• Journal of the Korea Society of Computer and Information
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• v.21 no.11
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• pp.141-149
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• 2016

In a rapidly changing global environment and the massive development in IT technology, Manufacturing SMEs have difficulties in lack of resources and competencies continued to have strong growth potential "Korean Hidden Champion(K Champ)". In order to overcome the difficulties of Manufacturing SMEs, we examined the core competencies using the AHP and proposed the K Champ development strategy. The implications in the academic is as follows: First, the suggestions for development strategy plan was drawn for the K Champ's core competencies with the recognized importance by the CEO or business executives. Secondly, the manufacturing SMEs were broken down by industry structural characteristics variables(sales amounts, industry sectors, business types and delivery methods) and the importance was investigated, analyzed and clarified. This study is intended to develop strategies of Gyeongsangnam-do manufacturing SMEs for K Champ such as German 'Hidden Champion'. We identified the importance of the level of core competencies and the coherent alternative policy direction and practical alternative were proposed. These mean the concrete relationship of core competencies for the K Champ transition and suggest a realistic directional needed for the local manufacturing SMEs in the proposed 'Government's Development Policy for Korean Hidden Champion'.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.11 no.6
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• pp.163-174
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• 2016

The object of this study identifies the weights of SWOT factors in hidden champion. And the other purpose of the study is to test the differences of weight between Korea hidden champion group and Germany theirs group. The survey research is employed for the hidden champion CEOs of two countries. This research is employed the AHP(Analytic Hierarchy Process) for the weight of SWOT factors in hidden champion based on an empirical survey done to 61 firms which are to be fostered as Korean type hidden champion and 40 firms which are to be fostered as Germany type hidden champion. And then the t-test assesses whether the weight means of two groups are statistically different from each other. The weights of SWOT factors of hidden champion have been identified. There are the differences of weight between Korea group and Germany group. The order of Korea group's weight is following by the strength (0.3062), the opportunities (0.2344), the threat (0.1804), and the weakness (0.1157). The order of Germany group's weight is following by the strength (0.2603), the opportunities (0.2286), the threat (0.1604), and the weakness (0.1432). The technology capability of strength, the lack of knowledge on overseas market of weakness and the market uncertainty of thereat have statistically differences between two groups. However, the sub-factors of opportunities statistically have no differences.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.11 no.2
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• pp.21-33
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• 2016

This paper aims to investigate the relations among the entrepreneurship, SWOT factors, and performance in Korean hidden champion firms. 112 potential Korean hidden champions were drawn at random from the hidden champion candidates of Export-Import Bank of Korea. For analyzing the relationship of them, the entrepreneurship factors categorized with organizational risk taking, innovativeness, and proactiveness from previous researches(Khandwalla, 1977; Miller, 1983; Miller & Friesen, 1978, 1982). Also, four SWOT factors classified into strength, weakness, opportunities, and threat by confirmatory factor analysis. As a result, we found some statistically significant effects between the SWOT factors and entrepreneurship factors, and they sequentially affects to performance. That is, as a presented with previous research, there is verified that entrepreneurship is caused by organizational risk taking, innovativeness, and proactiveness. Also, SWOT factors significantly affect to business performance. Some guidelines for practicing potential Korea hidden champions as a result of this would include; first of all, it is important to support the potential hidden champions consulting approach in global perspectives; secondly, effective governmental support programs for hidden champions should be developed for positive impacts of according to these results.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.97-111
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• 2013

This study reviews preceding research for detailed factors to establish development strategies for Korean Hidden Champion firms and classifies strategy factors into internal ones and external ones through specialists' opinions to draw strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of each factor. It also sets hierarchical model to draw up a survey, distributes the survey to groups of specialists and enterprises respectively and then examines consistency ratio. Fifty-four copies of survey whose reliability on responses is secured through examining the consistency ratio are evaluated with their relative importance in factors by using SWOT/AHP technique and their order of priority is determined. Based on their results, development strategies for Korean Hidden Champion firms are established. SWOT/AHP analyses results show that external factors are with the opportunity of industry growth and the threat of intensified competition and market uncertainty and internal factors are with the strength in order of technological competence, construction competence in customer relation and marketing competence. The weakness in the lack of funds, lack of brand awareness in order. This result suggests that external environments of enterprises that more emphasis should be put on the industry growth and aggressive strategies cannot help but be adopted even in a global competition getting fiercer every day are seen more important. Then, it also seems to be thought that the technological competence including R&D and specialization, construction competence in customer relation and marketing competence should internally chosen for strategies to support strategies. The order of priority in development strategies for Korean Hidden Champion firms is drawn as; (i) aggressive S/O strategy which utilizes opportunities by taking advantage of strengths, (ii) W/O strategy which utilizes opportunities by supplementing weaknesses, (iii) diversified S/T strategy which utilizes strengths to make up for threats and (iv) defensive W/T strategy which supplements weaknesses to overcome threats.

• Journal of Digital Convergence
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• v.13 no.8
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• pp.221-234
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• 2015

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the differences between successful SMEs in Korea and German hidden champions, with respect to both strategic importance and performance of major competitive dimensions, and mode of technology development. Data were collected through survey and public databases, and the sample comprises successful SMEs located in regional area in Korea. The results show that Korean hidden champions are relatively low regarding specialization of business domain and globalization while German hidden champions have positioned in global niche market. It is also found that local firms utilize technology alliances actively for technology development while German hidden champions rely heavily on internal R&D as a primary source of innovation. Based upon these results, policy directions for fostering local hidden champions were suggested.

