한국의 기업가정신 활동: 2008년 글로벌기업가정신연구(GEM) 일반성인조사(APS)를 중심으로

Abstract

This report investigates the current status of entrepreneurship in Korea. It compares the frequency and nature of entrepreneurial activity in Korea with other countries around the world who have participated in the 2008 Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM)Adult Population Survey. The purpose of the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM) is to build and enhance global understanding about the attitudes, activity, and aspiration of entrepreneurs. By providing greater knowledge about entrepreneurship, GEM can help governments, businesses, and educators around the world design policies, develop programs, and provide assistance to help these enterprising individuals thrthrtin an increasing global business environment. GEM is a consortium of national academic teams and a central coordination team. Working together, this consortium administers an adult population survey (APS) of at least 2,000 individuals from 18-64 years old in each participating country. In addition, GEM conducts National Expert Surveys(NES), to provide information about particular factors impacting entrepreneurship in each country. Starting with 10 relatively wealthy countries in its first survey in 1999, GEM has brought together 64 countries over a ten-year period, representing an increasingly diverse set of economies from a spectrum of income levels. The 2008 GEM Adult Population Survey (APS) was conducted in 43 countries, which included the re-entry of Korea after a five-year hiatus. This report organizes the 43 countries into three groupings based on different economic development levels: factor-driven, efficiency-driven, and innovation-driven. Korea is among the 18 higher-income innovation-driven economies. Many of the comparisons made in this report with respect to Korea are within this group of countries. The GEM Model shows three groupings of framework conditions that influence entrepreneurship, which in turn impacts national economic growth. In measuring entrepreneurial activity, GEM includes four phases: potential, nascent, new, and established entrepreneurs. This report focuses primarily on nascent and new entrepreneurs, which make up the Total Entrepreneurial Activity(TEA) rate. This rate was 10% of the adult population in Korea, one of the highest TEA rates exhibited among the innovation-driven countries. While many of these entrepreneurs were motivated by improvement-driven opportunity (the prospects for higher income or independence) there was also a high proportion of need or necessity-based entrepreneurship. The rate of business discontinuation is the highest in Korea, relative to the other innovation-driven countries. The frequency through which entrepreneurs both start and discontinue businesses indicates a high level of entrepreneurial dynamism in this country. One distinct quality of entrepreneurship in Korea is the ratio of male to female participation in entrepreneurship. While this varies among countries across the entire sample, the innovation-driven countries generally have a male-to-female entrepreneurship ratio of two to one, with some (U.S., Germany) having a much lower ratio. Korea, however, has about a three-to-one ratio. Another prominent characteristic describing Korean entrepreneurs is the comparatively high level of education they have achieved, particularly graduate experience. Reports from the National Expert Survey reveal that availability of funding is a challenge for entrepreneurs, which is generally a concern for all the innovation-driven economies. Experts in Korea agree that entrepreneurship is a priority for government, and this can be reflected in the variety of government programs initiated to promote entrepreneurship, including the establishment of technology incubators. In 2008, GEM recognized the importance of entrepreneurship-specific education and training by including questions relating to this special topic in the survey. While general education levels are high among Korean entrepreneurs, entrepreneurship-specific education and training, both in school and outside of school, were the lowest among the innovation-driven economies. While there is agreement among the national experts that entrepreneurs need help planning their startups, there is also a perception that current education and training is inadequate, particularly in school and universities.