• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.25-40
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• 2007

It has been pointed out that the shortage of the Korean science and engineering workforce is a key issue in enterprises' competitiveness. The Korean government has conducted various surveys and research projects to determine the current situation and its causes. Nevertheless, the surveys report different results, and, to date, very few in-depth studies have been conducted on the factors that lead to such a shortage. This study aimed at investigating the factors that cause the shortage of the science and engineering workforce by looking at a recent survey on the actual employment conditions in manufacturing and major service industries. The study also estimated the determinant factors, based on the results of a survey conducted on 5,967 enterprises. Particularly, the probability of the workforce shortages are defined as a logistic probability function, which includes a diverse number of explanations that represent the characteristics of an enterprise and its internal demand conditions on workforce. The findings showed that key determinants include not only the factors that have been recognized by previous studies, but also research propensity and competitiveness aw well as the enterprises' internal demand conditions on human resources. In other words, an enterprise is more exposed to the problem of workforce shortage when it performs its R&D more proactively and its innovative activities are more organized. It has been further analyzed that the R&D and internal demand variables are more eminent to the shortage problem on skilled workers, which proves the shortage of workforce is not only caused by the quantitative aspect but also hold qualitative aspect characterized by skill obsolescence and mismatch in the labor market.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.26 no.6
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• pp.751-762
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• 2002

Korean apparel industry is facing critical moment due to shortage of labor, wage increases and intensive competition among domestic manufactures. In addition, international production has been shifting to China and the other low-wage countries from established locations such as Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Global sourcing has been received considerable attention since firms can enhance their competitive advantage as well as comparative advantage by coordinating their sourcing activities global]y. This studs regarded global sourcing as one of the strategic tools to achieve competitive advantage of Korean apparel firms, and explored the current status by literature reviews and series of in-depth interviews with managers of korean apparel firms. The findings of this study were as follows: 1) Due to geographical advantage, China was the most favored nation for outsourcing for domestic markers. However, exporting firms preferred Latin America (including Mexico) to take advantage of duties, quotas and geographical proximity to the US market. 2) In selecting the global sourcing country, productivity, technical ability, local government regulation, and culture were considered important. 3) Most Korean apparel firms sources production globally, and followed by raw materials and trims. 4) Cost and quality were the most important factors in deciding subcontractors, and experience, productivity, equipment and finances were the next concerns. Academic implications and future directions were suggested based on findings.

• The Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business
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• v.10 no.10
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• pp.45-51
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• 2019

Purpose - The purpose of this study was to propose a win-win development plan for not only suppliers of delivery applications but also traditional market vendor companies and delivery riders by analyzing existing delivery models and presenting a new delivery model to enhance competitiveness of the traditional market using delivery apps. Research desgin, data, and methodology - Specifically, small retailers, such as traditional markets and supermarkets, presented a compromised delivery model that utilizes the platform of specialized delivery app service providers for order reception, and that the delivery is delivered by delivery systems jointly hired by Vendor companies, such as franchising companies. To validate the significance of the trade-off delivery model, a cost-benefit analysis was conducted by those involved in the delivery application. Results - From the perspective of suppliers of specialized delivery applications, it is analyzed that the use of specialized delivery applications in traditional markets will be a new market opportunity for service providers to achieve increased sales. It is expected that consumer choice and satisfaction will be increased as convenience and accessibility of traditional market businesses that were available only through direct visit from the user side of the delivery application will be expanded. From the standpoint of delivery application franchises, it is analyzed that they can seek to increase sales and increase customer service as well as ease labor cost burden due to joint employment of delivery riders. The delivery rider will be able to seek to improve customer service due to job security, wage stability, risk reduction and overheated competition due to direct employment. Conclusion - In conclusion, the compromised delivery model solved the problems raised in the preceding study conducted on delivery application suppliers, users, franchises, and riders to establish that it could be a strategic alternative to increasing sales and expanding detailed rights for the self-employed in the traditional market, which are experiencing difficulties in management. However, the adoption of a compromise delivery model requires social consensus from those involved in the delivery application and requires legal, institutional and policy support, which will require continued follow-up research on the delivery model in the future.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.397-409
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• 2023

Purpose - This study is a study on the factors affecting job satisfaction of foreign migrant workers (focusing on domestic automobile industry workers) to examine the impact of foreign workers on the corporate management of Korean manufacturers in Korean society. Design/methodology/approach - A survey was conducted on 152 foreign laborers who lived in Korea. First, an exploratory factor analysis was performed to confirm reliability and validity. Second, an multiple regression was conducted based on the reliability and exploratory factor analysis results. Third, the mediation regression by checking the effect of organizational commitment. Findings - The acculturation and organizational fairness were found to have a great influence on job satisfaction, and this study found that perceived acculturation had an effect on job satisfaction through the mediating effect of organizational commitment. In addition, organizational fairness was also found to have an effect on job satisfaction as a mediating effect of organizational commitment. Research implications or Originality - It was to provide meaningful implications for foreign workers in the current Korean labor market. Based on the results, the corporate competitiveness of Korean manufacturers should be further secured.

