• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.79-106
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• 2016

This paper investigates the effectiveness of public credit guarantee programs and interest-support programs for SMEs (small and medium enterprises). First, assuming that there is an imperfect information structure in the SME loan market, we analyze how SME support financial programs affect the corporate decisions made by SMEs with regard to default or loan sizes. In addition, this paper theoretically computes the optimal levels of credit guarantee amounts and the interest-support spread under equilibrium with imperfect information in a competitive loan market. Second, the paper empirically analyzes the continuous policy-treatment effect with the GPS (generalized propensity score) method. In particular, we consider the ratio of guaranteed debt to the total debt as a continuous policy treatment. The empirical results show that marginal effects of a credit guarantee on SMEs' productivity, profitability, and growth potential decrease with the ratio of guaranteed debt to the total debt. In addition, the average effect of a credit guarantee is maximized when this ratio is at 50% to 60%.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.23-46
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• 2008

The purpose of this research is to analyze the impact of business scope and technological capability on firm performance in SMEs. Existing studies on business scopes and technological capabilities have focused on the unilateral relationships with financial performances. This study examines the independent and interaction effects of business scopes and technological capabilities on financial performances of SMEs in capital industries. Based on 228 firm-level data, technological capabilities have positively significant impacts on performance. Business scope measured by product variety and number of buyers have been significantly positive relationships to financial performances. Also SMEs with technological capabilities can moderate the effects of business scope on their performances. However, the results show different relationships depending on measurements on business scope, technological capabilities and performance. The results provide interesting findings on strategic behaviors of SMEs when they pursue growth strategy through expanding business scopes and building technological capabilities.

• The Research Journal of the Costume Culture
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.248-262
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• 2016

Most Korean companies in the fashion industry are SMEs, and the role of the CEO and management ownership is important for enhancing the firm's competence and developing strategies. The study aims to examine the effect of management ownership on company financial growth. In particular, the study focuses on the moderating effect of company age and size on Korean fashion SMEs' financial outcomes. Financial data based on company financial statements from 2012 to 2014 was collected by the Data Analysis, Retrieval and Transfer System of Korea's Financial Supervisory Service. A total of 295 companies' (domestic fashion businesses) data was analyzed by the bootstrap method. The median sales value in the financial year 2014 was 47,492,403,958 KRW, and the company size was divided by it. The companies were in business for an average of 20 years. According to the results, the management ownership had a negative effect on Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) for the three-years, and the relationship between the two variables was moderated by company age. Additionally, the interaction effect of management ownership and company age on 3-CAGR was also moderated by company size. When the companies had spent only a few years in business, a negative effect of management ownership for small firms and a positive effect of management ownership on financial growth for medium firms were found. These results suggest that small companies starting business need to manage their company governance structure to make flexible decisions, and after retaining financial growth, the companies can expand their businesses based on strong ownership.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.7 no.6
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• pp.1396-1406
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• 2006

The policy aims of Regional Innovation Cluster(RIC) are not making the RIC itself but promoting the competitiveness of Small and Medium Enterprises(SMEs) in the region. Also, it goes without saying that small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) do the key roles of regional economic growth. This paper indicates that the innovative capabilities of SMEs are the crucial factors of the success of Regional Innovation Cluster. In order to improve SMEs' capabilities for innovation, knowledges are vital including codified knowledge or tacit knowledge. In cluster, the linkages especially among researchers and factory workers is important to innovative activities, and universities have to of for knowledge, education programs and new researchers fully qualified to SMEs. Also, regional governments and medias positively participate the cluster as helpers. Based upon the research results, some policy implications have been suggested concerning the policy supports to enhance innovative activities of SMEs within the Regional innovation Cluster.

• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.24 no.11
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• pp.201-208
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• 2019

In the phono-sapiens era of the intelligence information society, most business activities are increasingly dependent on networks and information systems. SMEs, which occupy the majority of Korean companies, are increasingly possessing the value and technology of their information assets, and their ability to protect core technologies that are the driving force of corporate growth will be the most important competitiveness of enterprises. Accordingly, the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Korea Internet & Security Agency(KISA) provides a foundation for minimizing the damage from cyber threats such as hacking and information leakage by evaluating the current information protection level of SMEs and enhancing information protection capability by supporting a high level of customized information protection consulting. In this study, we analyze the effectiveness of information protection based on the results of KISA SMEs consulting. In addition, by identifying problems and limitations derived from SMEs information protection consulting results, SMEs should propose measures to improve information security of SMEs that can manage information protection management system more efficiently and effectively.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.13 no.2
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• pp.91-100
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• 2018

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) endeavor to overcome the adverse resource conditions and secure competitive advantage through technological innovation capability. Prior studies have focused on the overall or specific dimensions of technological innovation capability, and examined their performance impact. However, there has been less scholarly attention on the dynamic characteristics such as the relative importance of technological innovation capability or its performance impact at the different growth stages of a firm. In this vein, this study investigates the relationship between SME innovation capability and innovation performance at each growth stages of a firm. Based on the empirical analysis of manufacturing SMEs in Korea, we found that all dimensions of technological innovation capability had positive effects on innovation performance. However, each dimension of technological innovation capability had different effect on innovation performance by the growth stages. The planning capability can improve innovation performance at the growth and maturity stages. Manufacturing capability can have positive effect on innovation performance at the maturity stage. Both of new product development capability and commercialization capability contribute to innovation performance at all of the growth stages. This study suggests the guidelines for enhancing technological innovation capability at the different growth stages of SMEs. It also provides policy implications for the design and operation of growth-stage specific programs. Finally, the limitations of the research and future research directions are presented.

