• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
• /
• v.12 no.1
• /
• pp.25-31
• /
• 2017

The objective of this study is to find the failure factors of venture companies. We analyze 210 troubled venture companies, all of which have been under guarantee from the Korea Technology Finance Corporation over the last three years. Methods of analysis for failure factors are as follows. First, we categorize the failure factors into the four different types based on growth and profitability indicators in the financial statements of targeted venture companies. Then we analyzed the failure factors of the subject companies based on the troubled guarantee reports made by the Korea Technology Finance Corporation. If a venture company under its guarantee program falls into insolvency, the Korea Technology Finance Corporation make the troubled guarantee report to find out the failure factors and evaluate the recovery potentials. We identify 374 failure factors of venture companies through the analysis. The most prominent among them are deteriorating of business environments (79 factors) and decreasing or withdrawing orders from major suppliers (54 factors) due to bankruptcies or change in business plans. They are followed by slowing collection of accounts receivable (31 factors), dropping or frozen product price (24 factors) due to intensifying competition and escalating pressures from major suppliers, rising raw material costs both at home and abroad (21 factors). In addition, the nuclear power plant disaster in Japan, shut-down of the Kaesong Industrial Complex and subsequent lawsuits, delay in technology development projects, high cost-low efficiency management structure, etc., are also revealed as new factors causing trouble for venture companies.

• Quality Improvement in Health Care
• /
• v.5 no.2
• /
• pp.324-334
• /
• 1998

Background : Strategic planning is an organizationwide or systemwide, ongoing look into the future usually of 2~3 years, based on objective analysis of the current environment and trends, but it can incorporate both short-term and long-term goals. The strategic planning process includes external analysis, internal analysis, issue analysis, development of mission, vision and values, and lastly development of organizational goals and objectives. As a part of the strategic quality planning process, certain service lines, important organizationwide functions, or key processes supporting these functions can be prioritized to expedite and roll out certain strategic goals. This is called strategic quality initiatives. Methods : We organized a quality improvement team, a subgroup of 21st century vision planning corps of our medical center, and pursued QI activities for improvement of healthcare environment, particularly in the admission setting. We developed a strategic quality initiative based on the results of patient satisfaction surveys, and carried out functions of self-directed work team. Results : The strategic goal was to be the benchmark for peer group hospitals in Korea for providing cost-effective best-practice. The QI team included 3 medical doctors, 1 nurse, 1 social worker, and 1 QI consultant as well as many operational members to support services and quality initiatives met every Tuesday for 18 weeks. Outcome objectives were to improve patient satisfaction score. The issues included in the objectives were comfort, temperature, noise, cleanliness of the admission wards, quality and education of patient meals, matters regarding the admission process, and an appurtenant facility such as restaurant or convenience store. Every issue was discussed and recommendations, conclusions and opportunities were implemented. Conclusions : By developing a strategic quality initiative as a part of the strategic quality planning process, and pursuing a self-directed work team, certain sen/ice lines, important organizationwide functions, or key processes supporting these functions can be improved effectively within a short period. Strategic quality initiatives serve to support, or roll out, certain strategic goals that are relevant to performance improvement and development of specific measurable outcome objectives, and associated performance measure for each initiative. Each strategic quality initiative should include a statement of intent outcome objectives, and performance measures. We will come back with follow up of the strategic quality initiative, for improvement of healthcare environment, and results of patient satisfaction re-survey.

• International Commerce and Information Review
• /
• v.16 no.5
• /
• pp.151-178
• /
• 2014

The objective of the present case study is to analysis how effectively Hilti, which is a former family firm owned and managed by a family in Liechtenstein as a tiny european country, a land sandwiched between Switzerland and Austria, has made a global market success. Liechtenstein has $160km^2$ land and about 36,000 residents. Despite its small size of country, however, Hilti Corporation doesn't view its location as a liability in its business strategy. Hilti is a global leading provider of professional power tools in building, mining, civil engineering etc. Also, Hilti is a firm with a clear vision to become the leading industry partner for construction professionals and building installations through customer focus, high quality equipment, and tools and systems specially designed for specific jobs. This study considered Hilti as a good case, which verifies that born-conditions, endogenous factors according to Michael Porters diamond model does not decisive role more for international competitiveness of firms. Lessons from Hilti are that in order to obtain and sustain the global competitiveness of small and medium-sized firms in Korean manufacturing sector under high production cost, they have to do actively innovative. Also they can give to customers newer and higher customer-values than competitors in abroad give. The case summarizes that the strategy of Hilti for the global market success is comprised of several factors: Technological and organizational innovation, and a clear customer-value oriented business strategy and its implementation. Innovation and its integration into marketing for the customers value creation is central to Hilti's Success. The present case study is expected to provide insights and implication for many firms in Korea that are seeking to secure global presence and market success.

