가족기업의 연구동향과 과제

Abstract

A family business may sound unfamiliar to many Korean people, but it is a business which grandly exists around the world. In fact, a family business is a very important research subject because of the following reasons: First, most independent businesses are family businesses. Second, family businesses differ from non-family businesses in terms of management goals. Third, unlike the management of non-family businesses, family business owners try to transfer ownership of the business to their children. Fourth, policy makers have carefully watched the difference in performance between family business and non-family business and have shown great interest in helping family businesses. This paper contributes to the development of the national economy by introducing the western society concept of family business to Korea, and fostering studies on family businesses, drawing the attention of the public and helping more researchers participate in the study of this area. This paper aims to answer the following questions: 1) What are the research trend and topics concerning family businesses in advanced countries? and 2) what are the core ways to facilitate the study of family businesses in Korea? Historically, family business has played a pivotal role in developing and fostering western civilization and the very foundations of economies. Since the Industrial Revolution, however, it began to disappear due to the emergence of conglomerates and business schools. By the 1980s, family business began to be thoroughly investigated and since the late 1990s, it has moved into a growth stage. Despite its recent beginnings, studies on family businesses have come to the fore recently. Many theories on family business have been shared with titles such as systems theory, agency theory, stewardship theory and resource-based theory. Meanwhile, even though most small and medium-sized enterprises are family businesses in Korea, the research on these companies has been ignored. These days, working-level consultants including CPAs and tax attorneys have shown interest in the succession of family businesses. Due to a request from academia and small and medium-sized enterprises, international seminars on family business have been held, and related subjects and theses have been found within the realm of universities. The government has also taken proper actions such as the opening of the 'Center for Family Business Succession Support' and the 'revision of laws' to lower the taxes on the inheritance of family businesses. These changes are very desirable phenomena even though they are somewhat delayed. To effectively examine the research trends and topics of family businesses (the first purpose of this paper), this study reviewed the literature of a total of 118 papers and articles from the internationally-prestigious family-owned business journal, the 'Family Business Review (FBR),' from 2003 to 2008. The results were as follows. First, quantitative studies were more greatly preferred to qualitative studies(conceptual), accounting for 70.3% of studies. The number of papers has slightly increased over time as well. For qualitative studies (29.7%), papers that propose a new theory or model were the majority as opposed to those that introduced conventional studies or suggested directions. Second, papers testing hypotheses accounted for a majority (45.7%) of the quantitative studies with 21 case studies (17.8%). Third, when the data that were used in qualitative studies of FBR were examined, cross-sectional data were more preferred than longitudinal data. In terms of the origin of the data, the papers in which data were collected by a researcher through a questionnaire survey were the highest (47%), followed by papers (45.7%) that used secondary data (database). With regard to the level of analysis, a corporate level of analysis (71.1%) was observed to be the most prevalent. When classified by research topic, lastly, the distinctiveness & dynamics of family businesses that include the new theory or model of a family business or complexities of family members were the highest (31.4%), and business strategy/ organizational development(22.1%), ownership/ business performance(16.9%), succession(15.2%) accounted for a great portion. To facilitate the study of family businesses, in Korea(the second purpose of this paper), it should be recognized as an independent field of study. Joint cooperation between scholars, family businesses and consultants is essential. Also a case study would be essential to promote this project. Furthermore, in order for this new field of study to evolve into an independent field of study in business administration, the following will be necessary: First, a family business-related association such as the Family Firm Institute (FFI) in the U. S. and the Family Business Network (FBN) in Europe should be founded. Second, the development of professional educational (degree) programs and Advanced Management Program (AMP) should be developed. To help people obtain a family business-related education, furthermore, professional educational courses need to be developed. Third, systematic theory network should be established. In the West, for example, a lot of new theories have been developed because of great support from Family Business Review (FBR) and the International Family Enterprise Research Academy (IFERA). We also need to develop our own family business-related theories systematically. Fourth, the improvement of related databases should be developed. In Korea, unfortunately, the basic data on family businesses such as the ratio of family business in total industries and its role barely exist. Therefore, it is very urgent to add family business-related data to the ongoing survey (ex: Small and Medium Business Administration, etc.) or further collect statistical data on family businesses. And to facilitate ‘Family Business’ as an independent field of study, a close academia-practitioners-consultants cooperation is required. For example, academia need to focus on true needs in family business by applying clear standards and strict assessment criteria. If these efforts continue, the studies on family business could be accelerated by drawing great attention from the public. At the same time, it is necessary to improve the reputation and image of family businesses. For this, family business owners (practitioners)must make greater efforts. To improve the current negative image of family businesses in Korea, they need to promote fair and transparent management and establish a respected corporate culture as soon as possible. If loyal and respected tradition and culture are transferred to the current generation and the local community, the public will start to see family businesses good businesses. At the same time, these changes may accelerate the improvement of related tax laws and government policies. Lastly, consultants including CPAs, tax attorneys, management counselors and financial planners should learn family business-related theories systematically and apply what they learned in practice. If a close cooperation between scholars, family businesses and consultants continues as mentioned above, the future of Korean family businesses would be promising. As Korea's first paper on family businesses to highlight research trends and topics, it would appear that this can help proliferate related studies, bring balance in business administration and create synergy. With the increase in the number of research subjects and related papers and the generalization of research topics, the effect of this paper will be doubled.