• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.17 no.4
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• pp.57-71
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• 2022

The purpose of this study was to analyze the perception and demand of local youth and to find ways to support universities in order to create an youth start-up ecosystem. To this end, 509 young people living in Seoul were analyzed to recognize and demand young people in the region for youth start-ups, and to support universities. The findings are as follows. First, as a result of analyzing young people's perception of youth start-ups in the region, the "Youth Start-up Program" was analyzed the highest in terms of the demand for regional programs by university. In addition, there was a high perception that the image of youth startups in the region was "challenging" and "good for changing times." Second, after analyzing the demand for support for youth start-ups in the region, it appeared in the order of mentoring, start-up education, and creation of start-up spaces. And it showed different needs for different ages. Third, the results were derived from analysis of the demand for university support for the creation of a regional youth start-up ecosystem, the criteria for selecting local youth start-up support organizations, and the period of participation in local youth start-up support. Based on the results of the above research, the implications and suggestions of university support for the creation of a community of youth start-up ecosystem are as follows. First of all, it is necessary to develop and operate sustainable symbiosis mentoring programs focusing on university's infrastructure and regional symbiosis. Second, it is necessary to develop and utilize step-by-step systematic microlearning content based on the needs analysis of prospective youth start-ups. Third, it is necessary to form an open youth start-up base space for local residents in universities and link it with the start-up process inside and outside universities. The results of this study are expected to be used as basic data for establishing policies for supporting youth start-ups and establishing and operating strategies for supporting youth start-ups at universities.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.46 no.spc
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• pp.79-88
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• 2023

This research aims to validate the effectiveness of the "Specialized Entrepreneurship University Program," which was conducted as part of government entrepreneurship support initiatives from 2018 to 2022. Based on previous studies, a research model was derived consisting of three laboratory entrepreneurship support factors that influence program satisfaction and entrepreneurial outcomes (infrastructure support, educational mentoring support, and business linkage support). Surveys were collected and analyzed from 126 laboratory entrepreneurship firms participating in the program, and empirical analysis of the research model was conducted using SPSS 23.0 statistical software. The analysis results indicated that the three variables, namely infrastructure support, educational mentoring support, and business linkage support, were significant factors affecting program satisfaction, and program satisfaction was confirmed to influence entrepreneurial outcomes. Furthermore, it was found that the three business operation factors indirectly influenced entrepreneurial outcomes by partially mediating program satisfaction. This study is considered significant as an empirical study for the initial stage of the second-phase program enhancement, verifying the effectiveness of laboratory entrepreneurship support factors. The findings can be applied to similar government entrepreneurship support initiatives and contribute to the effective strategy and planning of stakeholders involved. The limitations of this study include the need for further research on the perception of the extent to which it contributes to entrepreneurial outcomes, emphasizing caution in interpreting the research model, and the necessity for expanding the survey population and improving survey items in future research.

• Journal of Venture Innovation
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• v.1 no.1
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• pp.49-65
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• 2018

For a long time the German economy was primarily defined by large corporations and thriving small and medium-sized enterprises. Since about 2005 a second strand has started to emerge and it is one which is becoming increasingly important and is creating jobs - start-ups in the digital sector. This start-up activity is taking an important role in Germany's economic development: Start-up companies spawn innovations and create jobs, thus promoting the concept of competition. In general "start-up" refers to digitally-driven companies that are not more than five years old. Germany's start-up policy consists of three main parts. First of all, Germany has the characteristics of technology-based start-ups. The Hartz reform since 2002 has shown its focus on technology-based start-ups. In particular, it is the most appropriate for a start-up company to take the role of a new technology company to respond to changes in the global industrial structure. Second, it is approaching from a long-term perspective. In this regard, the small business policy, including Germany's new business policy, is seen as a tradition that can be consistent and can make policy decisions based on the basics rather than following the times. Third, the government is implementing policies centered on demand. Germany's start-up policy is summarized as a technology-based policy and new job creation. The policy response is that the government seeks the best combination of policies by adapting them to the times from the broad trend of employment market policies. What is important here is that policies are made based on consumers, not suppliers, in the process of policy making and implementation. With the Digital Agenda 2020 the Federal government has likewise committed itself to preparing the digital economy for international competition and making Germany the "No. 1 digital growth country in Europe". Ever since 1998 the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy (BMWi) has awarded the "EXIST" start-up scholarship to students and graduates. The Ministry also invests in the High Tech start-up fund. Together with Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW) and 18 other investors from the world of business the seed investor promotes young technology companies. Germany offers start-ups a good infrastructure and lots of funding opportunities. Berlin is regarded as Europe's start-up capital and also attracts lots of international young entrepreneurs.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.125-145
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• 2008