• Journal of Families and Better Life
• /
• v.28 no.1
• /
• pp.145-157
• /
• 2010

This is a study that explores the influence of self-differentiation and acculturation among married immigrant women on their feelings of marriage satisfaction by residential area. The aim was to verify the level of self-differentiation and acculturation that married immigrant women secure from multicultural marriage. To achieve this objective, the study widely distributed a questionnaire that targeted women who were participating in education and other services at health and family support centers, multi-cultural family support centers, general social welfare centers, immigrant women shelters, and Korean language classrooms which are located in Seoul, Gyeonggi, Chungcheong, Jeolla, and Gyeongsang. Data analysis involved frequency analysis, descriptive statistics, one-way-Anova, and multiple regression analysis. Based on the results of descriptive statistics, two factors, namely, (1)interpersonal-relation differentiation, a sub-scale of self-differentiation, and (2)marginalization, a sub-scale of acculturation, had the lowest average. In verifying its various hypotheses, the study achieved the following results. Firstly, among demographic characteristics, there was difference of the mean in the marriage period, average monthly income, the frequency of meetings with the married woman´s parents-in-law and her own parents, and the average cost of supporting the woman's parents-in-law and her own parents. Secondly, among demographic characteristics, the variable of influencing marriage satisfaction showed negative influence in the case of women dwelling in farming and fishing villages. This shows that women residing in cities whether small, medium or large have higher marriage satisfaction. Also, as a result of verifying whether self-differentiation has influence on marriage satisfaction, the element of interpersonal-relations differentiation had a negative influence on marriage satisfaction. Thirdly, as for influence of acculturation upon marriage satisfaction, the study showed that just integration, which is a sub-scale of acculturation had positive effect on marriage satisfaction. In other words, the study showed that the interpersonal-relation differentiation among the sub-scales of self-differentiation among married immigrant women had a negative influence, and that integration among the sub-scales in acculturation had a positive influence on marriage satisfaction. Based on these results, in order to increase interpersonal-relation differentiation, as well as marriage satisfaction among immigrant women, the study suggests the integration of the women's families with the nuclear and extended families in the communities where the women reside.

• International Journal of Highway Engineering
• /
• v.3 no.2 s.8
• /
• pp.113-121
• /
• 2001

Among the currently available binder specifications, Superpave Performance Grade asphalt specification is regarded as a superior specification on its theoretical background as well as pavement performance relationship. Many difficulties are expected; however, for Superpave implementation in Korea because of heavy burden of equipment cost as well as lack of trained personnel in asphalt industry, which may too much barrier to overcome in Korean situation. As an effort to improve qualify of asphalt binder, recently, people discuss about a possibility of constituting a performance-based asphalt specification using rather easy-to-measure asphalt properties. The objective of this paper is to determine the possibility of constituting a performance-based asphalt specification using an empirical asphalt properties, such as penetration ring and ball softening point rather than using fundamental properties of asphalt. Nine straight asphalts, that covers entire straight asphalt from all Korean refineries, and eighteen modified asphalts that were modified from two modifiers were included in the study. An analysis was made through a comparison between empirical properties and Superpave PG criteria. This study concluded that it may possible to constitute a pseudo-Superpave-like specification using an empirical asphalt properties as a specification criteria. Therefore, more systematic research is needed to constitute the asphalt specification.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
• /
• v.17 no.2
• /
• pp.29-47
• /
• 2007

