환경에 대한 관심의 증가와 4차산업혁명 기술의 발전으로 지속적인 성장이 기대되는 글로벌 물시장에서 국내 물산업은 공공성과 안정성에 대한 강조로 기술 발전 및 혁신적 성장에 한계를 보이고 있다. 이러한 한계 극복을 위해서 최근 한국수자원공사는 오픈이노베이션에서 중요한 역할을 하고 있는 스타트업을 중심으로 국내 물산업 생태계를 활성화하면서 동시에 물산업 혁신을 위해 물산업 창업기업을 발굴, 육성하고 있다. 본 연구는 물산업 창업기업이 국내 물시장을 혁신시키고 글로벌 물시장을 선도하는 유니콘 기업으로 성장하기 위해 반드시 필요한 벤처투자 유치의 성공률 제고를 목적으로 하고 있다. 본 연구는 선행연구를 참고 후 초기 투자자 대상 FGI기법을 통해 투자결정요인에 대한 주요요인 5개 항목과 세부요인 17개 항목을 도출하였다. 도출된 투자결정요인을 토대로 41명의 창업기업 대표를 대상으로 조사를 진행하였다. 응답자 그룹은 투자유치 경험이 있는 창업기업과 투자유치 경험이 없는 창업기업으로 구분하여 비교분석하였고 분석방법은 AHP 기법을 활용하였다. 분석 결과 투자유치경험이 있는 기업과 초기투자자의 투자결정요인의 우선순위가 유사함을 확인할 수 있었고, 투자유치경험이 없는 그룹은 투자를 자금 조달의 방법으로만 생각하고 있음을 확인할 수 있었다. 이러한 결과를 토대로 물산업 창업기업을 발굴, 육성하고 있는 기관에게 육성중인 창업기업의 투자유치율 제고를 위한 시사점을 제안하였다.

The purpose of this research is to improve the investment success rate for startups in the water industry for the development of the entrepreneurial environment of the Korean water industry. In this research, we identified investment determinants through prior research and stratified them, and then surveyed the investor group at the beginning of the start-up using the FGI method, and determined the order of the investment determinants of investors. At the same time, we classified 41 start-ups related to the water industry into two groups: the group that received investment and the group that did not in the early stages of the start-up. Then we investigated the understanding of the investor's investment determinants, ranked them, and compared them by using the AHP technique. Through this, this research proposes five implications. First, it is important for start-ups in the early stages to receive seed investment to revitalize investment for startups in the water industry. For this, startups need to understand investors and prepare to attract investment with the perspective of angel investors rather than the perspective of VC investors. Second, Start-ups in the water sector should consider that the characteristics of the founder are important in order to receive seed investment, and also need to define their business at the industry and market level, and provide relevant rationale to meet the expectations of investors who value industry expertise and experience, and to increase the possibility of seed investment, which is important in the early stages of a startup. Third, institutions, such as K-water(Korea Water Resources Corporation), that support water industry startups need to conduct open innovation business opportunities discovery programs linked to startups so that startups currently participating in the startup support program could have business opportunities from the business infrastructure of platform-forming companies in the water industry. In particular, such institutions should help founders develop their industrial expertise and careers by supporting this type of start-up preparation process through the participation of in-house venture founders. Fourth, when K-water uses the government start-up support fund to discover and foster founders, it should increase initial contact with seed investors, conduct more thorough verification of business plans, and develop programs that use government start-up support funds to prepare a business suitable for seed angel investors. Fifth, K-water should support seed by connecting funds for initial investment among funds operated by itself. It is also necessary to develop a program that links the company receiving the seed investment with VC investment, not angel investment in cooperation with the VC fund operation entity participating as an LP so that companies that have attracted seed investment could attract follow-up VC investment.

(게재일: 2021.02.28)