The paper evaluates the Korean science, technology, and innovation policy(STIP) in terms of an individual firm. The firm is Viromed(Ltd), a new technology-based venture company in the field of biotechnology. The case is compared with the 'Hwang Project', which is known as a typical failure case in Korea. In order to evaluate the Korean STIP, we establish 6 areas, which are technological infrastructure, institutional infrastructure, human capital infrastructure, technology market, industrial base, and innovation networks. The study shows that the policy schemes relating with technological infrastructure, institutional infrastructure, human capital infrastructure, and industrial base play a positive role in the start-up, development and innovation of Viromed(Ltd). However, we can hardly find the role of Korean government in fostering the technology market, transferring the technological output to economic performance. Although the international networks with the British, American, and Japanese firms or investors were a key success factor of the growth of Viromed(Ltd), the role of the government in this policy area was not enough. As for the 'Hwang Project', we suggest that the government should consider the possibility of commercialization in choosing R&D projects and determining the size of financial aids. Since the evaluation of the Korean STIP is based on an individual firm, the results of the paper need to be confirmed by a systematic comparison with other cases or industries.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.35-49
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• 2021

The purpose of this study is by using the Grounded Theory method to examine the process of starting a business in an online shopping mall for young self-employed people with experience in using Company N's Partner Square (Gwangju), a startup infrastructure institution. In this study, in-depth interview survey data were used, and theoretical sampling method was used in the selection of study participants. After proceeding in the order of open coding, axis coding, and selective coding suggested by Strauss & Corbin, it was analyzed with a paradigm model. The main research results are as follows. First, even when parents were unaware about online shopping malls or had a negative mindset about it, but they had a positive mindset about their children's start-ups, it was found that their children tended to start online shopping mall businesses. However, if parents had a negative mindset about online shopping malls and about their children's start-up, then the child could not start an online shopping mall business. Second, it was found that the ability to use online shopping malls is important as a condition for entrepreneurship and achievement in online shopping malls for young people. In particular, Partner Square (Gwangju) was found to increase the ability to use online shopping malls and positively influence startups in online shopping malls. Third, it was found that young people have increased their self-esteem, discovering opportunities, and reinforcing their creativity, in addition to simply increasing their sales after starting the online shopping mall.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.18 no.5
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• pp.1-16
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• 2023

Due to imbalances in supply and demand within the labor market, start-ups have emerged as crucial players in the generation of high-quality employment opportunities, particularly in stagnant job markets. In response to this trend, governments are allocating substantial financial and human resources to initiatives that support start-up development. This has led to an increasing rate of engagement in start-up ventures across diverse age groups, not limited to younger individuals. Start-ups are enterprises focused on the commercialization of innovative ideas with the aim of achieving profitability in the marketplace. Research concerning the successful market integration of new products and the attainment of sustainable growth is pivotal. Such research is instrumental not only for the success of start-ups but also for realizing the broader social functions and contributions that these enterprises can offer. Previous research has often examined new product market-entry strategies, often referred to as new product marketing, particularly for large companies and SMEs. However, there is a gap in studies focusing on prototype marketing strategies specific to start-ups. Thus, this study aims to examine the impact of Pre-announcing marketing strategies on the market attention garnered by start-ups with low recognition and limited infrastructure, and how such attention contributes to their sustainable growth. Specifically, the study aims to uncover the causal relationship between information attributes like relevance, vividness, and novelty in building customer relationships, and their impact on purchase intentions influenced by performance expectations and hedonic motivations. In terms of Pre-announcing information attributes, relevance, vividness, and novelty positively influence performance expectations and hedonic motivations as outlined in the extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2). These factors, in turn, positively impact the purchase intention for pre-announced new products from start-ups. These findings are expected to provide both theory and practical insights into the factors influencing market entry through the use of Pre-announcing marketing strategies for start-up new products.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.12 no.6
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• pp.81-88
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• 2014