• The Journal of Industrial Distribution & Business
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• v.8 no.6
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• pp.33-40
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• 2017

Purpose - This study attempted to discover the impact of the Korea-China FTA(Free Trade Agreement) on electronic products distribution industry. Strategies will be provided to expand both countries' trade after the Korea-China FTA. Research design, data, and methodology - This study analyzed the differences before and after the Korea-China FTA, using an RCA(Revealed Comparative Advantage) index, TC(Technology Sophistication Index) index and TSI(Trade Specialization Index) that considered the FTA tariff situation. Data was collected from the International Trade Statistics Database and Korea, China Customs Service. Results - The results indicate that following the Korea-China FTA, China and Korea's bilateral trade of electronic products is expected to expand, and both countries will experience net welfare gains from the markets' expansion. Korea is competitive in several key products, although it faces competition from China. China's electronic products' competitiveness have indicated an increasing trend. Conclusions - The two countries should closely cooperate and communicate with each other. Ultimately, Korea should focus on high-tech, sophisticated techniques to gain market advantage. On the other hand, with the tariff decrease as well as the labor cost and labor force base, China will greatly be able to benefit from the manufacturing of medium- to low-end products in the future.

• Proceedings of the Korean Institute of Building Construction Conference
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• 2018.05a
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• pp.296-297
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• 2018

Due to the decrease in infrastructure investment and stagnation of overseas construction, it is concerned the instability of the construction market. Enhancing the Korean construction competitiveness, productivity improvement could be the breakthrough. In addition, defining construction contents utilizing virtual reality technology is drawing attention along with the trend of the fourth industrial revolution technology development toward the labor productivity improvement. This study conducted a survey to figure out the present state of the productivity management in field and comprehend the factors influence on construction productivity for further Korean construction productivity data platform.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Clothing and Textiles
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• v.26 no.7
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• pp.958-969
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• 2002

No one doubts that textile and apparel industries have contributed to economic miracles of the export-led growth in Korea. However, by the turning of 1990′s, these sectors have encountered many problems such as decreasing of domestic production and exports mainly due to wage rise and shortage. Therefore, foreign direct investment to the low labor cost countries has been enlarged for a way of improving its competitiveness and increasing exports. However, no intensive study has been made exploring current investments and future directions. This study focuses Vietnam as one of the promising overseas investment countries. The purposes of this study are to analyze current investment status of Korean textiles and apparel firms in Vietnam, to explore merits and problems Vietnam has, and to present useful implications and strategies for Korean textiles and apparel companies. Analysis of current secondary data suggests that Korean apparel industry, rather than textiles industry, have invested more in Vietnam, mostly in southern Ho Chi Minh City. Investments of Korean apparel and textile firms have shown steady increase from 1990 but have turned to a decrease from 1995. Findings suggested that Vietnam has merits for attracting foreign investment since it provides relatively cheap labor and outstanding skillful hands suitable for apparel and textiles industries. In addition, because of EU quota increase and the trade agreement between Vietnam and USA it is likely for firms in Vietnam to increase exports to EU and USA Rapid expansion of domestic apparel market and "Korean trend (Han Rue)" in Vietnam resulted from successful star marketing of Korean firms are another merits Vietnam has to the Korean fm. However, regulations of central government, low efficiency of bureaucratic and stiff administrative process, difficulty of making decision in case of joint venture, lack of social overhead capital, high factory construction costs, weak construction condition, and the excessive competition among investment enterprises have found to be problems. Based on pros and cons of investment to Vietnam, marketing strategies, practical implications and future directions were suggested.