• Journal of Information Technology Services
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• v.15 no.1
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• pp.1-18
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• 2016

Recently, in the bio-field success stories of ventures through a biosimilar technology is being excavated. but the growth of ICT industry has been stagnant since reaching a boom in the dissemination of early high-speed internet in 2000s. The purpose of this study is to explore the factors of change of business model and business strategy of ICT ventures and SMEs with the evolution of the digital ecosystem, and to drive the factors to be competitive on the global value chain. The researcher selected an entreprenuership, market-innovation orientation, technology-innovation orientation, and Administration-innovation orientation as internal factors influencing the global competence and healthiness of the ecosystem as external factors. The researcher applied samples of 94 ICT Venture and SMEs to a research model, and adopted 5 hypotheses. The researcher believes that only a few hypotheses were adopted because it takes time for overall innovation orientation of ICT Venture and SMEs to result in the real global competence as the their innovation orientation is still on the level of domestic market. And the researcher also thinks that only healthiness of the ecosystem affected management performances because the companies' performances of the last 3 years were so weak that the correlation between innovation orientation of each company and the performances were not big enough.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.10
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• pp.285-295
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• 2021

This study estimates the influence of organizational-level factors on work motivation and job performance of middle managers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Vietnam. A 5-point-Likert-scale structural questionnaire consisting of 36 observation variables was used to survey middle managers of Vietnamese SMEs. 425 out of 500 responses collected were valid for multivariate data analysis. The results of confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling reveal three main findings. First, philosophy and policy, compensation and benefits, goal system, and leadership have positively significant impacts on the work motivation of middle managers under investigation. Second, there is a significantly positive influence of work motivation on job performance. However, there is no indication that growth opportunities, work environment, evaluation system have significant impacts on the work motivation of respondents. Based on the findings, the study suggests four recommendations for Vietnamese SMEs to improve motivation and job performance of middle managers, which are (1) ensuring the clarity and soundness of the organizational policies and philosophies, especially human resources policy that boosts employees' work motivation; (2) building a comprehensive compensation and benefit system to attract and retain talented employees; (3) developing a clear and adequate goal system; (4) enhancing top-level managers' leadership abilities.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.5
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• pp.863-872
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• 2021

The main goal of this research is to understand how small and medium enterprises (SMEs) owners in Oman perceive the factors that drive or impede their growth and sustainability. Based on survey data of 395 SMEs in Oman, factor analysis was conducted to check if all the items load as one factor in each of the constructs. The results show that all the items measuring motivators and barriers loaded significantly for the respective scales, with high reliability (Cronbach alpha for Motivators = 0.991 and Barriers = 0.995). Relationships between the demographic factors of entrepreneurs and firm characteristics were tested and it was found that all the four variables: age of the entrepreneur (p = 0.00), qualification of the entrepreneur (p = 0.00), SME sector (p = 0.00), and age of the firm (p = 0.00) have a significant relationship with both the Motivators and the Barriers. The findings of this study could have significant implications for policymakers in Oman and other Middle Eastern countries. Since SMEs face similar problems and are given priority around the world, the findings could be applicable to other countries, as well. The findings also add important results to the empirical literature on SMEs.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.20 no.12
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• pp.43-57
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• 2022

Purpose: This study discusses the phenomenon of the uncertain sustainability of SMEs in developing countries. SMEs face various challenges in the dynamics of a competitive environment, which threaten their growth and sustainability. This study aims to address a research gap between company's internal resources, in the form of absorptive capacity, and its business performance. By using product quality as a mediator, which has never been studied before, this research presents a novelty to answer the existing research gap using the Resource Based Theory (RBT) perspective. Research design, data and methodology: Using quantitative method, data are collected from 164 respondents, who are owners or managers of furniture manufacturing SMEs in Gerbangkertosusila Area, East Java, Indonesia. The data are analyzed using Partial Least Square (PLS) - Structural Equation Modeling (SEM). Results: The findings show that absorptive capacity has a direct and significant effect on business performance and indirectly through product quality. Conclusion: Furniture manufacturing SMEs are advised to focus on developing absorptive capacity reflected in good product quality, in order to improve their business performance. This is especially important to survive the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Thus, the results of this study contribute to the development of RBT, and there are several suggestions for further research.