• Journal of Korean Society of Industrial and Systems Engineering
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• v.35 no.4
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• pp.202-210
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• 2012

This study was analyzed based on the core competencies that Small Giant enterprises to foster the goals of growth of SMEs mid-sized businesses rather than Global Small Giant enterprises of the business model for a causal relationship. As the result, the average age, sales and number of employees of Korean small giants were 20.6 years, 148.8 billion won and 312.1. This research investigated that Korean small giants were realizing the sustainable growth with the firm shares in the target markets, based on added values in groups and technical powers, although their average age is one third younger than global small giants. The further research needs to develop and select small giants more precisely and strictly. It is expected that small giants will be new growth engines to improve global competitiveness of Korea.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.225-232
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• 2012

The purpose of this study is to explore the necessity of technology commercialization aiding service from government-supported R&D institutions and find key success factors for market performance improvement of business ventures and SMEs. For this aim, we researched relevant theories and KICET(Korea Institute of Ceramic Engineering and Technology)'s "Ceramic Hidden Champion Supporting Project. As government-supported R&D institutions, KICET is not only providing its original main service which is technology advising and development, but also providing a full range of technology commercialization aiding service for business ventures including diagnosis, strategy planning, capital procurement, overseas marketing activity. Qualitative analysis based on relevant theories and meta-analysis framework suggest that such expansion of services is desirable for government-supported R&D institutions to increase market performance of business ventures and SMEs. To lead this business to success, we should develop effective management system and incentive system for external supporting companies and client companies. Also, coordination between team member's activities and budget procurement issue should be solved for further performance creation.

• Asia Marketing Journal
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.75-99
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• 2006

Inje University, a nonprofit-oriented educational institution, was ranked second in the nation and first in all the local universities in the 2001 Comprehensive Evaluation of the Universities in 25 years since it was founded. In order to find out the reason for this high reputation, we had an interview with the chairman and an in-depth interview with other school authorities, interviewed the students and the residents in the community, and collected related data for the second time. We revealed that Inje University had been performing public marketing in the areas of its management philosophy, function, form, and performance. Our interview with the chairman confirmed that Inje University's management philosophy is the frontier spirits that 'contribute to the moor, attracting nobody's attention, in the name of public interest.' It was also revealed that this management philosophy made the function of the university differ from that of the others. Inje University had been focusing on forming a public network for its community, the nation, and the world, not just for its students. Furthermore, we also found out that the university had its unique separate organizations to take care of this business. An excellent on-campus network for the student and the school, a network between off-campus industries, and an international Inje exchange network had been formed. We have concluded that Inje University is a strong nonprofit-oriented hidden champion. The healing art, easily ignored but essential to human beings, and its commitment to education with all its property invested have contributed to Inje University's social status, reputation, and achievements today.

• Korean small business review
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• v.31 no.1
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• pp.73-88
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• 2009

This study examines the characteristics of 24 Korean hidden champions such as key success factors, core competences, strategic problems, and desirable future directions. The study categorized them into 8 types with Danny Miller's four trajectories and top manager's decision making style(rationality and passion). Danny Miller argued in his book, Icarus paradox, that outstanding firms will extend their orientations until they reach dangerous extremes and their momentum will result in common trajectories of decline. He suggested four very common success types: Craftsmen, Builders, Pioneers, Salesmen. He also suggested common trajectories of decline:Focusing(from Craftsmen to Tinkers), Venturing(from Builders to Imperialists), Inventing(from Pioneers to Escapists), Decoupling(from Salesmen to Drifts). In Korea, successful startups appear to possess three kinds of drive: Technology-drive, Vision-drive, Market-drive. Successful technology-driven firms tend to grow as craftsmen or pioneers. Successful vision-driven and market-driven ones tend to grow as builders and salesmen respectively. Korean top managers or founders seem to have two kinds of decision making style: Passion-based and Rationality-bases. Passion-based(passionate) entrepreneurs are biased towards action or proactiveness in competing and getting things done. Rationality- based ones tend to emphasis the effort devoted to scanning and analysing information to better understand a company's threats, opportunities and options. Consequently this study suggested 4*2 types of Korean hidden champions: (1) passionate craftsmen, (2) rational craftsmen, (3) passionate builders, (4) rational builders, (5) passionate pioneers, (6) rational pioneers, (7) passionate salesmen, (8) rational salesmen. These 8 type firms showed different success stories and appeared to possess different trajectories of decline. These hidden champions have acquired competitive advantage within domestic or globally niche markets in spite of the weak market power and lack of internal resources. They have maintained their sustainable competitiveness by utilizing three types of growth strategy; (1) penetrating into the global market, (2) exploring new service market, (3) occupying the domestic market. According to the types of growth strategy, these firms showed different financial outcomes and possessed different issues for maintaining their competitiveness. This study found that Korean hidden champions were facing serious challenges from the transforming economic structure these days and possessed the decline potential from their success momentum or self-complacence. It argues that they need to take a new growth engine not to decline in the turbulent environment. It also discusses how firms overcome the economic crisis and find a new business area in promising industries for the future. It summarized the recent policy of Korean government called as "Green Growth" and discussed how small firms utilize such benefits and supports from the government. Other implications for firm strategies and governmental policies were discussed.

• 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.