Owing to the rapid growth of using the Internet, not only click-and-mortar companies but also brick-and-mortar ones have been expanding their distribution channels into online, Moreover, since online channels are more attractive than offline ones in control and maintenance, switching customers into online ones is emerged as one of very important managerial issues in a view of reduction of cost as well as expansion of services. However, the switched customers should be faced by uncertainties which could not have been experienced in offline. Specifically, in online channels, buyers and sellers are separated temporally and spacially and there are always so many kinds of threat for security as well as not enough systems and conventions for them yet. Therefore, trust has been considered as one of the most critical mechanisms for resolution of such uncertainties in online transactions. However, it is not easy to build and maintain the relationships in online since most of them are virtual and indirect generally. Therefore, in order to switch offline customers into online ones, it is very important to make strategies based on identification of the relationship between online transaction and offline trust which has been built in offline business. Generally offline trust, which has been built independent of online, could not include trust for online-dependent activities such as payment security during or after transactions, while most of online trust include it. Therefore, a customer with high offline trust does not always perceive high security and assure safe transactions. Accordingly, while online trust, where technical capabilities for online security is one of main bases, includes control trust implicitly or explicitly, offline trust does not. However. in spite of such clear discrimination and independence between offline trust and perceived security, there can be the significant dependency between these two beliefs. The customers with high offline trust believe that the company would do some activities for online security for customers' safe transactions since it has been believed of doing well for customers' trust. Theoretically, users' perception of security is interpreted as a kind of control trus, which is trust for company's technical control capacities in order to resolve technical uncertainties in online. Therefore, the relationship between two beliefs can be considered as transference from offline trust to another type trust. that is, control trust. The objective of this study is to analyze the effect of offline trust on online transaction uses mediated by perceived security. For this purpose, we suggest a research model based on technology acceptance model (TAM). Reuse intention is adopted as a dependent variable and TAM is modified by adding perceived risk (PR) as well as two beliefs of using Internet banking, perceived usefulness (PU) and perceived ease of use (PEOU). Moreover, perceive security (PS) is adopted as an external variable for PR and PU, while offline trust (OT) is an antecedent of PS. For an empirical test, sampling from 108 visitors to the banks in Daegu, Korea, we analyze our model by partial least square (PLS) approach. In result, our model is shown to explain 51.4% of the variance in reuse intention and all hypothesis are supported statistically. A theoretical implication of this study is to identify a role of PS between offline trust and reuse intention of using online transaction services. According to our result, PS can be considered as a mediation variable for bridging between two different concepts: trust that explains social aspects of customers and companies, and TAM that explains customers' reuse intention.

• Journal of Biosystems Engineering
• /
• v.42 no.4
• /
• pp.350-357
• /
• 2017

Purpose: In-situ monitoring of water quality is fundamental to most environmental applications. The high cost and long delays of conventional laboratory methods used to determine water quality, including on-site sampling and chemical analysis, have limited their use in efficiently managing water sources while preventing environmental pollution. The objective of this study was to develop an on-site water monitoring system consisting mainly of an Arduino board and a sensor array of multiple ion selective electrodes (ISEs) to measure the concentration of $NO_3$ ions. Methods: The developed system includes a combination of three ISEs, double-junction reference electrode, solution container, sampling system consisting of three pumps and solenoid valves, signal processing circuit, and an Arduino board for data acquisition and system control. Prior to each sample measurement, a two-point normalization method was applied for a sensitivity adjustment followed by an offset adjustment to minimize the potential drift that could occur during continuous measurement and standardize the response of multiple electrodes. To investigate its utility in on-site nitrate monitoring, the prototype was tested in a facility where drinking water was collected from a water supply source. Results: Differences in the electric potentials of the $NO_3$ ISEs between 10 and $100mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ $NO_3$ concentration levels were nearly constant with negative sensitivities of 58 to 62 mV during the period of sample measurement, which is representative of a stable electrode response. The $NO_3$ concentrations determined by the ISEs were almost comparable to those obtained with standard instruments within 15% relative errors. Conclusions: The use of the developed on-site nitrate monitoring system based on automatic sampling and two-point normalization was feasible for detecting abrupt changes in nitrate concentration at various water supply sites, showing a maximum difference of $4.2mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$ from an actual concentration of $14mg{\cdot}L^{-1}$.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Environmental Restoration Technology
• /
• v.20 no.5
• /
• pp.1-13
• /
• 2017

