A Study on the Types and Effective Management Schemes of the Cooperative Farmers' Organizations in Korea

작목별 협동조직의 유형과 효율적 운영방안에 관한 연구

The objectives of this study were to 1) classify the cooperative farmers' organizations in Korea according to the development level and institutional aspects through the exploration of its' conceptual and institutional basis, 2) analyze the farmers' needs for organization, 3) identify the problems and situation of organizations, and 4) formulate an effective management model for each cooperative farmers' organization. The study was carried out through a review of literature and using available statistical data collected from various sources and empirical survey. Major findings of the study were: 1) the cooperative farmers' organizations could be classified into four types : crop units, farming cooperative corporation, trust farming companies and joint-stock agri-business. 2) a lot of members of the organization feel that the information is insufficient, the opportunity to suggest their own ideas is hardly given, and the members are not satisfied with the cooperation among the members, 3) the members who have higher level of schooling education showed a higher participation level in the organization, 4) most of members did not recognize the organization they participated in, 5) participation of the organization's members and concerned institutions is an important factor to promote problem solving and better communication within the organization, 6) any type of continuing education for the members is needed to facilitate the transfer of a new agricultural and organizational technology, 7) research and development(R & D) is one of the most important factors of the development of organizations, 8) most organizations are deficient in professional management skills(financial, personal, accounts, etc.), 9) the trust farming companies have difficulties in managing the firm on account of the characteristics of agriculture(especially seasonal), the dispersed trust lands, and the need for more alternative work in the winter season, and 10) in the case of agri-businesses, their organizations are more specialized in marketing and have more structured systems of management. Based on the results of the study the following recommendations were made for further improvement and development of agricultural cooperative organizations : (1) More governmental support should be given to education for improvement of the organizational structure. And more deliberate and differentiated governmental support should be provided for the organizations to be viably managed. (2) For more efficient communication between the members and the organization, more opportunities for discussion are needed. (3) The more research should be committed to this kind of work in order to get more analytic data and strategic plans of cooperative organizations.