• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.67-96
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• 2000

This study aims to provide information about the priority setting and budget coordination of government R&D spendings in Korea. Based on the result of "survey, analysis and evaluation of national R&D programs" in FY 1999, this paper reviews the government R&D expenditures by concerned variables such as program objectives, sector of performance, character of work and technology fields. This paper also carries out an analysis on the government R&D supports as ways for the promotions of high technology-based start-ups and SMEs and regional innovation activities. It is found that relatively high investment is made in the industrial technology areas and development research, and there are some redundancies of R&D programs among ministries and agencies in terms of technology fields, program objectives and character of work. Policy implications and future research directions are suggested.

• World Technopolis Review
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• v.4 no.2
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• pp.87-103
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• 2015

This paper aims to explore how firms develop and grow in regional clusters based in a developing country. The argument is that start-ups / small and large firms are able to grow by developing linkages or networks for resources within clusters - and this tenet is based on studies of firms that are based from such clusters as Silicon Valley in the US, Cambridge in UK and other clusters from which have evolved over long periods of time. Most of the time we hear narratives from the developed world where there are brownfield cluster development efforts. In developing countries governments are making efforts to develop clusters from scratch - which in this paper we term as greenfield cluster versus a brownfield development, which is where the cluster is developed based on existing and new organisations in a region. In this paper, we believe the context of clusters can be important in determining the way firms develop linkages for their growth - and we look at two contexts in Malaysia ie. A greenfield cluster and a brownfield cluster. The paper presents findings from case studies of firms in a greenfield cluster (Cyberjaya) and a brown field cluster (Penang) in Malaysia. The cases reveal fairly different approaches to development of linkages or networks, which we hope will provides insights to cluster development officials and policy makers and implications to researchers for developing studies of clusters and innovation systems.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.663-683
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• 2018

This study aims to analyze the effectiveness of R&D tax credit for SMEs. We surveyed to collect the information on firm's financial statements and R&D tax credit during 2014-2016, and implemented fixed effect model, random effect model and panel negative binomial model. The results show that the effect of R&D tax credit is 5.3 times larger in terms of R&D expenditure and 4.3 times bigger in terms of number of researchers than that of R&D subsidy. In addition, the effect of tax credit on non-metropolitan area companies is higher than that in the metropolitan area. Based on these results, we suggests three ways to improve the R&D tax incentive system for SMEs; To convert unused R&D tax credit of the start-ups to tax points, to exempt the minimum tax rate on R&D expenditure in equipment, and to unify the operation of various R&D tax credit institution.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.12 no.5
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• pp.13-28
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• 2017

Entrepreneurship is an important factor not only for start-ups, but also for scale-up of businesses. In other words, the two aspects of establishment and growth of businesses must be balanced through entrepreneurship. However, it is true that entrepreneurship has been biased toward the former in previous researches and government policies. Here in this research, the causal relationships between the entrepreneurial characteristics of Korean firms and the performance of the company, which is measured by proposal, activity, and business performance are examined as a growth perspective. Based on these relationships, a model describing the operating mechanism of corporate entrepreneurship is derived and policy implications are provided. In conducting research, the hypotheses on the interrelationship of variables are builded using '2016 Entrepreneurship Situation Survey(Corporate)' data from Korea Entrepreneurship Foundation and analyzed by structural equation modeling. In addition, the moderating effect according to the firm size and the mediating effect between entrepreneurship and business performance are analyzed. As a result of this research, the fact that entrepreneurship affects business performance is identified and it is necessary to prioritize corporate vision and strategy for enhancement of entrepreneurship. In particular, necessity of operating system for SMEs is confirmed considering SMEs' entrepreneurship level. The implications of this research are expected to be applied by the government in establishing policy direction to enhance corporate entrepreneurship of SMEs in the future.

