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 ICSB World Conference - Ministerial Reception |
중소기업연구원 원장 재임이후 : 2006년 6월 19일 |
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Good evening Minister, Haermeyer, friends, and colleagues: I am really honored to have this opportunity to convey our appreciation for your warm welcome. On behalf of the all the friends and colleagues gathered here in this evening, especially of the Korean delegation, I thank you for your welcome as well as for your efforts in making this conference possible. My gratitude goes above all to my SEAANZ colleagues and to Colin, all of whom, I believe, have been working really hard to prepare for this outstanding occasion. When it comes to a conference, we often carry so much tension with us because of the technical aspect of presented papers, which, often times, we never understand, or because of its formality which seems to be so rigid. An ICSB conference, however, has been so joyful that it has always been regarded as a festival rather than a boring classroom lecture that never ends. As I find myself here?sitting in this beautiful city of Melbourne, I am frankly very much relaxed as, I believe, we all are. So, for a moment, let us brush aside all the work and assignments we must finish and think of something refreshing. I believe that this festivity has been a tradition in all of our ICSB meetings and conferences. And it stems from the fact that ICSB is not only a gathering of scholars but also educators, policy-makers, as well as business practitioners. In other words, ICSB has successfully created a forum of harmony where talented people can gather and discuss experiences garnered from their respective specialties, thereby contributing to the progress of small and medium enterprises around the world. Indeed, I believe that diversity and harmony are twin pillars of ICSB’s core strength, which makes ICSB unique in its kind. Yet we have never forgotten our fundamental task, that is, to uncover the underlying causes that inhibit SMEs from progressing further. As diverse as we are, today’s SMEs are afflicted by countless new problems that they have never seen before. For instance, one of such problems is the formidable force of globalization. Yet we all know that no one can possibly do away with this. Since this change in our business environment seems to be permanent, we have no choice but to effectively adapt to it. Hence, we must rethink the way in which we have been conducting our businesses. To this extent, ICSB Korea and I have proposed to organize the ICSB Conference in 2009 in Seoul, Korea with a main theme of “The Dynamism of Small Business.” Consequently, I hope that you?friends and colleagues gathered here in this evening?to craft and present a new paradigm for SMEs in the global era, not only for survival but also for future prosperity of SMEs. On the other hand, I must admit that most SMEs serve markets of various kinds. Hence it follows that their problems may be unique to the market they serve. To this respect, the theme SEAANZ has selected for this conference, “Unique Solutions for Unique Environment,” adequately reflects our sincere efforts to craft solutions to the problems of today’s SMEs. Thus, friends in SEAANZ and the Board of ICSB, especially President Colin, aptly deserve credit for their thoughtfulness. I hope that my small talk did not bore you but refreshed you. I thank you again Mr. Minister for your support of this conference and welcoming us. Friends in SEAANZ and Colin, I thank you for this memorable evening. Good evening to you and thank you all. |
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