Recently, due to worldwide industralization and urbanization, natural environment has been severly damaged and global warning is worsening. Heat wave, torrential rainfall, typhoon and other natural disasters continuously occur due to global warming. Policies such as carbon emission regulation are taken into effect to solve such problems. Such global trend has affected interest to natural ecosystem and developed as a concept of ecosystem-services. This study particularly focused on ground water storage capacity among various ecosystem-services such as climate control and soil formation. It is because Korea suffers from drought and flood every year. Therefore, this study aims to understand objective numerical value of ecosystem-services value regarding ground water storage capacity of biotop classes based on relationship among precipitation, amount of evapotranspiration, and runoff of 7 regions of Chilgok-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do and to convert the value into economic value. The study calculated ground water storage capacity based on relationship among precipitation, amount of evapotranspiration, and run off. Calculated amount of each capacity was 29.26 million ton($30.2mm/m^2$), 430.46 million ton($140.4mm/m^2$), 11.30 million ton($150.1.0mm/m^2$), 33 milion ton($3.0mm/m^2$). Economical value of ecosystem-service by each biotop classes appeared 4,128,800 thousand KRW ($21.32KRW/m^2$) for agricultural biotop, and 60,403,600 thousand KRW ($98.52KRW/m^2$) for forest biotop, 1,572,800 thousand KRW ($104.4KRW/m^2$) for grassland biotop, and 47,600 thousand KRW ($2.18KRW/m^2$) for bare ground biotop. The result of this study like above, it will be used as important evidentiary material to preserve natural resource effectively from various development business and policies that damages natural eco-system. Also, it is judged that ecosystem-service value by each land coverage will be used as important material for preparing legalistic institution such as establishing natural environment preservation plan, budget for alternative forest resource creation cost.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
• /
• v.18 no.4
• /
• pp.135-142
• /
• 2017

This study employs an analytical mathematical model to estimate the optimal debt ratio of Korean agricultural corporations, more sensitive to the government debt ratio policy compared to other industries, and the estimation of the optimal debt ratio based on objective data. The analytical model utilizes the equation for ROE, with the debt ratio as an independent variable, and related parameters include ROS, TAT, and NFCL. Regarding the NFCL, the optimal debt ratio standard is defined as the debt ratio that maximizes the ROE by analytical procedures such as adding an equation concerning the debt ratio and a linearity relationship to the analytical model, and from these equations, a quadratic equation with the debt ratio as an independent variable describes the ROE. This methodemploys fourteen years of corporate data. Results show that 138% of debt ratio is the optimal debt ratio to increase the ROE of the corporations, which implies that the existing debt ratio of Korean agricultural corporations is higher than optimal. Consequently, it is required for authorities to change future debt ratio policies in view that the purpose of debt ratio management is to maintain safety and increase profitability.Management should emphasize characteristics of the specific industry rather than standardized judgements based on numerical indexes.

• Animal Bioscience
• /
• v.34 no.6
• /
• pp.1049-1060
• /
• 2021

Objective: This study assessed the effect of different levels of xylanase, β-glucanase and phytase on intestinal enzyme activities and tibia bone development in broiler chickens fed wheat-based diets. Methods: Twelve experimental diets were formulated using a 3×2×2 factorial design (three doses of phytase and two doses of both xylanase and β-glucanase) and offered to 648 day-old Ross 308 male chicks having 6 replicates groups with 9 birds per replicate and lasted for 35 days. Results: An interaction between the enzymes products improved (p<0.01) the activity of chymotrypsin. Protein content at d 10 was highest (p<0.001) with addition of phytase while general proteolytic activity (GPA) (p<0.02) and lipase activity (p<0.001) were decreased. At d 24, there were improvements in protein content (p<0.01) and lipase (p<0.04) with supplementation of superdose phytase. Addition of superdose phytase decreased in chymotrypsin (p<0.02), trypsin (p<0.01) and GPA (p<0.001). The optimum dose of xylanase decreased the chymotrypsin activity (p = 0.05), while the GPA (p<0.001) was increased with the optimum level of β-glucanase. Superdose phytase supplementation at d 10 improved maltase (p = 0.05), sucrase (p<0.001) and alkaline phosphatase (p<0.001) activities in the jejunum while aminopeptidase activity was highest (p<0.005) with the low level of phytase. Protein content of jejunum mucosa was bigger (p<0.001) in birds fed superdose phytase while maltase activity (p<0.001) at d 24 was reduced by this treatment. Sucrase (p<0.04) and aminopeptidase activities (p<0.001) improved when diets supplemented with low levels of phytase. Tibia bone breaking strength was highest (p<0.04) with addition of low level of superdose phytase or optimum level of β-glucanase. Bone dry matter content decreased (p<0.04) when diets supplemented with phytase. Conclusion: From the results obtained in this study, supplementation of superdose phytase was the most effective, however, the cost-benefit analysis of the use of such a dose needs to be evaluated.