• The Journal of Small Business Innovation
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• v.19 no.3
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• pp.1-16
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• 2016

Korean government had used public 'credit guarantee schemes' (CGS) as a counter-cyclical measure. However, it is still controversial about the effectiveness of policy financing on the SMEs. Criticism on policy financing involves the argument that supporting enterprises hampers competition and innovation of SMEs by increasing their dependence on the government and delays the exit of marginal firms. In this paper, we investigate how to effectively build up the rationale of running public CGSs. At the same time, we propose the ways to coexist of public credit guarantee and market-based private finance system for SMEs. First, CGS, as a counter-cyclical function, must coexist with the private financial system by compensating the market failure caused by pro-cyclical behavior of the private financial market. Second, CGS has the comparative advantages, compared to both the interest rate policy of the central bank and fiscal policy of the government. The credit guarantee is the symptomatic treatment that could revitalize the economy shortly by providing liquidity. Also, knowing that CGS is provided based on the leverage ratio defined by outstanding guarantee divided by capital fund, public 'credit guarantee' (CG) has an advantage that is free from the risk of government deficit. Third, the reason for existence of the CGS should be founded in supporting services for SMEs, available only in a public sector that is difficult to expect from private banks. In this regard, it is desirable to strengthen the publicness of credit guarantee over the support for start-ups, growing companies, the improvement of productivity, increase of exports, a long-term investment in facilities, the employment-creating businesses, and innovative enterprises.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.1536-1576
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• 2018

This study aims at investigating the path in which entrepreneurial orientation and absorptive capacity, which have a significant influence on the corporate performance of SMEs, are mediated through product innovation performance (product speed, product quality). For the empirical study, 233 questionnaires collected from 1775 SMEs including in Daejeon Techno Park start-ups were analyzed by using structural equation model. The empirical analysis shows that absorptive capacity and entrepreneurial orientation have a positive effect on performance through product innovation performance. Therefore, it is suggested that entrepreneurial orientation and absorptive capacity increase product innovation performance in terms of corporate strategy and external information utilization capability, and product innovation performance leads to performance. This paper suggests that entrepreneurial strategy and capacity to utilize external information are important for introducing high quality products faster than others in response to the external environment.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.1-11
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• 2014

This study examines the performance of the successful small and medium size firms in their early stage. No sign of widespread chasm or the death valley among the sample firm is identified. More than half the sample firms had made reasonable forecast on the uncertainty of their future business before they were incorporated. Overall results of empirical studies carried out in this article allow us to assert that the difficulties experienced in the early stage are mostly manageable within the organization. This implies that the Government support for start-ups in early stage should be discouraged. Empirical investigation across different periods reveals, however, that the Government may have significant roles to play when it comes down to controlling the macroeconomic shocks.

• Korean small business review
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• v.32 no.1
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• pp.65-87
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• 2010

