Abstract
This study looked at the current status of Korean social enterprises and their problems and suggested governmental policy implications for enhancing the competitiveness of social enterprises. As the study methods, the current status of social enterprises was analyzed and performance of social enterprise support was examined and then policy implications for promoting the social enterprises were analyzed. First, the direction of governmental policy regarding the promotion of social enterprise should be converted into the ecosystem oriented or each business oriented getting out of the labor cost oriented and should emphasize on the follow up management and evaluation. Second, the certification program that bothers the expansion of social enterprises should be changed. That is, the government should change a policy into the direction that leaves the activities of social enterprise to the market function while easing the criteria of certification. Only by this, can more activities and job creation effects of social enterprise be expected. Third, the directions of governmental policies related to social entrepreneur fostering should be corrected and complemented. To resolve this so called problem, a standard model including the policy of standardized programs and contents for each business, type and local autonomous entity needs to be suggested. The educational programs and contents composed of such a standard model can enhance the professionalism and efficiency in social entrepreneur fostering. Finally the concept of social economy is needed to be more wide spread. That is, as a base of social enterprise activity, systematic and professional educational programs through university or graduate school are required. In Korea, for social enterprise to develop, excessive governmental involvement in the market should decrease. That is, the certification requirement for social enterprise should be eased much and a direct support for social enterprise should be converted into an indirect support method, which enables more activities of social enterprise and higher job creation effect. In the long term, social entrepreneurs should be fostered to enhance professionalism and efficiency so that social enterprise can have competitiveness.
Highlights
Social enterprise originated in Europe and it is after 1997, that is, after so-called IMF economic crisis that social enterprise started to be publicly considered in South Korea
This study looked at the current status of Korean social enterprises and their problems and suggested governmental policy implications for enhancing the competitiveness of social enterprises
The certification program that bothers the expansion of social enterprises should be changed
Summary
Social enterprise originated in Europe and it is after 1997, that is, after so-called IMF economic crisis that social enterprise started to be publicly considered in South Korea (hereinafter called, Korea). The Social Enterprise Promotion Act (July 2007) was enforced and the social job creation business gained some performances as a model that created profits and sought self-reliance. Thanks to the stable job creation and social service provision using the 3rd sectors such as the governmental non-profit corporate and group, the social enterprise policy started to be rooted. In Korea, the directions of social enterprise are developing into the employment creation for a vulnerable social group, social integration, provision of service needed by social communities and welfare level of job creation. As social enterprise policy effects, the number of social enterprises after five years of the said Act enforcement reached 565 (September 30, 2011) and the number of employed workers over all social enterprises was 15,000 and among them employees from the vulnerable social group exceeded around 9,000. It can be evaluated that social enterprises have been rapidly grown due to enormous demands for welfare based on the welfare pluralism and know-how accumulated in the economic growth process
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