Purpose - Entrepreneurship promotion is emerging as an important economic growth agenda. However, in Korea, entrepreneurship has weakened because of the collapse of the venture bubbles of the 2000s and the global economic recession in 2008, which have induced the business community to choose stability over risk. The Korean government has been implementing several support projects to inspire and promote youth entrepreneurship through various means including financial assistance; however, the perpetuation rate of young entrepreneurship is still low as compared to advanced economies such as the US and EU. This case study focuses on the Youth Start-Up Business Support Program of the Small & Medium Business Corporation, and explores practical alternatives. Further, it aims to suggest managerial factors and a conceptual model for change management factors affecting the business performance creation of a startup company, based on the Small and medium Business Corporation's young venture startup fund. Research design, data, and methodology - Many studies examine the current progress and issues of startup firms, for example, a lack of systematic cultivation of entrepreneurship and startup business training, lack of commercialization funding for youth startup businesses, lack of mentoring, and inadequate infrastructure. From prior research, we address four factors, namely, personal managerial capabilities, innovative business model, sufficient cash flow, and social network, affecting startup companies' business performance. This study involved a sample survey of 200 young entrepreneurs to investigate casual relations between the four factors and business performance. A regression analysis was used to verify the hypotheses. Results - First, in relation to differences in the founder's personal characteristics, age, sales amount, and number of employees significantly impact business performance. Second, regarding the causal relation between the four factors for creating business performance, an innovative business model and social networking have supported the hypotheses, revealing that the more that a start-up founder has an innovative business model and social networking, the more the start-up firms are likely to have better performance (e.g., sales volume, employment, ROE, ROI, etc.). Although the founder's competency and sufficient cash flow have no significant relationship with business performance, the mean value was higher performance for high founder's competency and sufficient cash flow. Conclusions - This study provides basic data on policy support strategies of the Small and Medium Business Corporation, to help young entrepreneurs achieve their start-up business goals. It shows that young entrepreneurship startup firms should strive to explore ideas to satisfy customers' needs, and that changes in customer value and the continuous innovation of business model differentiation are required to actively respond to change management. Moreover, at the infant startup stage, they should activate social network programs to share information, thereby offsetting resource scarcity and managing business risk. Further, the establishment of a long-term vision and the implementation of training programs in related specific fields should be supported to strengthen founders' personal capabilities.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.1-19
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• 2021