With the advent of knowledge-based society, the revitalization of technological innovation type SMEs, termed "inno-biz" hereafter, has been globally recognized as a government policymakers' primary concern in strengthening national competitiveness, and much effort is being put into establishing polices of boosting the start-ups and innovation capability of SMEs. Especially, in that the inno-biz enables national economy to get vitalized by widening world markets with its superior technology, and thus, taking the initiative of extremely competitive world markets, its growth and development has greater significance. In the case of Korea, the government has been maintaining the policies since the late 1990s of stimulating the growth of SMEs as well as building various infrastructures to foster the start-ups of the SMEs such as venture businesses with high technology. In addition, since the enactment of "Innovation Promotion Law for SMEs" in 2001, the government has been accelerating the policies of prioritizing the growth and development of inno-biz. So, for the sound growth and development of Korean inno-biz, this paper intends to offer effective management strategies for SMEs and suggest proper policies for the government, by researching into the effect of technological innovation capability and technology commercialization capability as the primary business resources on business performance in Korean SMEs in the light of market information orientation. The research is carried out on Korean companies characterized as inno-biz. On the basis of OSLO manual and prior studies, the research categorizes their status. R&D capability, technology accumulation capability and technological innovation system are categorized into technological innovation capability; product development capability, manufacturing capability and marketing capability into technology commercialization capability; and increase in product competitiveness and merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. Then the effect of each component on business performance is substantially analyzed. In addition, the mediation effect of technological innovation and technology commercialization capability on business performance is observed by the use of the market information orientation as a parameter. The following hypotheses are proposed. H1 : Technology innovation capability will positively influence business performance. H1-1 : R&D capability will positively influence product competitiveness. H1-2 : R&D capability will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H1-3 : Technology accumulation capability will positively influence product competitiveness. H1-4 : Technology accumulation capability will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H1-5 : Technological innovation system will positively influence product competitiveness. H1-6 : Technological innovation system will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H2 : Technology commercializing capability will positively influence business performance. H2-1 : Product development capability will positively influence product competitiveness. H2-2 : Product development capability will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H2-3 : Manufacturing capability will positively influence product competitiveness. H2-4 : Manufacturing capability will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H2-5 : Marketing capability will positively influence product competitiveness. H2-6 : Marketing capability will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H3 : Technology innovation capability will positively influence market information orientation. H3-1 : R&D capability will positively influence information generation. H3-2 : R&D capability will positively influence information diffusion. H3-3 : R&D capability will positively influence information response. H3-4 : Technology accumulation capability will positively influence information generation. H3-5 : Technology accumulation capability will positively influence information diffusion. H3-6 : Technology accumulation capability will positively influence information response. H3-7 : Technological innovation system will positively influence information generation. H3-8 : Technological innovation system will positively influence information diffusion. H3-9 : Technological innovation system will positively influence information response. H4 : Technology commercialization capability will positively influence market information orientation. H4-1 : Product development capability will positively influence information generation. H4-2 : Product development capability will positively influence information diffusion. H4-3 : Product development capability will positively influence information response. H4-4 : Manufacturing capability will positively influence information generation. H4-5 : Manufacturing capability will positively influence information diffusion. H4-6 : Manufacturing capability will positively influence information response. H4-7 : Marketing capability will positively influence information generation. H4-8 : Marketing capability will positively influence information diffusion. H4-9 : Marketing capability will positively influence information response. H5 : Market information orientation will positively influence business performance. H5-1 : Information generation will positively influence product competitiveness. H5-2 : Information generation will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H5-3 : Information diffusion will positively influence product competitiveness. H5-4 : Information diffusion will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H5-5 : Information response will positively influence product competitiveness. H5-6 : Information response will positively influence merits for new technology and/or product development into business performance. H6 : Market information orientation will mediate the relationship between technology innovation capability and business performance. H7 : Market information orientation will mediate the relationship between technology commercializing capability and business performance. The followings are the research results : First, as for the effect of technological innovation on business performance, the technology accumulation capability and technological innovating system have a positive effect on increase in product competitiveness and merits for new technology and/or product development, while R&D capability has little effect on business performance. Second, as for the effect of technology commercialization capability on business performance, the effect of manufacturing capability is relatively greater than that of merits for new technology and/or product development. Third, the mediation effect of market information orientation is identified to exist partially in information generation, information diffusion and information response. Judging from these results, the following analysis can be made : On Increase in product competitiveness, directly related to successful technology commercialization of technology, management capability including technological innovation system, manufacturing capability and marketing capability has a relatively strong effect. On merits for new technology and/or product development, on the other hand, capability in technological aspect including R&D capability, technology accumulation capability and product development capability has relatively strong effect. Besides, in the cast of market information orientation, the level of information diffusion within an organization plays and important role in new technology and/or product development. Also, for commercial success like increase in product competitiveness, the level of information response is primarily required. Accordingly, the following policies are suggested : First, as the effect of technological innovation capability and technology commercialization capability on business performance differs among SMEs; in order for SMEs to secure competitiveness, the government has to establish microscopic policies for SMEs which meet their needs and characteristics. Especially, the SMEs lacking in capital and labor are required to map out management strategies of focusing their resources primarily on their strengths. And the government needs to set up policies for SMEs, not from its macro-scaled standpoint, but from the selective and concentrative one that meets the needs and characteristics of respective SMEs. Second, systematic infrastructures are urgently required which lead technological success to commercial success. Namely, as technological merits at respective SME levels do not always guarantee commercial success, the government should make and effort to build systematic infrastructures including encouragement of M&A or technology trade, systematic support for protecting intellectual property, furtherance of business incubating and industrial clusters for strengthening academic-industrial network, and revitalization of technology financing, in order to make successful commercialization from technological success. Finally, the effort to innovate technology, R&D, for example, is essential to future national competitiveness, but its result is often prolonged. So the government needs continuous concern and funding for basic science, in order to maximize technological innovation capability. Indeed the government needs to examine continuously whether technological innovation capability or technological success leads satisfactorily to commercial success in market economic system. It is because, when the transition fails, it should be left to the government.