• The Journal of Asian Finance, Economics and Business
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• v.8 no.3
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• pp.1217-1230
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• 2021

Using a multinomial logit model with the panel-data set of Vietnam manufacturing firms, this paper investigates the impacts of foreign direct investment (FDI) - small and medium enterprises (SMEs) linkages and other factors on SMEs' participation in the global value chain (GVC). We consider GVC firms are those engaging in any of the three modes including (i) using domestic inputs to export (D2E), (ii) using imported inputs to produce for the domestic market (I2P), (iii) using imported inputs to export (I2E). We discover that FDI-SME linkages statistically encourage Vietnamese SMEs to integrate into the GVC via I2P and I2E, while no statistical association between FDI-SME linkage and D2E participation is found. GVCs participation likelihood is also positively correlated with the introduction of new product introduction. The establishment of firms' production facilities in industrial zones and foreign ownership are both reported to be significantly decisive factors to SMEs' decisions on GVC participation. Besides, there is a strong association between firms' attributes, i.e. employment, capital intensity as well as financial access, and their participation in the GVC. Local governance quality (proxied by the Provincial Competitiveness Index) and the share of skilled labor at the province-level can facilitate firms' integration into GVCs, while greater market concentration may be a hurdle to such potential.

• KDI Journal of Economic Policy
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.55-92
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• 2010

In terms of labor market accomplishments, such as income, size of the company, and the matching quality between one's job and college major (specialization), a very large discrepancy is observed between the graduates from colleges located in Seoul and those outside Seoul. But, when the department average score of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) at the time of college entrance is controlled for, the discrepancy is found to be reduced to a considerable degree. In the case of wage gap, at least two third can be explained by the SAT score gap. The remaining wage gap seems to reflect the characteristics of workplace. In other words, graduates with high SAT scores enter colleges located in Seoul and thus tend to find better jobs leading to earning differences. This result that confirms the importance of aptitude test scores suggests that in the labor market, one of the major reasons behind a lower accomplishment of the graduate from local colleges is due to a lower competitiveness of local colleges in attracting the brightest students. But, this should not be viewed as only an internal problem of local colleges. This is because the growth of local economies tends to haul the advancement of local colleges in that area rather than being the other way around. The agglomeration effect in Seoul where headquarters of large corporations and financial institutions gather is the factor that has elevated the status of colleges located in Seoul since this provides highly preferred job choices of graduates. When the competitiveness of college is significantly influenced by exogenous factors, such as the vicinity to Seoul, the effort being made by colleges alone would not be enough to improve the situation. However, the central government, too, is not in the position to carry out countermeasure policies for such problems. The regional development strategy boosted through supportive policies for local colleges, such as financial support, is not based on the persuasive and empirical grounds. It is true that college education is universal and that the government''s intervention in assisting local colleges to secure basic conditions, such as tenure faculty and adequate facilities is necessary. However, the way of intervention should not be a support-only type. In order to improve the efficiency and effect of financial support, restructuring programs, including the merger and integration of insolvent colleges, should be underway prior to providing support. In addition, when the policy is focused on education recipients-local college students, and not on education providers-local colleges, the importance of regional gap in compulsory education (elementary and junior high schools) turns out to be much important as the gap between metropolitan area colleges and local colleges. Considering the educational gap before college entrance shown from the discrepancies of aptitude test scores among different regions, the imbalance between regions in terms of human resources is apparently derived from compulsory education, and not from college education. Therefore, there is a need to double the policy efforts to reduce the educational gap among different regions. In addition, given the current situation where it is difficult to find appropriate ex post facto policy measures to solve the problem of income gap between the graduates from metropolitan colleges and local colleges, it can be said that improving the environment for compulsory education in local areas is a growing necessity for bridging the educational gap among different regions.

• International Journal of Computer Science & Network Security
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• v.22 no.8
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• pp.260-268
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• 2022

The article considers the training, competitiveness of specialists, professional mobility, professionalism and competence of specialists in the context of distance learning. The advantages of distance learning are shown. The characteristic features of distance learning in the preparation of students and in the implementation of these technologies in the educational process of higher educational institutions are determined. Competitiveness, professional mobility, professionalism and competence of a specialist are qualities that determine a person's life and work success. Professional mobility is interpreted as a systemic quality of a specialist's personality, which includes a whole range of knowledge, skills, abilities, personal qualities, value orientations, and so on. The vision of mobility of specialists by foreign scientists is presented. It is noted that the classification of professional mobility presented in the article makes it possible to organize various movements from a single position, to present them as separate manifestations of the general process of professional and pedagogical mobility, to determine which type of mobility ensures the performance of certain social functions. It was found that mobility can be differentiated into differentiated and intergeneration. According to the subject, individual and group mobility are distinguished; according to the direction - internal and external. The classification of employees according to their attitude to mobility is shown, which can be divided into the following groups: actually mobile; potentially mobile; actually stable; potentially stable.