The purpose of this research is to improve the investment success rate for startups in the water industry for the development of the entrepreneurial environment of the Korean water industry. In this research, we identified investment determinants through prior research and stratified them, and then surveyed the investor group at the beginning of the start-up using the FGI method, and determined the order of the investment determinants of investors. At the same time, we classified 41 start-ups related to the water industry into two groups: the group that received investment and the group that did not in the early stages of the start-up. Then we investigated the understanding of the investor's investment determinants, ranked them, and compared them by using the AHP technique. Through this, this research proposes five implications. First, it is important for start-ups in the early stages to receive seed investment to revitalize investment for startups in the water industry. For this, startups need to understand investors and prepare to attract investment with the perspective of angel investors rather than the perspective of VC investors. Second, Start-ups in the water sector should consider that the characteristics of the founder are important in order to receive seed investment, and also need to define their business at the industry and market level, and provide relevant rationale to meet the expectations of investors who value industry expertise and experience, and to increase the possibility of seed investment, which is important in the early stages of a startup. Third, institutions, such as K-water(Korea Water Resources Corporation), that support water industry startups need to conduct open innovation business opportunities discovery programs linked to startups so that startups currently participating in the startup support program could have business opportunities from the business infrastructure of platform-forming companies in the water industry. In particular, such institutions should help founders develop their industrial expertise and careers by supporting this type of start-up preparation process through the participation of in-house venture founders. Fourth, when K-water uses the government start-up support fund to discover and foster founders, it should increase initial contact with seed investors, conduct more thorough verification of business plans, and develop programs that use government start-up support funds to prepare a business suitable for seed angel investors. Fifth, K-water should support seed by connecting funds for initial investment among funds operated by itself. It is also necessary to develop a program that links the company receiving the seed investment with VC investment, not angel investment in cooperation with the VC fund operation entity participating as an LP so that companies that have attracted seed investment could attract follow-up VC investment.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.13 no.6
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• pp.39-48
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• 2018

Despite the fact that Daejeon has excellent technology infrastructures such as government-funded research institutes, Daedeok Innopolis, and KAIST, the infrastructure for initial investment and growth support for technological start-ups is not sufficient. In particular, the amount of venture capital supply in Daejeon is relatively low compared to other innovation infrastructures. The purpose of this study is to suggest the implications of the venture capital ecosystem in Daejeon area through the analysis of what evolution process has been undergoing and what improvements and complementary points are needed in the future. First, the role of public finance system should be strengthened in order to stimulate angel investment and private capital inflows to start-up companies. Second, in order to cultivate investment professionals in the region, it is necessary to grant local funds to local institutions, and to run investment expert training courses in universities. Third, cooperation between related agencies is needed to add accelerator functions to existing incubators and to foster new accelerators. Fourth, in order to expand the role of local governments, it is necessary to establish funds, to open innovation mindset of public officials, and to communicate effectively with the central government. Fifth, basic venture ecosystem infrastructures such as inflow of excellent manpower, prevention of technology deception, improvement of rechallenge environment should be expanded. Sixth, it is necessary to reorganize the step-by-step start-up financing policy of 'Establishment - Growth - Exit - Rechallenge'. This study is meaningful in that it has grasped the current status of venture start-up financial ecosystem in Daejeon, which is changing rapidly. In particular, it is different in that it identifies financial difficulties venture companies in Daejeon and finds ways to utilize existing financial ecosystem efficiently.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.15 no.3
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• pp.223-231
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• 2020

Governments and private companies have established various local entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions in most regions in order to reduce youth unemployment, and boost youth entrepreneurship and regional employment. However, previous studies has been limited to explore the impact of the entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions on the willingness of start-up entrepreneurs. Thus, the main purpose of this study is to fill in the gaps of the research, identify the effect of the entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions on regional employment focusing on the Partner Squares which are entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions in several regions and established by N company, and set a foundation for further research regarding the effectiveness of the entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions. In order to verify the effectiveness of the Partner Squares on the local employment, we use the raw data of the Economically Active Population Survey (Statistics Korea) and analyze the effectiveness by using the Difference-in-Differences model. The main findings are as follows. While the Partner Square Seoul has not statistically influenced on the employment of local youth workers, the Partner Square Busan has increased about 3% of the average number of employees (575 thousand) from May 2017 to July 2019, increasing the number of local youth workers by 17,000. Also, after the establishment of the Partner Square Gwangju, the institution has increased 4,500 local employees, which is about 1.7% of the average number of employees (267,000) from September 2018 to July 2019. This implies that the Partner Squares provide a variety of effective start-up education programs and networks for pre-starters and founders in the region, thereby helping them to grow and boosting the local employment. An important implication is that by using government statistical data, we find roles of entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions to revitalize local economy and employment. In future studies, studies need to be conducted considering various exogenous variables that can affect local employment, such as the government industrial policies and entrepreneurial infrastructure institutions other than the Partner Squares.