• Journal of Distribution Science
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• v.10 no.3
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• pp.31-42
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• 2012

After the rapidly changing business management environment and financial crisis, high prices and domestic recession in Korea posed threats to the business survival of small and medium enterprises (SMEs). This paper looks at the potential of micro business owners for sustainable development: those who have a spirit of entrepreneurship and the potential to be a hidden champion. Our study of micro business values uses structure equation modeling by LISREL. We have done so in order to understand the foundation of management innovation and success model of micro enterprise by increasing the entrepreneurship and management performance relationship analysis. A micro-enterprise is a type of small business, found only in Korea, often registered as having ten or fewer employees. We examine the successful type of hidden champions and the influence of entrepreneurship on start-ups in business. As compared to past research on the SME entrepreneurship, this study segments small businesses even further. Small business entrepreneurship was classified into three forms that are most appropriate for the Korean situation today: innovation, risk-taking, and pro-activeness. This research is meaningful as it is Korea's first empirical analysis on four business types: wholesale and retail sales, food and lodging business, service business, and manufacturing business. Thus far, research on small business entrepreneurship was carried out using small-scale investigative analysis. However, this research attempted to develop a model that can explain a cause-effect relation of the motivational level when it comes to the difference of entrepreneurship by each business type and small business start-up success factors. Various conceptual and operational definitions could be developed in a diverse and precise manner. Independent variables that are related to the success of small businesses can be developed additionally to examine the success factors related to the systematization in detailed manner. The research showed that the innovation, risk-taking and pro-activeness of the manifested difference in the degree of perception depending on the type of small businesses. Among the four business types, the ones that manifested the highest successful start-up rates were food, service, wholesale and retail sales and manufacturing. Results after conducting the regression analysis are shown on, which proves that the small business entrepreneurship exerts direct effect on the financial management performance of small businesses. In other words, small business entrepreneurship exerts a positive effect on the small business financial success and management performance. The R² value is 0.61. It is possible to know that the perception of systematization and variables on attitude explains the 61% of the success for small self-employed businesses management performance. We define start-up key factors that are helpful to achieve internal growth of firms by finding business survival strategies. The results also focus on Korean government policy for micro enterprise and small business support.

• Korean small business review
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.117-137
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• 2020

We examine the current status of smart factory deployment and diffusion programs in Korea, and seek to promote manufacturing innovation from the perspective of SMEs. The main conclusions of this paper are as follows. First, without additional market creation and supply chain improvement, smart factories are unlikely to raise profitability leading to overinvestment. Second, new business models need to connect "manufacturing process efficiency" with "R&D" and "marketing" in value chain in smart factories. Third, when introducing smart factories, we need to focus on the areas where process-embedded technology is directly linked to corporate competitiveness. Based on the modularity-maturity matrix (Pisano and Shih, 2012) and the examples of U.S. Manufacturing Innovation Institute (MII), we establish the new smart factory deployment policy measures as follows. First, we shift our smart factory strategy from quantitative expansion to qualitative upgrading. Second, we promote by each sector the formation of industrial commons that help SMEs to jointly develop R&D, exchange standardized data and practices, and facilitate supplier-led procurement system. Third, to implement new technology and business models, we encourage partnerships, collaborations, and M&As between conventional SMEs and start-ups and business ventures. Fourth, the whole deployment process of smart factories is indexed in detail to identify the problems and provide appropriate solutions.