Informatization mainly based on computerization may be one of the sectors that have advanced most rapidly in 21st century. As the government and companies seek ultimate survival and sustainable development through achieving low cost, high quality and efficiency in this age of limitless as well as borderless competition, they have found it necessary to share and exchange information in a timely and accurate manner inside and outside the company and therefore came to recognize e-business involving information and communication technology to be a good solution to it. With this recognition, informatization has been introduced in various areas making a series of rapid progress to be applied in almost all areas. Meanwhile, structural innovation of trade, a key industry in Korean economy, is a major strategy for dramatically changing corporate as well as national competitiveness. In this regard, Korea has saw development in overall areas of commercial trade, foreign exchange, customs and distribution after trade automation services became available in 1990, with Act on Promotion of Trade Business Automation established in 1989. Nevertheless, despite such development and changes there exists big gap in satisfaction between government and companies due to the diversity and complexity of the procedures as well as industrial agents and ranges it involves. It results from various causes such as dispersed information channels, lack of functional connectivity, companies' lack of awareness, inactive PR activities and misunderstanding on analysis of cost and benefit, although almost procedures for trade business has been digitalized in its application and process.
In this research, basic concept of paperless trading would be revisited, and then current domestic status of paperless trading would be reviewed. Status of governmental organizations and companies would also be analyzed with major focus on distribution flow of marine transportation, and limitations and solutions thereof would be discussed for further development in this area.
Recent data of the company where the researcher is being employed has been utilized to reflect reality more accurately. Also in order to ensure objectivity, precedent studies, references as well as research data and information strategy planning of related government offices have been referenced to describe current status. Survey was also conducted with the professionals in the field to figure out limitations and suggest direction for development.
In conducting the survey, verification process such as factorial analysis, hypothesis testing, verification of potential cause and causal relationship was simplified. Questionnaire items were also simplified by focusing on practical business to avoid perfunctory survey putting pressure on the respondents. All of this simplification was a part of efforts to draw simple and clear questions in order to conduct a survey customized to study model and thus conduct empirical analysis. Therefore, this research focuses on results of survey and empirical analysis rather than numerical data.
Results of empirical analysis drawn from these procedures are as follows:
1. Companies are less digitalized than government agencies when reviewing the status of paperless trading.
2. Trade information network provided by professional firms are utilized more than the one directly provided by governmental agencies, and the reason thereof is as following;
- Trade information network of governmental agencies provide trade-related information such as reports, statistics and policies, but professional firms provide services required for inter-company activities on top of the information provided by the government agencies.
3. Overall satisfaction level was diminished by establishment of dispersed trade information network by each government agency and company.
- Single-window trade information network required
- Trade information network that allows connected work process without any break required.
4. Real-time cargo tracking service was the most wanted requirement of the companies.
Through the interpretation of these results and implications of empirical analysis, this research has raised the necessity of establishing an environment where continuity is ensured by private enterprises' establishing integrated trade information network. The research also suggests steady PR activities are necessary to encourage participation of all parties related to paperless trading and to get rid of blind spots for informatization. Increased utilization of trade information network was also recommended, and limitations and solutions have been suggested for quality improvement.
However, references and papers used for precedent study were limited to those on general paperless trading thus not fully reflecting national export-import logistics information system for marine transportation that is currently in use. This research also excludes consignors in consideration due to current domestic situation where Third Party Logistics is a major way of business. Hope this research can help develop studies on global logistics and its development strategies that also reflect consignors in the future.