태와 과제를 진단한다. 다음으로 세계 R&D 동향과 국내 대기업에서 추진하고 있는 6시그마 연구혁신 모델 및 기술사업화의 경제적 성과를 제고하기 위한 과학적 연구방법론 벤치마킹 분석 등의 결과를 토대로 우리나라 중소기업들이 수행하는 연구개발의 기술적 성과는 물론 경제적 성과도 제고할 수 있는 시장중심 R&D를 위한 한국형 기술사업화 모델과 이를 위한 5가지 과학적 연구 방법론을 제시한다. 1990년대 후반부터 등장하기 시작한 새로운 R&D동향은 사업부나 고객뿐만 아니라 공급자 등 외부 파트너들과의 상호 긴밀한 협력 하에 이들의 명시적인 니즈는 물론 암묵지 형태의 니즈까지도 파악하여 이를 R&D 활동에 반영하기 시작하였다. 특히 기업은 1980년대 정보화 진전, 변화의 가속화에 따라 연구과제의 성공이 바로 기업발전으로 연결되지 않는다는 것을 자각하기 시작했다. 단순히 R&D 활동만을 중시하는 것이 아니라 기술을 어떻게 마케팅과 연계시킬 것인가가 더욱 중요하게 되었다. 신기술을 신시장에 연결시키는 것이 용이하지 않지만, 성공 시에는 높은 가치창출을 기대할 수 있으므로 기업들은 R&D활동 보다 높은 가치를 창출하려는 활동에 관심을 가져야만 한다. 이와 같은 글로벌 환경 변화에 능동적으로 대처하고 제4차 산업혁명시대 중소기업의 연구개발 투자가 경제적 성과로 촉진될 수 있도록 본 연구에서 제시된 시장중심 R&D를 위한 한국형 기술사업화 모델과 5가지 과학적 연구방법론이 크게 기여하기를 기대해 본다.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.18 no.9
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• pp.323-329
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• 2020

There is a system of mandating the allocation of support to small business in certain percentage or more to facilitate technological innovation at small business. Trying to assess small business R&D projects, which receive a budget of three trillion won or more from the government every year, for their possibilities of success, a group of experts perform a technological evaluation with their technologies and their difficulty levels and review closely the possibilities of their commercialization and success. Used in such a review, the Analytic Hierarchy Process technique cannot make an objective judgment of evaluation criteria for evaluation items and guarantee the professionalism and fairness of small business R&D projects due to the inherent ambiguity and uncertainty of the evaluation criteria. This study proposed an R&D evaluation system based on Fuzzy-AHP for small business to provide objective weight for the evaluation items and assess the possibilities of such projects' success. The evaluation criteria were make objective as they were applied as section values based on triangular fuzzy numbers. Weight was assigned and applied according to the management guidelines of supportive projects for small business' technological development so that it could be reflected on actual assessment. The findings of the study will be helpful for reflecting the scoring weight of these evaluation items again when an expert is appointed for a new project and guaranteeing the professionalism and fairness of small business R&D project based on them.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.1474-1492
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• 2018

This study empirically analyzes the direct effects of government support for SMEs (project success) and indirect effects (sales growth) focusing on the differences between financially difficult firms (so-called 'zombie' firms) and 'normal' firms. If the zombie firm has a problem in technology development (success of the project) and the economic resilience capability (sales growth), then excluding them from the government's R&D support programs would enhance the overall efficiency of the programs. If not, government R&D could complement the market failure and play a positive role in revitalizing marginal firms. In this study, we collected data about 7,575 firms who participated in seven government R&D programs in 2013 and 2014. As a result of the logistic regression analysis, we did not find evidence that the likelihood of success for zombie firms was lower than that for the normal firms. However, the tendency of sales growth after the project was smaller for the zombie firms than for the normal firms. For zombie firms, we also found that firms that succeeded in the project were more likely to increase sales than those that failed.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.27 no.3
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• pp.27-52
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• 2019

This research studied the determinants of private R&D investment by examining the innovation strategies of 481 small and medium enterprises (SMEs, their employee size is 5 or more and less than 300) in Busan, South Korea. The data is derived from the Technology Survey of Small and Medium Enterprises in 2001 and 2003. Three explanatory variables for the innovation strategies are the R&D portfolio, the organization (personnel) for R&D, and the strategic role of CEO for innovation. The technological levels of industries are controlled in the linear regression model. The dependent variable is the total private R&D investment of a firm in the given fiscal year. The empirical results indicate that the private R&D investment positively correlates with the complexity of the R&D portfolio, the formal organization for R&D team, and the increase of R&D personnel. The formal organization for R&D team and the number of R&D personnel are correlated with the increase of private R&D investment across the four groups in the manufacturing sector but not in the service sector. These findings suggest that the innovation policy needs to target firms who have complex R&D portfolios, the formal organization of R&D teams, and sufficient R&D personnel in order to increase the private R&D investment of SMEs in regions, with consideration of industrial characteristics.